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Odyssey PC680 - did you know?

BillL

Well Known Member
A few of us still use the Odyssey PC680 battery.

I have had mine since 12-2017, and it gets a slow spin now and again. So, coming up on 5 years. Time to do some research . . .

When I went looking found that the red-top-black case or the red-top-red case are variants of the PC680. I am finding the red case has a higher listed price, so it has to be better - right?

I sent a note to Odyssey about this for an "RV application", and here is the answer to: "are they the same?

"Yes, the guts are the same. Actually we put the black battery <guts> into a red "metal jacket" which is a sheet metal sleeve. The metal jacket increases the operating temperature of the battery which I wouldn't think is needed in an RV application."

This metal jacket increases temperature specification from 113F to 176F.
It looks like the red case has better specs for our RV's in spite of the additional weight but wonder about field experience.

Has your experience in battery life been the same for either? Black case - ODS-AGM16L (PC680) or Red case - ODS-AGM16LMJ (PC689MJ)
 
I have two PC-680s in parallel on the firewall. Backup avionics are wired to number 2, which I would switch in if needed. 5+ years on these batteries in including 3 Minnesota winters. They're on an Odyssey battery charger OBC-6A 24/7 while in my hangar. They have both been utterly reliable.
 
I've had the plastic jacket 680 for maybe 15 years now, perhaps 3 or 4 of them. It survived a 1.5 hour taxi at Oshkosh some years ago... I'm sure it was nearly roasted.

I believe the metal jacket one is larger dimensionally, so be aware of that.
 
I had a Red/Black type that I purchased in 2007 and was put to service in 2008 and worked fine till 2019. I always connected it to a trickle charger when not in use which some people say is a no no.

It seems the older one last much longer than the new ones.
 
My undocumented theory is that heat kills batteries, and pre-2012ish odyssey batteries were better.
I killed a std plastic orange Odyseey battery once a year in Kansas temps from 2013-2017 if memory serves correctly. I’m sure the higher temp rating would last longer.
My 1st EarthX lasted about 4 years in the same airplane and same environment, but only a year on the second one so time will tell.
 
A friend of mine bought the jacketed version (red) to replace his non-jacketed battery (black). The jacketed version is wider in both dimensions due to the thickness of the metal jacket. So it wouldn't fit. He brought it to me and I removed the jacket, which was not a simple process but worked out in the end.
 
680

The metal jacket model does not fit in the standard vans battery box. The battery is glued into the jacket with a big dab of clear silicone on front and back sides. Local autozone usually has 680’s with the metal jacket. You can slice open a corner of the metal jacket with a cutoff wheel (there is a bit of space in the corners) but easier and quicker way is a serrated bread knife inserted between the battery and the jacket and just cut thru the silicone.

Don Broussard
RV9 Rebuild in Progress
57 Pacer
 
Vans use the metal jacket as battery box

The VANS metal-Jacket is very tight on the battery. It seems, that the metal jacket itself is the battery case, which is used as the battery holder, together with two angles left and right.

So if you buy a jacket version, it does not fit.
 
Odyssey PC680

I'd look for alternatives. I have an Odyssey AGM16L PC680, new in the box that came in my Firewall Forward Kit in June of this year. The battery won't hold a charge and shows an internal short. Odyssey Corporate won't warrant it. Van's won't warrant it. Van's distributer won't warrant it.

Better be looking for options. Mine is a $185 boat anchor.

:mad:
 
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I’ve been running dual PC-625 batteries in all three RV projects, the first is over 20 now. I get more than six years of service (the pulled batteries go on to the various neighbors tractors). I never use a batteries minder/tender/trickle charger. The 625 has a little more CCA and AMP-Hrs than the 680 and is a little lighter. You do however need to modify the battery mount.

For the RV-10 two fit very well into the stock mount with slight modifications.

Carl
 
Walmart online is selling the red top for $127 manufactured June 2022...

Seem to work ok in my plane.

OP what was the date on your batteries that failed (from Vans)?
 
It has been a while since I dug into it, but my understanding is the only difference between the black and red PC680 is the steel jacket. The steel jacket allows a higher internal temperature before the case cracks (plastic is not as strong as steel). The vent in the battery is set at a specific pressure. As a result, the plastic battery will vent at a lower pressure, hence a lower temperature, than the steel case version, therefore lower temp rating for the plastic. If you take the steel case off of the PC680MJ, the vent will hold a higher pressure, but the car may crack rather than the vent working, not an advisable thing to do. Electrically, they are the same.

Tim
 
Walmart online is selling the red top for $127 manufactured June 2022...

Seem to work ok in my plane.

OP what was the date on your batteries that failed (from Vans)?

On walmart.com, I see the PC680 for $126, but they also have one for $181. The specs look identical. Which one is better?
 
Fullriver FT230

After doing some digging on VAF and elsewhere, I just replaced my ailing, less than 2 year old PC-680 with a Fullriver FT230 AGM. My experience with the PC-680 is similar to others who have posted here - the older ones seemed almost bulletproof, the newer ones not so much.

I can report that the FT230 fits perfectly in the metal battery box on my -7. It is rated at 20AH/230CCA which is more than the 16AH/170CCA of the current PC-680. It's not cheap - basically $149 depending upon where you buy it. Not that much different than the Odyssey.

So far so good. We will see if it will go the distance.
 
I’ve been using the SBS J16 for quite some time, no issues, from my research I think it’s a bit better than the 680.
 
I’ve been using the SBS J16 for quite some time, no issues, from my research I think it’s a bit better than the 680.

Is the SBS J16 also an Odyssey battery made by EnerSys? At aircraft spruce it is called PowerSafe but listed under Odyssey. Looks like it is the same as a PC680 but FAA PMA?
 
Is the SBS J16 also an Odyssey battery made by EnerSys? At aircraft spruce it is called PowerSafe but listed under Odyssey. Looks like it is the same as a PC680 but FAA PMA?

Yes. They are the same basic battery but the SBS J16 must comply with the inspection requirements set forth by its FAA approval. That would imply more stringent tolerances than the PC 680. But that may not be true if both models come off the same factory line with quality assurance standards that exceed the FAA requirements. If so you would be paying the extra $50 for a different label on the same battery. I can't say for sure. However, the price of the PC 680 has stabilized over the years and even dropped a little while the SBS has risen a little (used to be a $20 spread). I know of an example of product that exceed FAA certification requirements are modern seat belts which must comply with federal motor vehicle requirements that are much higher. The antiquated FAA seat restaint standards have been eclipsed. So maybe the same thing with the Odyssey / Powesafe batteries.
 
FAA PMA

Also, I think the FAA PMA certification means they can not change assembly location either. So if the original battery was certified for production in USA, then that battery manufacturing cannot be moved to Mexico, or another place overseas.

So I am confident that if the FAA PMA version holds up well, it will always be that way in the future. For Walmart batteries, those manufactures can decide tomorrow to move the line somewhere else and the consumer would never know unless the reliability starts to waiver.

So the question is, are the FAA PMA batteries suffering the same reliability issues?
 
Giving SBS-J16 a try

I just removed a PC-680 that I installed 8 months ago and replaced it with SBS-J16.

I have been losing faith in the PC-680 over the last couple of months. I usually fly at least once a week and I had 2 occurrences were the battery did not have enough charge to start the engine.

On one occasion, the engine would barely turn over. When I connected my Odyssey charger to battery, the charger detected an issue and would not go into charge mode. Eventually, I got the battery to take a charge and it was working fine until last week.

The second occasion was last week. The battery turned the engine over but not very fast. It didn't take much to run the battery down and I wasn't able to start the engine. That's when I ordered the SBS-J16.

I installed the new battery today and the engine started right away. I could tell from the get go that it was turning the engine faster than the PC-680 at full charge.

I had one other anomaly a couple of months ago. I was out doing a local flight and about 30 minutes into the flight the Voltage went to about 15.9 V for a couple of minutes before coming back down to my normal 14.6v steady state. I had the same thing happen a second time before I landed. I discussed this with my avionics guru brother and he thought a battery cell might be starting to go bad.

Hopefully, I will get better service out of the new battery
 
My 10 month old PC680 is worn out. We'll see if they honor the warranty, if not I'm going to try something new from these recommendations.
 
There is a lot of info and discussion out there on the forum about the 680 and performance. Life cycles is all over the map from months to over a decade. A battery that fails after 10 months is either blatantly defective or improperly maintained.

Full disclosure: I own 2 and paid for them myself, and have no other experience with any other brand.

My 7 is 14 months old, 225hrs and has lots of starts on the books. Never trickle charge, using a B&C regulator set to stock volts (14.2 IIRC). The batteries themselves are just over 26 months old and powered the entire initial installation of the electrical system (I charged them when required back then). That's just another data point.

As a suggestion, before starting down the path of swapping batteries and looking for an alternative, be sure to reexamine your charging system and power distribution, top to bottom.

My dad is famous for his story about buying a "Lifetime" warranty battery from a local chain back in the day, and returning a battery every 6 months for a new one. The manager cringed every time he walked thru the door but honored the warranty during my entire childhood. Fact is, the car (cars) he ran the batteries in had marginal electrical systems that ate batteries like crazy ...

Hope you find a good solution!

Cheers
 
As a suggestion, before starting down the path of swapping batteries and looking for an alternative, be sure to reexamine your charging system and power distribution, top to bottom.

Cheers

Bill in my case my alternator displays 14.2V and I trickle charge only using an Odyssey charger when not flying for longer than about 1-2 wks. Battery in cabin so not subjected to excess heat. Never overly discharged. Got 5+ yrs out of the Concorde. We'll see if they have any feedback for some other possible root cause.
 
Fyi I have not bought one of the newer PC680s as last one purchased was back in 2016. That being said, here is MY PC680 experience.

-My first PC680 lasted through build and first 200 hours (2 years) back in 2006-2008
-my number 2 PC680 lasted 500 hours from 2008-2015 (7 years)
-my number 3 PC680 during its first few years I started having hot start issues, not related to battery, but ran the battery down significantly multiple times trying to hot start.
-Bought my number 4 PC680 as a backup and would swap between my number 3 and 4 battery multiple times after I ran one down with my hot start issues. Probably swap back and forth 5-8 times. Finally in 2017 I put in a SDS CPi electronic ignition and hot start issue went away. Put in my PC680 battery number 3 and have had it in there for the last 350 hours and 5 years.
-just this week after my condition inspection and running battery quit a bit my number 3 did not have enough umph to start my RV on a 30 degree day so charged up number 4 that has been sitting in box for last 5 years and it started my engine right up the last few cold mornings. Will see how long it lasts.

I typically fly every week. I do have an Odyssey charger that I used on batteries 3 and 4 when I was running them down in trying to start but have never left any of my PC680s on trickle charger.
 
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Is the PC680 the right application?

I replaced a 5 year old Concorde in January with a PC680 when the Concorde was struggling to get the first blade compression (IO-320). Appreciated the local retail pickup, price and weight savings.

After 11 months (just when the weather got colder) the PC680 started having the same issue. Used the Odyssey trickle charger. My Foxwell tester indicated the battery needed replacing.

Today before we got started, I put the PC680 on the Foxwell and it said it was OK. In fact, it said it had 190CCA, 10% more than rating. So I put it back in the plane and started going through the Skytec troubleshooting today. Step 1, Skytec procedures say battery is questionable.

Got 2nd opinion, a different tester also indicated the PC680 was healthy.

I learned a rough thumbrule for battery sizing is about 1 CCA per in^3 of displacement. I decided to buy a Duracell AGM motorcycle battery. Same weight, lower cost, roughly same dims (no major battery box mods needed), 310 CCA. Spins prop great. We'll see how it goes.

Also have a theory that those testers provide more accurate results if you give them some time after taking them off a trickle charger.

Meanwhile, Phil Lehrke or other local folks, I have a free PC680 if you like.

Bob
 
I decided to buy a Duracell AGM motorcycle battery. Same weight, lower cost, roughly same dims (no major battery box mods needed), 310 CCA. Spins prop great. We'll see how it goes.


Bob

Hi Bob,

Can you provide more details on the Duracell Batter model # and where purchased etc? Also - so was minor battery box mods required? Or was it a drop in replacement?

Thanks!
 
Hi Bob,

Can you provide more details on the Duracell Batter model # and where purchased etc? Also - so was minor battery box mods required? Or was it a drop in replacement?

Thanks!

Triumph,
Duracell Ultra 20HL-BS at Batteries+
I already had some dense foam in a standard Van's cabin RV-6 battery box, I trimmed one of the pieces of foam by about 3/8" to accommodate the increased width.
Bob
 
NOCO

I’ve been highly impressed with the NOCO charger/maintainer/desulfator chargers. I had a PC680 that I was thought dead three years ago that is still going strong after running the repair cycle on it a couple of times. Now I just run the repair 1-2 times per year and everyone is happy. I’ve revived many other sealed AGM batteries in UPS backups, my walker mower, snowmobiles, and several others. Highly recommended.
 
Odyssey Website has some good info

NEVER exceed 15.0 volts across terminals, as it will cause shortened life of battery,.... (but need around 14.1-14.7 volts to properly charge)

Checking "state of battery" must be done at least 6 hours after charge of battery

There is a process to "recondition" a battery, that slowly discharges and then recharges, and may take several cycles
 
I know nothing about this other than the specs listed …..but 10 year guarantee available…..310 CCA …..and looks to be 2.6 lbs lighter https://brssuperbattery.com/product...ormance-sealed-agm-powersport-10-year-battery

Interesting. I have been looking at these for a couple of weeks. They have 3 pricing levels for their warranty , 30 day, 2 year and 10 year. It’s a no questions asked warranty nor is it prorated. I’m just not ready to pull the trigger. Also their 10 year warranty is only valid if it’s been on a maintainer.

Keith
 
Yes. Seems reasonable

....I too am interested in these .....warranty seems reasonable and I would just buy their charger/ maintainer and wire in the plug ......their 10 year pricing is reasonable and the 2 year seems in par with cost of other comparable batteries .......2.6 lbs is significant...little wider so need to measure battery box
 
PC680 energize bunny

I’ve had 4 680s in 10 years, none of them failed. I would change because of a long trip over places with no support or one was on someone else’s shelf for 3 years and never used. I have one on a tug, lawn tractor, 5 years, two others on farm gates 4 years, after they were in the RV for 2 or 3 years, with solar chargers, they all just keep running and running.
 
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