Group 35 DieHard Platinum/Odyssey PC1400, Battery Tray/Winch Control Mount

Dirty Pool · Mar 25, 2021

This size battery only "kinda fits" in the OEM location. The terminals are correct but the stock hold down is just a little off and will not prevent lateral or twisting movement.
Additionally I needed to have the winch control box mounted on the engine side of the battery. My dying Optima Orange Top had T-slots of sorts on each end that readily held the box. All the cables were already cut and trained for this location so it had to remain.
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Old Optima and winch control, RIP after 12 years. Most folks say "they don't make em like they used to".

Requirements for the new tray.
It had to be non invasive/removable, prevent any possible movement of the battery and provide 100% support of the battery bottom along with providing a spot for the winch control.
The solution was to mimic the way the OEM plastic tray was located. It has 2 nipples (white arrows, pic 3), so to speak, that fit into corresponding holes in the battery shelf on the fender. The new tray would end up as more of a box, preventing any sideways movement. The OEM hold down would be used for nothing more than to hold the battery down. I did add 3/4" x3/4" x1/8" angle with 1/8" rubber strips to the inside of the stock brackets on the hold down due to the new battery being not quite as deep.

14g steel parts cut and bent, fresh from the acid bath (I hate mill scale).

All welded up with 4 "heavy pattern" nuts tacked on for the control box mount and 2 short pieces of pipe on the bottom to "key" the tray to the fender shelf.

All painted with a couple lengths of door edge trim to prevent any chafing of the battery case. The battery has lugs (pic above) at the base on the front and back eliminating any front to back movement. Thin rubber sheet was used between the box/battery and box/fender shelf.

Installed with Mil. Spec. connectors.

Now with dual quick disconnects.