The NorthStar AGM Battery + Voltage Booster Upgrade

Ive actually got the cbi battery hold down ordered and thought it’d be here by now. Dang i do like that rago though. I forgot about them and that’s where my ditch light brackets came from. Ordered it Sunday. Idk hopefully i can make it fit and yeah I’m gonna put some padding underneath it too like you did cowsmasher! In other news I’ve installed the blue sea ammeter and shunt. I’m not sure I’ve got it hooked up to everything i need to for it to measure amperage used throughout my whole setup bc when trucks on its only showing 1.1 amps. Does it need to go to the alternator positive also? I know its a bit off topic

 

Awesome I went with the type for camper shells I got it at autozone.

 

Glad to see this. Pretty much what I plan on doing with my 2018, and just doing a monthly check on my NOCO.

 

So this is interesting, not sure what to make of it. The 240A alternator package in the Gladiator comes with a factory AGM battery, but the battery says in bold print to limit charging to 14.4v, which is the peak charge voltage for a traditional lead acid battery, not the higher voltage for an AGM.

 

Interesting.

 

You buy a gladiator crash?

 

On the short term list is the Magnuson 440hp supercharger which should go nicely with the 8spd.

 

Lol not sure if serious. That’s like the equivalent to the Tundra or say a hemi...

 

Yep. Completely serious:
https://www.magnusonsuperchargers.com/product-p/01-19-36-003-bl.htm

 

Holy shit! Ill be damned man.. you’re sticking around here i hope?! I always look for your posts and soak in as much knowledge as my brain can handle... nice looking gladiator for sure! Favorite one I’ve seen

 

It is the new desert model tuned for high speed desert running.

And yep, I’m still staying here. No worries there.

 

Classic case of the QAQC process working perfectly..

 

@crashnburn80 Hey man! First let me say this post and you have taught me a ton so I thank you for that! I had a quick question for ya. I'm planning on putting a dual battery system in my 2015 TRD OR and had hoped to use two Northstar AGM 27F's under the hood utilizing the HKB electric voltage booster outlined in this post. I am realizing now however I won't actually be able to fit a 27F in the aux battery location above the passenger fender (derp). So I'm wondering would it be kosher to run a Group 35 northstar AGM in the aux location & a Group 27F AGM in the starter location, with the voltage booster, isolated by an ML-ACR? I really appreciate the help!

Nick in VT

 

Added the 0.5v booster fuse into my wife’s Subaru Crosstrek today to boost her X2Power AGM. Took about 8 weeks from OZ but finally made it.

 

Ideally the primary and secondary battery are the same size, type and age. In a dual battery setup, I'd consider running a smaller primary battery such as the 24F rather than the larger 27F which will provide less weight on the nose/tray and a closer match to the secondary battery. Unless you have a winch with extreme power draw that you are using often, if you have a secondary battery there is really no need for such extreme power reserve in the primary battery that the Northstar 27F offers. The 27F Northstar primary battery recommendation is geared around those seeking maximum battery performance from a single battery.

 

Gotchya. Thanks so much for the input. I was really sticking with the 27F since that's the stock size in my rig, although a lighter battery would be nicer. I will be getting a winch here soon as well and thought that would be another reason to stick with the bigger battery. I won't be using it THAT much so maybe a 24F will be just fine. Will a 24F still be adequate for the occasional winch pull?

 

Keep in mind the Northstar 24F is more powerful than the stock lead acid 27F.

Stock 27F: 625 CCA, 130min RC
Northstar 24F: 840 CCA, 160min RC

So yes it will be able to run a winch without issue, if you connected your dual batteries in such a way the power could draw from both you'd have enough for some pretty good pulls which is what I'd aim to do since you will have the battery capacity under the hood.

 

Went with the 27F. At -40 CCA is your friend.

 

So quick question about peak voltage. During cold start up when I haven’t driven the truck in a few days my voltage is up to 14.77-14.8
Is that to high?
I usually refrain from turning on any lights until the alternator settles down a little bit.
I have the variable voltage booster so I could adjust the switches to reduce if needed.

 

About right on target for a cold start. Peak should be no higher than 14.8v.