Battery Clamp for a Xantia

[KP]

I remember seeing a post on here where someone ordered a battery clamp off the bay of fleas and fitted it to their Xantia.

Well the positive one needs doing on mine before i sell it and am wondering if there is a good aftermarket one or whether i should use one of the ones off the breaker Xantia as they are soft lead i was thinking i could cut one open and then use a soldering iron to soften the lead up and close it back up or some fat mole grips after softening it with a blow torch and squeeze it back onto its new copper wire ends?

Anyone got any suggestions as there are a few different types on fleabay but i'd rather get a decent one for the new owner rather than some cheap get me by rubbish.

[citroenxm]

Just get the Motor Factor ones Will, with the TWO screws in the wire orface that secures the wires..

Discard the crappy lead ones completely... and I dont thing they will solder back together very well, OR once opened really need destroying to remove them..

THESE PAIR are perfectly GOOD enough Will...

[KP]

I thought about them paul but is the + supply to the starter not too thick for that little hole?!?

[citroenxm]

NO, you can get them in both side if need to....

[citroenxm]

I beleve you also need THIS LITTLE blighter too..

[citroenxm]

LOL..I know... amazing.

Still might be quicker then me finding one...

[KP]

I do indeed and a interior fan unit though I refuse to pay £4 shopping for a rusty clamp lol

Will get the clamp ordered up me thinks

Cheers Paul

[citronut]

i would not use that type of replacement battery terminal, as the screws do not hold the cable core but just go through it,

the likes of this type are far better as they clamp the cable core

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Universal-Car ... 0893030784" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[addo]

They're cast aluminium alloy. I've similar ones in brass, and they're OK at cable clamping but a poor fit on the terminals of my DIN66 battery.

[citronut]

my link was just showing the cable clamping idea really Adam

[MTND]

I do indeed and a interior fan unit though I refuse to pay £4 shopping for a rusty clamp lol

Will get the clamp ordered up me thinks

Cheers Paul

I got a brand new clamp from my local Citroen dealer and had to get a pack of four. I've used one myself and given one away already, I'll keep one as a spare but I have another one to give away?
You could wait till a rally next year or if you PM me with your address I could see how much postage actually is?

Regards

Mark

[KP]

Thanks Mark thats greatly appreciated

PM en route!

[Old-Guy]

Slightly off-topic. Just refurbished a Xantia battery tray and clamp. the magic stuff for cleaning up anything really rusty is 'Spirits of Salts'. This is strong hydrochloric acid and amazingly easy to buy from hardware shops, considering that it's really dangerous stuff.

Be careful, hydrochloric acid is seriously corrosive. PLEASE wear eye-protection and thick PVC gloves. Do the job in the open air with the wind blowing the fumes away from you - think WW1 Gas Attack!

The resulting yellow liquid is an acidic solution of ferric chloride - its almost as nasty as the neat acid and it stains.

Paint on a small amount of acid with a cheap paint-brush, leave it to do its stuff, wash off with lots of cold water, final wash with boiling water (speeds up both drying and the next acid treatment). Repeat until all the brown rust has been dissolved - quickly dry with a hot air stripper and prime immediately. The freshly etched surface is very active and will start to go rusty as you watch!

Incidentally, if you ever need to solder onto steel, hydrochloric acid is the best surface preparation once paint and grease have been removed.

[KP]

Can kurust or such not be used more easily than such nasty stuff?

Depends how rusty it is when I get to it really. I recall it wasn't too bad when I swapped the battery for a spare I had but that also needs swapping back for a 65ah one I have in the garage that's tested very well but was at the bottom if the pile when I needed it lol

[myglaren]

Phosphoric acid is the active ingredient in all rustproofing materials that I can think of.