Kmart Scorpion generator

Yeah and if i had $999 to spend it would only be another $300 to get the Yamaha. And if i had $1299 for the Yamaha it would only be another $200 for the Honda.

Hi Doug.
Is the $999 the RRP or was it on special? I have seen these for sale at approx $1200.
Regards.
Vince

Vince
Not sure about being on special, it is at Olbis at Rocklea Qld , I have spent $1000s there over the years on CBs,GPS, Phones , Fridge, car Alarm,etc



.Doug

Vince
That last answer was suppose to have had a link . it dissapeared

OLBIS for Engel


Doug

Thanks for the info Doug.
The model I saw was the SHX 2000, hence the price of $1200.
Vince

Brew69
At $999 I reackon that is a good price, and although you had to go over the top and add units up to $1299 plus , I thought we dealing with units at $599 and $999, Now here's how I do things , and mind you I don't expect you to follow suit but if it's dollars you want to save then read on,
You buy the Scorpion for $599 , it craps itself in 12 months because it's chinese schitt, then you go and get another one , $599 X 2 = $1198, I would make my first purchese the $999 unit made in Japan and have it last 4 years , .....who's in front eh.


Doug

Vince
I seen this one above at Retravision in Newman WA for $1100 back in May this year, but I think the extra dollars for the bigger unit would well the extra.

Doug

Doug i thank you for your contribution. But when i went to school $999 was 66% more than $599.

Brew69
You asked for imformation and others ideas, now when you get it you want to argue , Why do I bother ,
Take the bloody Blinkers OFF.

Sorry i upset you Doug. I just liked in to telling a salesman i have 10k for a car and he shows me a 16k car.

Hey Brew69

Lets do the Math.

For argument sake we will round out our figures.

60% of 1000 = 600 leaving 40% left.


So if 1 item cost $600 and the other is $1000 this would make it 40% dearer.

Doug you were right, by the way I failed Maths at School.

Cheers Steve.

Steve sorry to rain on your maths. If one item costs $1000 and one $600 then it is 40% less. However if the original purchase price is $600 then you talk about spending $1000......it is $400 more. $400 more than $600 is about 66%.

Hey Steve,

Can I have 40% of one of your tours?

Would that make a $1000 become $400?

LOL

Muddy

Well my post was only 50% wrong.LOL

Steve.

Well... that's an improvement on most of your posts :)

Why don't you F@ck off you Troll.

Tell me Steve: have you ever considered purchasing a sense of humour?

Mike

Now that made me LOL...

Cheers

Richard

I plan on running it 24x7 wherever i camp. Stuff the neighbours :)

Brew + Brew 69 , if the db levels your saying are correct it makes my 4yr old start 1st pull every time ,14hr run time on 5lt , 2 stroke Scorpion 900w, cost price $199 [4yrs ago ] the ducks guts because 53db on full bore is all she registers at the standard measure of 7mtr.

Brew can you give me your travel plans for the next 2 years lol dave

I hope you saw the :)
In all honesty i cant see the gererator doing much other than charging my batteries for a few hours every 3 or so days.

If that's all you want from a gen and if noise isn't an issue then go the GMC cheapie route and buy a three stage, 240V, charger from Jaycar.

It really isn't necessary to have a $1500 Honda gen and a $500 298 stage charger in order to put a few amps into a battery - despite what the "Internet Experts" say.

Mike Harding

Mike. I have the GMC cheapy and it runs well albeit a bit loud. I was camping with Luck and Muddy Doe last year and Muddy's battery charger bit the dust and the blame was pointed at the GMC. I am getting a Durst 3 stage charger of Ebay and was fearful that a similar fate would be awaiting it if the GMC was to be its power source. Is it possible the charger died a natural death?

Hi Brew

In common with most small gens the GMCs have poor load control, ie. they tend to surge when load is removed - all gens do this - Honda's included - but the better quality ones do it less.

I cannot comment on the above issue you mention except to say that if any 240V appliance cannot withstand a short term supply voltage increase of, at least, 10% and preferably 20%, then it shouldn't be on the market - particularly if it's supposed to be a top of the range product?

With all small gens: don't allow them to run out of fuel and when you intend to remove a large load from them pull the plug on everything attached to the gen in one go.

And, I'll repeat, you do not need an expensive battery charger in order to to put a few amps into a battery.

Mike Harding

Mike: do you need to charge your battery from the GMC through a charger? I've been charging mine directly from the Gennie 12v.

Also, do you reckon the Gennie would harm an inverter, given the instability of the 240 current?

Hi Steve

It’s not essential to use a 240V charger from a small gen but it’s a much better way to charge a battery.

The 12 volt output of these small gens is pretty poor (Honda included) and will tend to overcharge a battery unless you keep a careful check on the charge state of the battery and remove it as soon as it’s fully charged – not simply to do. Overcharging a battery causes gassing and reduces the life (considerably) of sealed batteries.

Additionally the “12 volts” is usually closer to 20V+ peak and is outside the spec. of, probably, every lead acid battery – although that probably won’t do any harm providing you don’t overcharge the battery.

On top of that the 12V output is usually only capable of supplying 6 or 7 amps whereas a half decent switch mode 240V charger will be able to supply 10 to 15 amps to an AGM.

To conclude; I would only use the 12V output in an emergency (flat battery) and I would ensure I kept a careful eye on the charge state of the battery.

Jaycar do a reasonable charger for $100:

Jaycar charger

Mike Harding

cheers Mike.

Point taken re: charging through the charger due to monitoring accuracy

I take it the generator won't harm the charger or inverter running on 240v?


Had my eye on this one thinking the smaller one wouldn't suit AGM or GEL batteries.

http://www.jaycar.com.au/productView.asp?ID=MB3620&CATID=18&keywords=&SPECIAL=&form=CAT&ProdCodeOnly=&Keyword1=&Keyword2=&pageNumber=&priceMin=&priceMax=&SUBCATID=295

what d'you reckon?

cheers,

Steve

>I take it the generator won't harm the charger or inverter
>running on 240v?

Just take the normal precautions with all small gens of not connecting/disconnecting large loads whilst leaving other loads plugged in and don't let the gen run out of petrol - they do hunt rather badly then.

Yep, that charger looks fine and is the top one Jaycar do, I'm sure it'll do what you need - I think they do a 30 day money back thing if not satisfied thing too?

Mike Harding

thanks Mike - you're a good 'un

not many of us left ;-)

Mainey, I am not a fan of solar but i understand it works for some. I am after something that i can set and forget. The initial costs are too large for me too.

Leaving $$ totally out of the equation
and also not allowing this to get 'personal' is there any specific reason you "are not a fan of solar" ?

As to set & forget, there is absolutely nothing for you to do with solar, once it's installed correctly you actually do 'forget' it exists.

Maybe, just maybe you can be converted :-)

We could consider it as a 'learning experience' as many people with solar are happy campers.
I've been using and **** solar power since 1996 and would never consider any other source of power for bush camping, simply because it works, it's there doing it's job unattended 365 days a year, in the bush, the street and in the local shopping centre car park too, it continues to work efficiently, where-ever you are parked (in the sun) unlike any other form of 12v battery charging system.

However that said, I agree it does N O T suit everyone ....

If your travelling every few days and making camp for only a few days at a time you will NOT get any real benefit from a solar power system, it's significant benefit is only for people camped or stationary for many days or weeks at a time, as the Alternator will fully recharge the Aux battery/s while travelling.

One reason to be against solar. It`s raining here today, so no sun. Regards G.T. ( Gold Coast)

It's always sunny there on the Gold Coast - isn't it ??

Beautiful one day ... 'better' the next (or similar)


Where do you put the generator when it's raining ?
Does it start to rust if it's left out to run in the rain ?

Do you have to go into the rain and turn it on & off lol


Solar works in the rain, unless it's an almost black sky !

try this link. Shows what I am talking about.
Peter

http://cgi.ebay.com.au/BATTERY-CHARGER---12V-50-AMP---PETROL-CHARGER---NEW_W0QQitemZ330177688298QQcmdZViewItem

I have seen these before but had forgotten about them. Could be a good solution. Cheers

I am pretty sure the seller is Derek from ABR. Ask him on this site for some feedback if he is selling them

Model: SW50A
DC voltage: 12 Volts
DC current: 0 ~ 50 Amps
Max voltage (Low): 14.5 Volts
Max voltage (High): 15.5 Volts
Voltage cut out: 18 Volts

The Amp charge rate, has to be set to charge at a rate according to the battery capacity, so you have to know the battery capacity and as the battery capacity will change as the battery charges, so do you turn it down or risk damage?

It does not have any AC Output specs mentioned so it’s only a 12 Volt DC genny with-out the capacity of charging 240v items ?

As with all 12v products you need to understand how it works and it’s various limitations, often it’s worth buying a more technically advanced product.
Honda or Yamaha are both quieter flat out than this is at idle, have variable charge capability and with the advantage of 240v, but yes an extra ~$400.

But, if Honda etc was bought originally it would be about what you would pay for previous genny and now this new (replacement) one, that may not last any longer either.

Mainey.
I think you may have mis-read what we are talking about. This is not a generator. It is a 12v battery charger which happens to be petrol driven. And no you don't have to turn the charge rate down as it charges. The originator of this thread (Brew) was enquiring about something reasonable priced to charge his batteries when camping.
Peter

You can get a $39 coffee maker that plugs into a ciggy lighter socket, it takes 6 minutes to boil water.

I would NOT recommend them in the "as sold condition" as they heat up and burn out the cable due to the high Amps drain with the pathetic 'skinny cable' supplied.

I rewired mine and run it direct from a Low Voltage plug fitted to the vehicle interior wall, works a treat as it now heats up much faster (< 4 mins) with the thicker cable and no fire threat.

Ah yes i forgot about ol whistler lol. Wonder where it's next holiday will be ?
And yes the light is a goer, altho i changed the way i was going to do it lol.