need battery help

I just bought a Cuda 242. What are my battery options? AA set up or 12volt. If I get a 12 volt what will the other considerations be? Is there a certain amp amount or other consideration? I am beginning to consider myself the best kayak fisherman on the west coast (please don't ask me to justify it because it is in an unquantifiable way) but I don't know anything about electronics.

Where should I get my battery setup? I don't want to mail order it. Any and all help would be appreciated.

I am beginning to consider myself the best kayak fisherman on the west coast

Just use your car battery

Merv,

I'm not sure if the draws are similar, but I use an Eagle Fisheasy 245.  I just use 10 AA rechargeables in a ten bat holder stuffed in a cell phone dry bag.  I'll show you if we get to fish in october.  10 AA rechargeables are 12 volts.

Fishshim is the man for this question.

Is radio shack the place to go?

I'm still pretty new at this but I'm using 8 alkaline AA batteries in a holder I picked up at Radio Shack.  I buy the batteries at Costco in a big pack and they seem to last for a few fishing trips.  This may not be the best set-up, long term but it seems to work OK.  I have a Garmin 140.

Theres lots of different setups, since I am into RC cars I robbed tow batteries for my kayak. 13 1.2 volt 4500 mah cells which gave me 15.4 volts fully charged. After 4 hours I only dropped half of a volt and these batteries have been used heavily for almost a year so I couldnt complain. And for 30-45 minute charging time on 4 amps on my $50 rc battery charger that's also a plus.

Jeff

Take this for what its worth, I am just a mechanically inclined lay person.

 I looked up the Eagle Cuda 242 as having a current draw of 240mah with the light on. Thats a pretty low draw so just about any power supply will work fine. It all depends on how much you want to get involved.
 
 Down and dirty, go to radio shack, Interstate battery or a electronics store of your choice and get a 12volt sealed lead acid battery and charger. A 2amp hour(2000mah)battery should last you over 8 hours, the next size up 3.4amp hr.(3400mah) should last 14+ hours. They weigh 1.75-2.6 lbs. Cost will vary but you can get a fairly inexpensive charger at motorcycle accessory shops.  Prices start approx.$20 for battery and same for charger, but you can spend a lot more.

 If weight is an issue the sky is the limit. Lead acid heaviest(cheapest), then Nimh(rechargeable AA,or rc style packs etc,around $100), then LiFePo battery packs(safe non exploding), there is about 30-50% weight savings with each jump. But there is a huge jump in price, its expensive to go green and light. Battery technology is really ramping up now so the lithiums will be getting less expensive with increasing suppliers, and their life cycle is pretty long, and charging times are getting shorter.

I'm reading the owners manual and it says input power 10-17 Volts. Does that mean I can use any battery rated between 10-17 volts? Can I use the 14 volt rc batteries?


How about this for using AA batteries?
http://www.batteryprice.com/10xaabatteryholder.aspx

I'm reading the owners manual and it says input power 10-17 Volts. Does that mean I can use any battery rated between 10-17 volts? Can I use the 14 volt rc batteries?


How about this for using AA batteries?
http://www.batteryprice.com/10xaabatteryholder.aspx

The answer is Yes and yes!  12 volt car/boat batteries charge up over 12 volts. My AA battery pack has 12 Nimh batteries,14volts with 2650mah. At a similar current draw as yours it lasts 10.5 hours, one long day or a day and 1/2 on the water.

Thanks. I think I have it figured out.

A while ago Backcountry posted instructions on how to make a power supply complete with pics and parts list. I used his instructions to make one for me and I'm completely happy with it.

Here's a link to his post:

http://www.norcalkayakanglers.com/index.php/topic,9638.0.html

Gerry

Bought my lead acid and charger from Cabelas. It's a good system, but you do have to order it...

Theres lots of different setups, since I am into RC cars I robbed tow batteries for my kayak. 13 1.2 volt 4500 mah cells which gave me 15.4 volts fully charged.

 

4500 MAH?????  Where do I get these batteries?!?!?  WOW thats some power!


FWIW, I started with 8 non-rechargeable AA's (1.5v X 8 = 12V) to power my Eagle Cuda 250, and it worked like a charm.  All the parts for that are at Radio Shack basically.   But then I wanted to go rechargeable so I bought the Maha PowereX 2700 AA's and a 10 cell holder (1.2v X 10 = 12V) and they last a LOT longer than the Energizers I was taking from work   They are pricey, but they are the best battery I have purchased! 

http://www.thomas-distributing.com/maha_2700_rechargeable_batteries.php


And if your looking for an AWESOME charger for AA's, I highly recommend La Cross BC-900.  Thats one sweet charger, but I had to buy two to shorten the charging times. 

http://thomasdistributing.com/shop/la-crosse-bc900-battery-charger-w-lcd-displaybrdeluxe-travel-bag-accessory-kit-brprice-5497-p-539.html?SP_id=41&osCsid=hrpi4gobj0p0hhvh758i7nmbo5

Somebody just gave me a small 12volt motorcycle type battery for free so I think I am going to use that for now. I have the AA battery holders so I will make a project of that for later.

Im as cheap as they come! I work in the electrical trade so I scored some older exit signs that have the 12V mini batterie in them.they work great. When I need to charge I simply plug the exit sign in. ( I put A pig tail on the exit sign.