New battery time -- Gill or Concorde

[flyby201]

Looks like its time for me to buy a new battery.  An A&P I know suggested I get a Concorde instead of the Gill I had.  Anyone have any Pireps?

I know a guy that bought a Gill about 6 months ago and it was bad when he got it.  He had a horrible experience trying to get Gill to make it good.  I don't know it he ever did get them to make it good.

[231Pilot]

Concord has worked well for me.

[DrBill]

My last plane needed a new battery and I got a Concorde Worked great.  I'll get a Concorde when mine needs replacement for sure.

Bill

[Sabremech]

From another A&P, go with the Concorde. I have 13 airplanes I maintain and I'm working to get rid of all Gill batts. They don't last as long!

[Ned Gravel]

Go with the Concorde.  I had the Gill until four years ago.  Never looked back.

[jasonwojo]

Sealed Concorde...Gills are terrible.

[Mac201]

After their testing, Aviation Consumer recommends Concorde.

[flyby201]

Thanks all, looks like it's unanimous.

[jetdriven]

We replaced the Gill G-35 which leaked acid in the battery box and required a couple hours of repair, with a Concorde RG35-AXC.  More capacity, sealed.  Lasts >5 years.  Cost was 50$ more I think.

[Lionudakis]

 Concorde !!

[Cruiser]

I currently have a Gill, I will never buy one again.............

[OR75]

Concorde RG35AXC sealed battery.  Good crancking power for those hot starts.

If you don't fly often, make sure you use a battery minder.

 

 

[Vref]

Concorde RG35AXC

[PTK]

Gill <=> Aspen & Garmin <=> Concorde, or

Gill + Aspen << Garmin + Concorde, or simply

Concorde ~ Garmin, it follows therefore

Concorde, if only looking for a battery!

 

[Jeff_S]

So, it's unanimous among 13 people, and I agree with the general recommendations. But realize that there are trade-offs to both types, depending on the conditions in which you fly, so you should at least be familiar with them. If you haven't yet, I recommend going to Mike Busch's seminars at http://www.savvymx.com/index.php/resources/webinar (All About Batteries) and watch his webinar on batteries. Then you can feel confident in whatever decision you make.

[MARZ]

Quote: allsmiles

Gill <=> Aspen & Garmin <=> Concorde, or

Gill + Aspen << Garmin + Concorde, or simply

Concorde ~ Garmin, it follows therefore

Concorde, if only looking for a battery!

 

[MATTS875]

I purcghased the Concorde RG35AXC sealed battery and has been great.Like others said get a battery minder or battery tender and keep plugged in if you do't fly much.

[Seth]

Concorde RG35AXC -That's what I replaced in my F when the Gill went bad.  As noted above, it's sealed, it has extra cranking power for hot starts, and it is not terribly more expensive.  I think that's what newer Mooney Aircraft left the factory with in the 2000s - though I am not 100% sure on that. 

I do know that the Missile has two batteries on a rack located further aft to help with the CG due to the heavier engine.  However, those two batteries are indeed Gil -  So far so good, but hopefully when the time comes, I'll be able to replace them with Concorde sealed batteries.  I'm not sure if that is possible due to the STC.

Go Concorde as suggested by everyone so far.  As an A&P I know said, Gills are POS.  I wouldn't say that, but he did.

 

-Seth

[John Pleisse]

I never researched...just went with my mechanic's suggestion. Concorde. They used to go 2.5 years with an older type starter. I am now on my 5th year with the current Concorde since purchasing a high speed starter. The hot charges after starting just kill them.

[triple8s]

I havent had a problem with Gills lasting, I have however had a problem with them puking acid all over the place! I just replaced a G-35 that lasted 5 years, but I have to remove it at EVERY oil change, scrub the battery box and wash it with baking soda. I have a buddy that told me AFTER the fact to buy a Concorde, he had a Gill puke in the nose of his Jet Ranger and said he will never buy another Gill. My next will be Concorde.

[jetdriven]

The only downside is you must modify the weight and balance but its pretty easy math

 

                                                         W    x                   A          =                    M

 

Removed Gill G-35 Battery                       -27.0                +110.8”                       -2991.6

 

Installed Concord RG35AXC Battery        +32.0               +110.8”                       +3545.6

[MooneyMitch]

We have sealed Concords in both airplanes.  I've cleaned/refurbished the E model battery box too many times due to acid exposure, for whatever reasons.

In addition, the last two Gills were relative short lived.  Time for a change to the Concord and so far so good. 

[jetdriven]

Jim, ours looked like it was riveted to the airframe in a great many spots.  We didnt attempt to remove it. Instead, I convinced my wife to clean it up and remove all the corrosion.

Hey, it was annual time. We all gotta pitch in.  After ten days, it flew again.

[fantom]

I'm om my second Concorde. The first one lasted six years and still had juice. While I never had an issue with Gill, the sealed Concorde was a step up.

Interesting that a non vented RG24-15 weighed 27 pounds, while the old Gill 243 was 28 pounds when full. These are actual weights. No STC or W&B required, I believe.

 

 

[KSMooniac]

I'm another happy Concorde user.  Plane came with a Gill that was installed in 2005 IIRC, and I replaced in 2010 so it did OK, but the Concorde is noticeably better at cranking the engine.  The AOPA Forum is riddled with Gill horror stories from the last few years, especially trying to get them to replace one under warranty.

(after a string of bad Autozone Duralast Gold batteries in my truck, I switched over to a nice sealed Optima at twice the price and am happy with it too.)