jos51700
Green Bearing thread connoisseur
So, I recently had an interview at a battery plant. I had to sign a NDA, so I can't say who, but I'll say that I'll buy their products from now on! They make ALL kinds of batteries. Batteries for medical, batteries for cars, batteries for nuclear subs and M1 Abrahms Tanks (which are Mopars). All lead acid. All made right here in the USA, in the heartland, with as much USA stuff as possible.
During my interview, before the tour, I told the man "I gotta be honest, I've always run green-top Interstate batteries, not your brand. I'm disappointed because all I see are the black craptastic batteries anymore, and even Interstate discontinued the greentop batteries." (Because that's what my Interstate distributor told me).
He just smiled.
Then the tour started. What's on the line? Green top Interstate brand batteries. He informs me that they make lots of batteries under different labels and that they've always made the Interstate batteries. The premium batteries get something like 95% virgin lead and the black batteries get something like 75% recycled lead (don't quote me, it was loud and overwhelmingly awesome). I'm sure that 20% difference is probably about 6-7 years of premature death mixed into the recycled lead.
I said, "I thought they shut down the last US lead mining operation?" and he said they basically close a plant, re-open one for awhile, let it get closed down, repeat. Thus, they still get virgin lead.
So, you DO get more for your money when you buy a premium battery versus a generic black 'sticker' battery (all that changes between brands is the sticker on the front). The guy was pretty cool, and I'm sure he'd tell me what to buy if I wanted to make sure I got a premium battery. Interestingly enough, they do NOT supply automotive OEM's, and they expect MORE business with the electric car market as many of those still use a 12V lead-acid battery in the system, along with the Lipo batteries. He told me some neat stuff about the nuclear sub batteries, too, but I will not repeat that.
There's your daily trivia. Carry on!
During my interview, before the tour, I told the man "I gotta be honest, I've always run green-top Interstate batteries, not your brand. I'm disappointed because all I see are the black craptastic batteries anymore, and even Interstate discontinued the greentop batteries." (Because that's what my Interstate distributor told me).
He just smiled.
Then the tour started. What's on the line? Green top Interstate brand batteries. He informs me that they make lots of batteries under different labels and that they've always made the Interstate batteries. The premium batteries get something like 95% virgin lead and the black batteries get something like 75% recycled lead (don't quote me, it was loud and overwhelmingly awesome). I'm sure that 20% difference is probably about 6-7 years of premature death mixed into the recycled lead.
I said, "I thought they shut down the last US lead mining operation?" and he said they basically close a plant, re-open one for awhile, let it get closed down, repeat. Thus, they still get virgin lead.
So, you DO get more for your money when you buy a premium battery versus a generic black 'sticker' battery (all that changes between brands is the sticker on the front). The guy was pretty cool, and I'm sure he'd tell me what to buy if I wanted to make sure I got a premium battery. Interestingly enough, they do NOT supply automotive OEM's, and they expect MORE business with the electric car market as many of those still use a 12V lead-acid battery in the system, along with the Lipo batteries. He told me some neat stuff about the nuclear sub batteries, too, but I will not repeat that.
There's your daily trivia. Carry on!