Bravo pump- aerotec

simonafloat · 22 April 2016, 14:18

Going to splash out and buy a bravo pump for my aerotec. Which one? Super turbo? Who's got the best deals?

Also I see they do one with a built in rechargable which really appeals to me. Wondering though if it would be cheaper to get the normal one and then buy a separate battery. Anyone done this?

Simon

thestig1973 · 22 April 2016, 17:25

Depends what pressure you need, I used to have the bravo digital, sold it complete with my old boat

I recently bought a bravo super Turbo, manual wheel control, just as good as the digital but it dosen't inflate to as much pressure as the digital

Bravos are worth every penny for SIB use, good resale value too

simonafloat · 22 April 2016, 20:26

Just bit the bullet and bought one. Seamark nunn are selling the rechargeable superturbo for £155 and I would struggle to buy a pump, battery and charger separately for that money. Will be so handy where we are as many of the launch sites are difficult to drive right up to.

So, 1 bravo 4 litre high pressure hand pump is now up for sale! Any takers?

willk · 22 April 2016, 20:30

Quote:

Originally Posted by simonafloat

So, 1 bravo 4 litre high pressure hand pump is now up for sale! Any takers?

IIWY, I'd keep that handy!

thestig1973 · 22 April 2016, 20:56

Quote:

Originally Posted by simonafloat

Just bit the bullet and bought one. Seamark nunn are selling the rechargeable superturbo for £155 and I would struggle to buy a pump, battery and charger separately for that money. Will be so handy where we are as many of the launch sites are difficult to drive right up to.

So, 1 bravo 4 litre high pressure hand pump is now up for sale! Any takers?

Money well spent, you'll have no regrets

John Kennett · 23 April 2016, 06:58

Quote:

Originally Posted by willk

IIWY, I'd keep that handy!

+1

simonafloat · 23 April 2016, 08:57

Unreliable are they?

Max... · 23 April 2016, 09:21

Quote:

Originally Posted by John Kennett

+1

+another! You definitely want to keep a manual pump with you as back up.

Fenlander · 23 April 2016, 10:19

Simon I know you've already decided but for interest this is what I ended up with...

Bought the Bravo HP digital version about 4yrs ago. It's never failed so far but can be a bit quirky if the supply voltage is low.

It was the version without own battery and I soon found the 12v lead too short as often I would drive forwards into a space and setup the boat behind the car but the leads weren't long enough to reach the boat from the battery under the bonnet. So I soon made up a 4m extension lead using "elec lawn mower" connectors. I have this so it can be added only when needed. Despite buying the correct cable for the current these units take when I initially made it longer there was significant voltage drop causing the pump to run slowly. By experimenting I found 4m about the best for a balance between voltage drop and useful length.

As it happens my current estate car has its battery in a nice clean side compartment in the boot which is ideal so we rarely need the extension.

Regardless of using an extension or not I always found it better to have the car running while using the pump as it kept its speed up better... this is particularly so once the HP pump cuts in.

Then a while ago I'd had the situation a few times where I couldn't get the car and boat close for setup so last year bought a 12AH generic battery and neat trickle charger. This has worked well but the battery after only a sesson's use seems to have reduced from just inflating an Aerotec twice to once with a bit left over... I guess I should have bought a better brand battery.

When the battery gets towards the end of its charge the pump slows down a lot and as it gets very low the digital display can get erratic when trying to set a new pressure.

Overall I'd not be without this pump in my kit but always carry a manual backup and I'm realistic they are not made to a day in day out use standard. If it breaks I'll buy another but probably the cheaper one with a dial gauge.

beerbelly · 23 April 2016, 15:38

I use my jump starter pack from work even when it has low charge it works great and is portable .mines a 880 amp unit that cost a couple of hundred quid but you can probably use one of the much cheaper versions I needed something that would start big diesel engines

simonafloat · 30 April 2016, 14:26

Lucky I did take the hand pump today as it happens... The bravo battery ran out of juice before it had finished inflating the boat. Hopefully it's not a dud battery, I think the problem is a dodgy contact on my cars cigarette lighter. Unfortunately the bravo doesn't have an led on it to say it's receiving a charge current... could anyone electrically minded tell me how to fit an led in the circuit without killing the charge current?

Cheers

Simon

Fenlander · 30 April 2016, 19:12

Something like this any use??

12v DIGITAL BATTERY LEVEL MONITOR ALTERNATOR METER GAUGE LAMP INDICATOR STATUS | eBay