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Once again, a very sincere thank you for all the replies.
Joe Bob, this one is for you : o).
Last night I pulled the battery out of the car and checked it again. The meter showed just under 10 volts. I then put it on a 'better' charger than the Battery Tender Jr, set the charger to charge at 10 amps and let it go. At this point the charger showed it was outputting about 14-15 volts, so I let it run.
I did, however, check the voltage with the charger connected and it still showed 10 volts. This validates what bpu699 already knew and had stated above.
After about 15 minutes the charger shut off saying the battery was charged. I checked with the meter and got 9.6 volts. I set the charger to 2 amps to put it on a trickle charge and let it run over night. This morning, 9.6 volts.
At this point, I am going to agree that the battery is bad. If it will only charge to ~10 volts then there is a bad cell and it is done.
On a separate note, I have to bring up the most common alternator test, which is to start the car and check the voltage at the battery. Based on what I have learned from all of you and from this experience, there is a BIG prerequisite which is often left out of this test. It appears that you need to know the voltage of the battery before you start the car. If the voltage at the battery is 11 volts, then with the car running, you will only get ~11 volts even if the alternator is putting out 13- 14.
Quicksilver, thank you for the recommendations. If there is still an issue after I remove the battery as a possible problem, I will update the post with the results and any fixes.
Thanks again to all.
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Has anyone seen my 10mm??
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