Battery go bang. You dead.

He was using a 12 V booster box, and there is no way to turn it off. I never connect both cables to the battery. I will place the ground well away from the battery so any spark created would hold little risk of igniting a gas pocket.

I will make sure he never lives it down.

Sometimes even the most seasoned of us need a refresher course in basic auto mechanics and safety 101. An 83 year old friend of mine, (who was working on cars before I was born), did the same thing last year and blew acid all over the interior of his restored 1929 Desoto as well as all over himself. He pulled the charger leads off the battery with the charger still plugged in.

NEVER, BUT NEVER, CONNECT OR DISCONNECT A BATTERY CHARGER TO A BATTERY WHILE THE CHARGER IS PLUGGED IN THE WALL.

There endeth the lesson.

PS: Next time we will discuss priming carburetors with a cup or can full of gasoline.

Best regards,
Steve Stevens

<!-- s:lol: --><img src="{SMILIES_PATH}/icon_lol.gif" alt=":lol:" title="Laughing" /><!-- s:lol: --> You scared me as I read it. Noting that the 66 Galaxie needed boosting on the way back to the dealership today.... Hopefully, no BOOMS for me

Two of our guys got scared out of about five years' growth yesterday, and created the perfect example of how not to boost a battery. We have a 1938 Cadillac parade car, bought for FDR and used by Truman and Ike. The guys were going to move it from from one side of the building to the other so the Detailer could make it spiffy. The battery was low, so one of the guys decided to boost if off with the 12 volt booster. The Old guy, the expert, the Pro from Dover got in the car to start it. He only thought he knew where the starter button was. While he saw seaching for the starter the other guy was hosing the six volt battery with the 12 volt booster. The booster guy got nervous and disconnected the booster, making a spark:boom. It took off the entire top of the battery, except for the posts. It really freaked them out when I started it and drove it with the bottom half of the battery.