If the charger is working it should be 13.8 volts or above. Some will charge at 16 volts. A battery can show 13 volts and be dead. As soon as you put a load on it it will drop like a rock to a voltage that is consistent with however many cells are actually good. Testing a battery with out a load on it is useless. I have a neat little battery tester that is computerized that will tell me exactly where a battery is at in its lifespan.

Not this exact one but close

Takes a lot of the guess work out of it.


"In time of war, send me all the Alabamians you can get, but in time of peace, for Lord's sake, send them to somebody else." General Edward H. Plummer

"Blessed are those who, in the face of death, think only about the front sight." Jeff Cooper