Hey all, I just got a 77 and the guy just had the battery sitting in the compartment on its side so I think a bump cracked the battery and it leaked a ton of acid into the compartment. I need a whole new bracket and see you can get them cheap but does Anyone have a picture of how the battery bracket holds the battery in there? Or is it common to leave it just sitting in there? Thanks.

 

Welcome!

Be sure to neutralize that acid, not just rinse it out.

The hold down is a wedge that grips the bottom of the battery. The front sits under a lip. But this requires a specific battery to work.

Here's a link to the hold down at Amazon. You need the bolt, too, or you could likely find something at the hardware store.

 

Cool thank you. I found the part online just wasn't exactly sure how it held the battery in from the pictures of the parts.

 

The diagram at Zip Corvette shows how it works.

https://www.zip-corvette.com/67-82-b...own-clamp.html

While you are at it, be sure to pick up a shop manual, and assembly instruction manual, specific to your 77. And please consider starting an intro thread with photos!

 

Will do! Thanks again, I'm sure I'll be coming around here a lot.

 

Bracket or not I can't for the life of me figure out how the battery got on it's side!
None the less,
A big Welcome to the forum!
I have a 77 as well, just got mine, 37 years ago!

 

It's one of the batteries with only the side posts, so I'm guessing they just thought that it means the posts are the top, kind of of my mistake for not realizing when I looked at the battery too.

 

It scares me to think of a Flooded Lead Acid battery on its side with the electrolyte able to escape. That is a fast way to make a mess of a nice car! When using a regular old FLA battery you need to think about where the electrolyte will go if the battery ruptures. I also verify that it has a good air flow for venting while charging. If using a FLA it is very important to have the bracket to secure the battery 110% so you don't have to worry where it will go if the car is involved in an accident. I was involved in a roll over accident once and the gasoline was pouring down around me with the fuel pump running along, had the battery been loose I wouldn't be here right now.

Being well aware of the ads that tell you that you can mount the newer Absorbed Glass Mat battery in any orientation and it will continue to work. It is not true as the batteries are made with a level ground plane under it. The placement of the AGM batteries favors the conventional battery orientation where Gravity helps keep the plates covered in Electrolyte. The electrolyte in an AGM battery is thick and more like tooth paste in consistency and it doesn't move very quickly. In many positions other than on a flat surface the battery might have inner plates exposed to oxygen and this might lower their capacity.

My battery compartment is thermally insulated and has the standard bracket on it to keep the battery in one place like most 1968 Corvettes. I like to use a battery strap that is attached to something solid like the frame or a cross-member and the battery in a plastic battery box is secured inside the battery compartment. I have a marine grade DC circuit breaker in between the accessories and the battery itself. Being involved with boating I like the requirements for securing a battery inside a marine vessel. Keeping a FLA battery on a boat it would need to be inside a battery box that is securely fastened to the vehicle. The battery should not be able to "get loose" and hurt you even in a bad accident because it is secure. With a cover on the top it is less likely to start a fire which is even more protection. I have an early 1968 C3 and there are a lot of things that started of as fiberglass that were replaced with steel in the later C3's. My battery sits on a fiberglass surface and I wouldn't trust some 56 year old f/g to hold the 35 pound battery down in a 2-4G accident. My passengers seat and the driver seat are bolted to fiberglass as are my lap style seat belts. All new seat belts are on the Christmas list for my baby.