Re: What Is Jumper
Celena Holtzberg
A jumper (in American English), jumper dress, or pinafore dress[1][2] is a sleeveless, collarless dress intended to be worn over a blouse, shirt, T-shirt or sweater.[3][4][5] Hemlines can be of different lengths and the type of collar and whether or not there is pleating are also variables in the design.[6]
In British English, the term jumper describes what is called a sweater in American English. Also, in more formal British usage, a distinction is made between a pinafore dress and a pinafore. The latter, though a related garment, has an open back and is worn as an apron. In American English, pinafore always refers to an apron.[citation needed]
A sundress, like a jumper, is sleeveless and collarless; however, such articles are not worn over a blouse or sweater, and are of distinctly different cuts and fashions. The apron dress may be viewed as a special case of the jumper. If the design of the dress is directly inspired by an apron (having a bib in front and ties in the back, for example), the garment is typically described as an apron dress.[7]
Jumpers in the United States were part of the sportswear collections of Jean Patou, Coco Chanel and Paul Poiret.[6] Suzanne Lenglen wore Patou's jumper design in the 1920s.[6] The dresses, worn over blouses, became popular during the decade of the 1920s.[9] Jumpers were often worn in the summer and made out of various types of fabrics.[10]
Jumpers were touted as an "American" and a "sports fashion" in 1930 by the Pittsburgh Press.[11] The dresses were also praised for allowing women to create color combinations through the choice of blouse worn underneath.[11]
I recently bought a used car, and it didn't come with any jumper cables, so I'm going to buy some. I briefly looked around at a store and online, and there seems to be a wide variety of prices and specifications. These are the particular specs I've seen variation in:
Are there any significant practical differences between different materials used in jumper cables? How can I determine what gauge wire I need? Is there anything else I should consider when selecting a set?
The biggest thing to look at for me is the gauge of the wire. The reason I bring this up is, the higher the gauge (numerically) the thinner the wire. Thinner wire will require your jump-start procedure to take more time, as it takes a while to charge the battery before you'll have enough juice to get it running. Thinner wire cannot pass enough amperage to start a vehicle. You'll find when trying to jump another car, the wire can get warm during the attempt. This is because it's trying to pass more juice than the wire can handle. With thicker wires you can actually start the vehicle directly from the running vehicle with little to no wait time.
You will also find that the larger gauge (lower number numerically) will have longer cable lengths, which will allow you to go battery-to-battery more easily in more and varied situations. I bought a set of 2-gauge cables over 20 years ago which continue to service me today. They are about 20' long, which gets me from battery-to-battery very easily.
While the cost of cables goes up as the wire gets thicker, you'll also notice the quality of clamps get better as well. Cheap wires have cheap clamps, which are a pain-in-the-butt to use as well as they are less likely to stand up to time. Cheap clamps are copper plated. Better clamps will be solid copper, which will transmit electricity much better. After utilizing a plated set a few time, the copper can be worn off down to the steel substrate, which does not transmit the electricity nearly as well, meaning your cables won't work very well.
Insulation is no different as to the gauge of wire. The thicker wire, the better the insulation. If you live in a cold climate, cheaper insulation will usually crack very easily. Better insulation will retain its pliability while you uncoil and recoil it during/after use. Cheap insulation will not want to straighten out, making them very hard to use.
The jumper cables were cheapo specials I bought in a supermarket, and were only just long enough for me to get the battery connected to the "jump" car if they were literally bumper to bumper. Longer ones are better, simply because you don't need to do this. Pushing a dead car off the drive in freezing rain is no fun, particularly if you then have to spend a further 5-10 mins in the rain fiddling with the connections to make them work!
As already noted by others, the lower the gauge, the less time you'll spend waiting for your battery to be ready. Vital in winter. Might save whoever you're having to jump off a little petrol and time too.
If, like me, you're constantly having to jump the car, or conversely you're doing it for the first time having had little sleep and in the dark, you may accidentally do what I did one cold morning and cross the cables.
This is not advised for several reasons, least of which is the speed at which the metal clamps heat up. Thankfully I was protected from a major shock by the rapidly melting insulation on the actual clamps.
Unfortunately, as the insulation was melting, I still got a shock and additionally a very nasty burn to my hand for my trouble. I'd definitely recommend completely skipping anything with shrink-wrap style insulation and go for something with a fully plastic handle surrounding the clamps, or something with very thick insulation on the handles. You'll thank me if you ever do something stupid with them, like I did.
Remember, you usually use jumper cables at the most INAPPROPRIATE times, in the freezing cold, at night, or in the rain. Dont skimp on this important piece of safety equipment. Dont go less than 4 gauge. The last thing you want to be doing is waiting in these conditions for the battery to charge up enough to start. Dont ask me how i know!
first, what I recommend is at lease 4 gauge, 20 foot, or better jumper cables. If you have the money, try to get all copper wire jumper cables. If you don't have the money for all copper, then get at least 2 gauge cables. The reason I say this, most jumper cables sold now, especially the cheaper ones, ane what they call copper clad. What that means is, the jumper cables are made out of an aluminum cable/wire, with a very thin, copper coating on the outside. More then 99% of the wire is aluminum. Because of this, a 4 gauge all copper wire will give about the same amps as a 2 gauge copper clad aluminum wire.
The other reason why the all copper wires are better is because the all copper ones are more durable then the copper clad versions. While I am in no way saying that the copper clad version is not durable at all, the aluminum in it can corrode over time, where this is less likely to happen with the all copper ones.
The reasons that I say to get at least 4 gauge is this. Once a vehicle is started, the alternator should produce enough power to keep the vehicle running, no matter what kind of condition the battery is in. If you get a vehicle that the battery is just about completely dead, or does not hold much of a charge, the 4 gauge ones should be able to get that vehicle started with no problem, and then the alternator should continue to charge the battery, along with keep the vehicle running. But if you use some cheap 10 or 12 gauge cables, you will have to wait a while for the battery to charge up enough to start the vehicle, before it will start. Those thin jumper cables will add very little power to what is in the vehicle, so you have to have the power charged up in the battery to get it started. If that battery does not hold a charge, then the thin, cheap, 10 or 12 gauge ones, will never be able to get the other vehicle started because they can not transfer enough amps to get it started. So you will want something that will be able to get the vehicle started, no matter the condition of the battery.
And as other have stated, the 20 foot length should give you plenty of length to get to the battery on both vehicles. You never want to be stuck in a position where you have to push a vehicle, and move it, just so you can get another vehicle close enough to jump it. This can especially be problematic if you are on a hill, or in the snow, etc.
As for any of those jumper boxes that plug into your cigarette lighter. Those will only be good if you have a slightly low battery, and have plenty of time to wait for the power to be transferred from the box to the battery. Also, dont forget, if you have to turn your ignition key to the on position to get that socket to work, that also means that you are going to waste a lot of that power, to power the stuff in the car when the switch is turned on. Those type of jumpers, while good for a slightly low battery, and if have the time (which can be a good 20 minutes or more). But, if your battery is, say half dead, or more, then those types will never give your battery enough power to get it started.
Think of it this way. Most regular jump starters, whether it be one that you connect straight to the battery, or though the cigarette lighter socket in the car, all have what they call SLA batteries in them. What this is, is basically, the same exact type of battery that is in your car, but in a spill proof container. SLA stands for, sealed lead acid. Now take into consideration that the battery is also in a carrying case with lots of plastic around it too, plus any circuitry, etc. Now compare that to the size of your battery in the vehicle. It (the jumper) is many times smaller, which just goes to show you, just how little they have in power. If you need numbers, some of those jumpers can hold as little as 7ah of power.. while a small car battery will start at around 50ah of power. The higher the number, the more power it can store. That means, a vehicles car battery can be 7 times more powerful, and can around as much as 14 times more powerful for larger vehicle. This is why they can be useful, but also is very limited too.
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