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Hey i got a '86 Ford F150, i've been doing work on it since i bought it, it needed a new battery (the one it came with was bad, and it wasn't the right one), I put it in, she cranks up, and runs real smooth, but the next day, the battery has no cells in it, take that battery back, get a new one, it cranks up all day, and once the next day, i leave, and when i come back the same day and try to crank it up, it is dead again! I had the alternator tested (bad) and just in case if there is something else that could be wrong with it? I redirected the negative cable to another grounding point (one where it was at it, the wiring was deshelled, and kept hitting surrounding metal), and she is a real good truck, nice, roomy, and not in bad shape, and the transmission keeps slipping, when i put it in drive, i have to hit the gas for it to flip into the next gear, and i can't seem to figure it out, besides a transmission flush (been sitting up for quite some time). But anybody that can assist me with these problems, i will be grateful. Thank you all  

i sounds like you have something draining the battery of its power...  batteries are rechargeable...  you don't have to replace them when they are new and just discharged..   thats what battery chargers are for...  it takes several hours at 10 amps on a charger to bring a battery back to full charge  when it has been deeply discharged...

now... do you have a 12 volt test light????    start with a fully charged battery...

with the drivers window down... the engine turned OFF..  disconnect the negative cable... hook the test light between the end of the battery cable and the battery post you disconnected it from....   if it lights up...  you have a draw...  something that is taking the  power out of the battery while the engine is off...


oh... and ground wires have to be properly attached ...

from the negative battery .. it has to be hooked to the body and to the engine ....    failure to have a good ground hooked up.. will drive you crazy chasing problems that are caused by the lack of a proper ground cable...  size is important also....   remember... the battery cables don't carry only half the current... each one carries all the current...    

electrons flow from negative to positive...

anything that uses electricity needs a complete circuit ...

what most people don't understand.   the motor sits on rubber mounts... this isolates the motor... so ground cables have to be installed.. between the engine and battery... and between the engine and the body...    the engine control computer is also only grounded to the engine block...


now... back to the test light...   if it lights up.. you have something staying on...   you can pull a single fuse at a time and  check the light .... remember.. the door being open will turn on a light in the truck cab and show up as a draw... so the door has to be closed...


what ever you *** Do not disconnect the battery cable with the engine running..... this is a test that damages the alternator and voltage regulator...  it is just a test that keeps damaging parts..

if you want to see if the charging system is working.. use a digital volt meter...   20 volt Dc scale..    if the alternator is charging .. the voltage at the battery will be over 14 volts with the engine running...

as for your transmission...    the transmission has a filter in it...  it might be clogged... and you have to measure the level .... with the engine running...

transmission filter kits are available at every autoparts store... a large drain pan...  and 4 to 6 quarts of fluid to put back  put in 3 quarts after you put the new filter and the pan back on...  start the motor...   check the fluid level...  keep putting in fluid until it reaches the full mark... half a quart at a time...  

It doesn't have the battery light, and the charger wasn't picking up the battery, all cells have been discharged. I had the alternator tested out 2 days ago, and when they put it on, it was hard to spin, then it gave up and free spun, afterwards, when they started to put power through it, it kept bogging down, and the results were that the alternator was bad (hasn't been replaced recently). I checked everything that i thought of that could prob. drain the power, changed bad fuses, the interior light in the cab is blown, so i took it out, and the hood doesn't have a light. But thanks for what you said, i'll try them out now.