Replacement battery advice

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KYWinger

KYWinger

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Covington, KY
:beg: I need some advice from y'all. It would appear that I need a new battery; even though I've had it on the Battery Tender Jr. all winter, I don't have enough juice to make the starter do anything but 'click'. The lights all work, but not enough juice to spin it over.
That said, any advice on a good quality battery? The one in it I got from Pep Boys about a year ago for maybe $75 or so...
I'll pay for a good one - maybe one the the gel or maintenance free types? I WANNA GO RIDING!
 
Your battery may still be OK. Check the voltage at the terminals with the key off - it should be 12.5 or more. The "click" you hear is the starter relay, which might not be making good contact. You can also try jumping the starter terminal directly to the + battery terminal with a heavy cable.

Have you tried jumper cables to a good battery?
 
Steve- No, I haven't measured the voltage directly at the battery; I'll get out the trusty multimeter and do that. Good idea about jumpering the starter - hafta try that as well. Thanks!

PS just went and checked the battery with no charger attached : 10.56VDC
 
joedrum":4fj0cd1w said:
batteries and tires sheesh ...do they even come close to making good stuff ...i dont think so they all seem junk to me
Click to expand...

I question the chargers too.
They "say" safe to leave connected, not sure that's true for many of the sub $100 chargers.
 
Many like the Big Crank AGM. This one fits your '82.

big-etx18l_lg.jpg


Regarding maintenance charges, as Dan commented, most of them are junk. They're just simple 12V DC float chargers and will eventually ruin a good battery. And, the one that gets advertised the most, the BatteryTender, is no better. Yes, it will do a slow charge on your battery and keep it at a maximum charge but, it's doing bad things to your battery in the process. Techmate makes intelligent chargers that are designed to diagnoses, recover, charge, test and maintain your battery. (BatteryTender likes to say that their charger has a "brain" but, it has nothing of the sort.) The TechMate Optimate3+ (below) is excellent for long-term battery maintenance i.e., keeping a 12V battery at maximum charge and in good condition. Note that this model does not have the amperage to charge a fully discharged battery but, that's not what it's for. TechMate makes other chargers for that purpose.
 

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Before going the batt route !!!! Pull the plug at the starter relay and clean the contacts. I just did that . The selonide would click but rould not spin starter. so much corrosion in pulug. I replaced plug and cleand contacts and walla!!!!
 
With the static voltage low, I knew I must have fried the battery by leaving it on the Battery Tender Jr all winter, so.....I went to Auto Zone (with my 10% military discount) and got an AGM gel battery - BAZINGA! Everything works! ...so I got myself geared up and went for my first ride of the year. :music: Thank you all for the advice!
 
Great to hear that you are riding again. Life is so much easier when your battery works!
 
I have one of those Optimate Smart Chargers, mine is great, it even does my Touareg which has two batteries one to start and the other is for consumers. It is a great piece of kit and can't recommend it enough.
 
I say check out an odyssey, you'll need a pc 680 or pc 680mj. I have a pc 680 in each wing and they've been on the bikes since '08. the only time they have been on a charger was when the alternator or stator died or I was too lazy to disconnect them before hibernation
 
Odysseys are badass,had one in my sportster when i sold it last year.it was about 5 yrs old
 
Been using Decka A G M's for over 10 years with great service with an occasional battery tender charge over the winter, move tender bike to bike, then to cars, & battery's last 10 years in bikes, don't leave plugged in all winter, too cheap. Car A G M's still cost too much, so sealed ones still used with good results by me.
 
I have an odyssey, pc 680 in my 87 wing. been there 4 yrs now and used the tender jr on it only twice the last 6 months. Love it. cost a bit but worth it.
 

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