Another battery thread, sort of

Slipperyeel

Slipperyeel

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Not used the bike this week, I've been chained to the computer! Tried to start it this lunch time. It clearly didn't have enough umph in it - though I was impressed with how many attempts I got (my old 1150 would give you about 4 attempts and that was it). I left it a while between attempts.

Looking at the battery I can see it's the original, so it's had a reasonable life (mine's a 2011). Time for a new one.

Don't ask me why, but I'd like to get a Lithium battery this time. And here's my question(s):

There seems to be a big price difference which has thrown me a bit. There's a JMT for £78 from MW. And I keep bumping into another made by Aliante, but that's £160!

Does anyone have a recommendation for a lithium replacement or should I just follow my gut?

Cheers



Sent from my SM-N910F using Tapatalk
 
I’ve always had good service and advice from Motorworks. If I needed a battery for my Rt I’d consider the fact that Motorworks were selling it as a good endorsement. Very good price too. JJH
 
Slipperyeel said:
Not used the bike this week, I've been chained to the computer! Tried to start it this lunch time. It clearly didn't have enough umph in it - though I was impressed with how many attempts I got (my old 1150 would give you about 4 attempts and that was it). I left it a while between attempts.

Looking at the battery I can see it's the original, so it's had a reasonable life (mine's a 2011). Time for a new one.

Don't ask me why, but I'd like to get a Lithium battery this time. And here's my question(s):

There seems to be a big price difference which has thrown me a bit. There's a JMT for £78 from MW. And I keep bumping into another made by Aliante, but that's £160!

Does anyone have a recommendation for a lithium replacement or should I just follow my gut?

Cheers



Sent from my SM-N910F using Tapatalk
Click to expand...

Little off topic, but why not charge the battery up first, to see if it is the battery, or maybe you left something connected that depleted the battery.
 
Smogbob said:
Little off topic, but why not charge the battery up first, to see if it is the battery, or maybe you left something connected that depleted the battery.
Click to expand...
I like your thinking :). Yes, I will charge it as I need to use it before I'll get a new battery.

To be honest, nothing new has gone on. No extra add-ons. Also, I was never impressed with its starting from when I got it, but it always fired up, slightly to my surprise!

But I think the change in temperature and a week of standing has possibly sucked or its last edge.

Your thinking did cross my mind i.e. is there something else behind this. But when I saw the little sticker on it saying "first charge March 2011" I immediately thought its just reached the end of its life span.

Sent from my SM-N910F using Tapatalk
 
Slipperyeel said:
I like your thinking :). Yes, I will charge it as I need to use it before I'll get a new battery.

To be honest, nothing new has gone on. No extra add-ons. Also, I was never impressed with its starting from when I got it, but it always fired up, slightly to my surprise!

But I think the change in temperature and a week of standing has possibly sucked or its last edge.

Your thinking did cross my mind i.e. is there something else behind this. But when I saw the little sticker on it saying "first charge March 2011" I immediately thought its just reached the end of its life span.

Sent from my SM-N910F using Tapatalk
Click to expand...

Highly possible it has reached its life span, as batteries do throw wobblies when not expected, but might be good to check no gremlins hiding in the background, frayed wire somewhere etc, but easily checked with a new battery, if bike turns over better, proves battery was on its way out, if it does the same, bonus will be you have 2 batteries and downside need to find the gremlin.........;)
 
Unfortunately battery’s don’t seem to recover well from been stud in a discharged state. A 7 year old battery having undergone a discharge will probably be recovered long enough to lull you into a false sense that all is well just to let you down. I’d check for a battery drain and all connections are secure. Those big twins suck a lot of power when starting. JJH
 
I'm with your thinking. So it's high on my list of things to check for. But I'm hoping right now it really is just the battery dying - end of life. I hope so. Watch this space!

Meanwhile, anyone with experience of the lithium batteries?



Sent from my SM-N910F using Tapatalk
 
There’s one in my sons nsr 125. Only gets occasional use round the garden and drive. No problems JJH
 
Bought a JmT ages ago, certainly before MW were offering them.
On the whole had no problems. When cold they need to warm up slightly by turning the bike over then leaving it for 3 seconds or so. Always spins it up then.
 
Popell said:
Bought a JmT ages ago, certainly before MW were offering them.
On the whole had no problems. When cold they need to warm up slightly by turning the bike over then leaving it for 3 seconds or so. Always spins it up then.
Click to expand...

bang on, but actually just turning the ignition to on, then off for 30 seconds, then same again, repeat 2 or 3 times before actually starting the engine up, but this was just to make it a tad clearer.............:beerjug:
 
Smogbob said:
bang on, but actually just turning the ignition to on, then off for 30 seconds, then same again, repeat 2 or 3 times before actually starting the engine up, but this was just to make it a tad clearer.............:beerjug:
Click to expand...

Thanks for the feedback gents. Very helpful :thumb2

I am aware there are some foibles about the lithium batteries and your description about starting in the cold is one of them. I'll also need to invest in a lithium charger...

I think I'll get onto MW today and order the JMT item.
 
Just to say I ordered the Odyssey PC535 from Motorworks. Once fitted (bit fiddly) the bike turns over much more quickly, and even the headlight seems brighter. To test the old battery you need to use a multimeter to measure the voltage when cranking. If it drops below 9.7 volts when charged then the chances are it has had it.
 
Slipperyeel said:
Thanks for the feedback gents. Very helpful :thumb2

I am aware there are some foibles about the lithium batteries and your description about starting in the cold is one of them. I'll also need to invest in a lithium charger...

I think I'll get onto MW today and order the JMT item.
Click to expand...
At the point of beinging annoying; why do you need a lithium charger ??

Your bike can output how much current ?

Sent from my SM-G925F using Tapatalk
 
Tractors are go said:
At the point of beinging annoying; why do you need a lithium charger ??

Your bike can output how much current ?

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You're not being annoying :). I only meant that 'in the cupboard' I should have one. So not immediately, but if I did need one, it'll need to be lithium compatible. The old thing I have now is basic and only good for lead acid batteries.

But yes you're right, the bike will charge the lithium just fine.

Sent from my SM-N910F using Tapatalk
 
Tractors are go said:
At the point of beinging annoying; why do you need a lithium charger ??

Your bike can output how much current ?

Sent from my SM-G925F using Tapatalk
Click to expand...

For a start the charging system on a motorcycle is better than a cheap battery charger at giving the correct juice to a battery as required. The problem with battery chargers is that they can go into a recovery mode and give a higher voltage than a lithium battery can tolerate. A lithium specific charger eliminates this. Now I’ve got to say I’m not a expert and everything I know about lithium battery’s has been gleamed from reading up about them. I’m a fan of them and did put my money down for one for my sons bike. JJH
 
JJH said:
For a start the charging system on a motorcycle is better than a cheap battery charger at giving the correct juice to a battery as required. The problem with battery chargers is that they can go into a recovery mode and give a higher voltage than a lithium battery can tolerate. A lithium specific charger eliminates this. Now I’ve got to say I’m not a expert and everything I know about lithium battery’s has been gleamed from reading up about them. I’m a fan of them and did put my money down for one for my sons bike. JJH
Click to expand...
Thanks for that. I've done a little searching on them and seem posts on here and I think I've arrived at the same conclusion, hence my wish to try one this time around.

I charged the existing battery today. It didn't need much, 20min. Fired up on the first press. So at this moment in time, I'm still with the idea the battery has reached the end of its life as a starter battery. I'll go ahead with the JMT from MW.





Sent from my SM-N910F using Tapatalk
 
Slipperyeel said:
Thanks for that. I've done a little searching on them and seem posts on here and I think I've arrived at the same conclusion, hence my wish to try one this time around.

I charged the existing battery today. It didn't need much, 20min. Fired up on the first press. So at this moment in time, I'm still with the idea the battery has reached the end of its life as a starter battery. I'll go ahead with the JMT from MW.





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Click to expand...

Good news, just heed if you get a new Lithium you will either need a new battery charger, or the CTEK that does both, make sure you check if yours is compatible with Lithium or not.
 
A standard car battery charger (non conditioning non recovery type) will work fine on a lithium. It wont deliver the last 5% of charge but the battery will not be harmed if it's never charged to 100%. There is no charge memory effect. On the bike, mine always runs at 14.4V. The old Odyssey used to run between 14.2V or a bit less.

See "(1) fast forced charge" here https://www.powerstream.com/LLLF.htm

Quote
A LiFePO4 battery can be safely overcharged to 4.2 volts per cell, but higher voltages will start to break down the organic electrolytes. Nevertheless, it is common to charge a 12 volt a 4-cell series pack with a lead acid battery charger. The maximum voltage of these chargers, whether AC powered, or using a car's alternator, is 14.4 volts. This works fine, but lead acid chargers will lower their voltage to 13.8 volts for the float charge, and so will usually terminate before the LiFe pack is at 100%. For this reason a special LiFe charger is required to reliably get to 100% capacity.​
 
Nippy Normans supply Touratech, Wunderlich, Desert Fox and many other makes of accessories.
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