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Randomchaos
Posted on Thursday, May 01, 2008 - 09:25 am:   Edit Post Delete Post View Post/Check IP Print Post    Move Post (Custodian/Admin Only)

So, I took my battery in and had it tested the other day. It came back good, holding 12.73V, but the guy told me the CCA (I think thats what it was) for the battery was low, and it should go on a trickle charger to bring it back up. I read online that the CCA is the cranking power for the battery. It being low would explain why the bike has a little trouble starting of a morning when its cold. Would putting it on a trickle charger actually bring it back up, or do I need to look for a new battery? Its kinda hard for me to run a trickle charger to the bike since I live on the 2nd floor of my apartment.
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Mnbueller
Posted on Thursday, May 01, 2008 - 09:37 am:   Edit Post Delete Post View Post/Check IP Print Post    Move Post (Custodian/Admin Only)

A trickle charger or any battery charger will only bring a battery up to its current storage capability. I would say if you ride the bike one day, and the next morning it has trouble starting, your battery is on its way out and its just time to replace it.

The worst thing for a battery is to just sit, so if you do store the bike (for winter) or you're not going to ride for a couple weeks or so. A trickle charger will help to maintain the batteries health.

How old is the battery?

If its over 5 years old, its probably time for a replacement anyway. Batteries can last longer, much longer, but 5 years is kind of an expected life of a battery.
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Randomchaos
Posted on Thursday, May 01, 2008 - 09:45 am:   Edit Post Delete Post View Post/Check IP Print Post    Move Post (Custodian/Admin Only)

I think the battery is the original one that came with the bike, 2004 XB12R. Not 100% sure on that though, I know its a HD battery. Still could have been replaced at some point in time. When I got the bike from the dealership back in December, it had been sitting in storage for roughly 4 months. When I bought the bike, they had trickle charged it before I left with it because they noticed that it wasn't turning over real well. I have only been having some small issues with it turning over slowly of a morning for the past couple of weeks, and only after it sits for a few days without being run. When I brought the battery up to have it tested, it hadn't been run in 24 hours.
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Mnbueller
Posted on Thursday, May 01, 2008 - 10:45 am:   Edit Post Delete Post View Post/Check IP Print Post    Move Post (Custodian/Admin Only)

If it is happening after it sits for a few days, then the battery is most likely starting to loose some of its holding capacity. A trickle charger will certainly make it maintain that charge for the days you are not riding it.

Have you ever had this problem from riding it one day and starting it the next...If it starts fine the day after a ride, and only has this issue after a couple of days of sitting there are 2 possibilities. 1) there is a small drain on the battery somewhere, or 2) the battery is wearing out.

I would say if it bothers you that it cranks slower after sitting for a couple days, just buy a new battery. I don't think they are that expensive...but I don't know. and this winter when you store it just make sure to put a battery maintainer (trickle charger with auto on/off) on it.

I don't notice any slower cranking on my bike after 2-3 days of sitting.
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Darthane
Posted on Thursday, May 01, 2008 - 11:38 am:   Edit Post Delete Post View Post/Check IP Print Post    Move Post (Custodian/Admin Only)

CCA = Cold Cranking Amps

These motors take a good amount of juice to turn over (high displacement per cylinder, high compression ratio).

If your battery is having issues after sitting for just a couple days without a trickle charger, it's time to get a new one.

I've been very lucky, both of my bikes' batteries lasted 6 years - the Blast still has its original at nearly 7 years. ...less juice needed to turn that puppy over, though. ; )
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Randomchaos
Posted on Thursday, May 01, 2008 - 11:48 am:   Edit Post Delete Post View Post/Check IP Print Post    Move Post (Custodian/Admin Only)

Yea, im probably going to look at picking a new one up next week. And storage? What is that? : ), ride year round ftw!
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Midknyte
Posted on Thursday, May 01, 2008 - 12:01 pm:   Edit Post Delete Post View Post/Check IP Print Post    Move Post (Custodian/Admin Only)

New battery I *think* I recall being about $79.

"Installation" is another $40 if you let the boutique do it. That really floored me. I'd have dropped another ten bucks on it to be able to just ride in and out and be done with it, but 40, nuh-uh.

If you do get a new bat, I'll pass along a warning that was given to me by the parts guy (the rest of you can argue its' validity)...

The bat's come about 80% charged and need to be trickle charged to full before you attempt to start/crank over the bike or else you will imprint a memory on the battery charge level and never achieve a full charge thereafter.

I'd believe this for NiCad w/o question but never heard of it for a lead cell. At any rate, it cost nothing other than a few hours of charge time, so the good little biker in me took their advice and I pass it on...
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Etennuly
Posted on Thursday, May 01, 2008 - 12:29 pm:   Edit Post Delete Post View Post/Check IP Print Post    Move Post (Custodian/Admin Only)

The way I see it with batteries is, voltage = horse power, CCA = torque.
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Reepicheep
Posted on Thursday, May 01, 2008 - 02:15 pm:   Edit Post Delete Post View Post/Check IP Print Post    Move Post (Custodian/Admin Only)

: ) That works provided one misunderstands horsepower versus torque in the same consistent way they misunderstand voltage versus CCA : )

Horsepower is simply power, which in electricity is simply volts times amps. So 12V means nothing if no current is flowing, and 100 amps means nothing if there is no voltage (i.e. ripping through a superconductor like an MRI machine).

But 12V and 100 amps? Then the fireworks start.

Likewise, 1000 ft lbs of torque means absolutely NOTHING if the engine is not rotating. And 3000 RPM means nothing if its got some fraction of a foot pound of torque behind it.

But 1000 ft lbs of torque at 3000 RPM? Then we are pulling a train. Fast.
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Azxb9r
Posted on Thursday, May 01, 2008 - 04:51 pm:   Edit Post Delete Post View Post/Check IP Print Post    Move Post (Custodian/Admin Only)

If the battery has a full charge, and the CCA is low, the battery is bad.
Putting the battery on a trickle charger will not increase the CCA unless the battery is low to begin with.

If you test the battery using a mid-tronics electronic battery tester, you can still get an accurate test even if the batteries state of charge is low. I have been using one along with my old VAT for several years now, and it has been very accurate. Most places that sell batteries(and many shops) have these testers. It is much easier to just have the battery tested, and eliminate the guess work, than it is to get stranded by a bad battery.
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Bumblebee
Posted on Monday, May 05, 2008 - 06:56 pm:   Edit Post Delete Post View Post/Check IP Print Post    Move Post (Custodian/Admin Only)

Notes on batteries...

Definitions -

Cold Cranking amps: This is a BS standard that the industry has come up with - but it is useful for comparisons when buying a new battery:

Think of this as a sprint run, how many amps can the battery produce for 30 seconds at 0 degrees before the voltage drops to 7.2 volts. So if your battery is rated at 330 CCA at the end of 30 seconds the voltage should be above 7.2 volts. BS because I cant think of a single 12 volt bike that would start if the voltage was as low as 7.2 volts, our bikes A Buell certainly won't. BS because the 330 amps the tester is set for is the initial current at 12.8 volts, as the test continues the current becomes less and less as the battery voltage drops.

Reserve Capacity: How many minutes can a battery provide a continuous 25 amp current before the battery drops below 12.5 volts at 80 degrees F.

The usual test routine is to start measuring the unloaded terminal voltage, it should be above 12.8 volts (full charge) then placing a known load across the battery for 10 seconds and reading the voltage at the end of this test. The results will vary greatly from battery type to battery type, but the person testing should have a chart somewhere that will give a go/no go indication when that battery type is tested.
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Xb9rnutt
Posted on Monday, May 05, 2008 - 10:44 pm:   Edit Post Delete Post View Post/Check IP Print Post    Move Post (Custodian/Admin Only)

Just get a new battery. My bike was giving me a little trouble clock not staying set not starting as quick as it should. I just thought it was because it was cold. Mind you I got my battery last June and had it on a tender when not in use. Last week I went out unplugged the tender and went to start and all I got was some lights for a few seconds then nothing. Took it in and had it tested and battery level was good but low CCA. Save yourself a headache and get a new battery.
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Bumblebee
Posted on Tuesday, May 06, 2008 - 01:10 pm:   Edit Post Delete Post View Post/Check IP Print Post    Move Post (Custodian/Admin Only)

Xb9rnutt said:

"Just get a new battery."

+1 here. After four years I started getting the dreaded clock reset on startup, a few months later the starter would stall on compression.

Replaced the battery, now all is good again.

As the battery ages it's capacity drops, we have that nifty cooling fan that moves a bunch of air (and draws juice doing it) so if the battery is in poor shape, the engine is hot and the fan runs awhile after shut down will you have enough juice to get going again? I don't want to think about it. Old Mikes Junction isn't a good place to have an Uh-oh moment. (Mines Road/San Antone valley riders know just what I mean.)- A great place to stop and bad place for a dead battery.

The battery Buell has selected for their bikes is first class (if you get the OEM one) so this is a good choice.
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Mesafirebolt
Posted on Friday, May 09, 2008 - 11:12 am:   Edit Post Delete Post View Post/Check IP Print Post    Move Post (Custodian/Admin Only)

NOTE: DO NOT repeat DO NOT purchase the Everstart from WalMart, it is NOT repeat NOT a "direct replacement. You will find that the positive cable wont mount right, its recessed JUST enough that it wont bolt on without a custom made spacer made from a 1/4 inch Copper Aircraft Buss Bar and a longer bolt made from a 99 Mercury Sable...
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Randomchaos
Posted on Tuesday, May 13, 2008 - 07:58 pm:   Edit Post Delete Post View Post/Check IP Print Post    Move Post (Custodian/Admin Only)

Well, finnally replaced the battery today. Since Friday, the bike had been running awful. Missing, sputtering, backfiring, idle jumping around, and stalling. This morning, I couldnt even get the bike to run. I tried starting it a good 5 times, and the most I could get it to do was idle for 10 seconds before it died. Not once did I give it any throttle though.

Got the new battery in, and its back to its old tricks of dieing once, shortly after starting it, then running a little rough until it warms up. Should I look into replacing the spark plugs now too? They have about 1400 miles on them. How about the plug wires? Should I just take it to the dealership since its still under their extended warranty, or is this how the bike runs with the full race kit?
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Bumblebee
Posted on Friday, May 16, 2008 - 02:00 pm:   Edit Post Delete Post View Post/Check IP Print Post    Move Post (Custodian/Admin Only)

Try a TPS reset. Are those settings volatile in the ECM? I changed the battery in mine I had no problems-the battery was disconnected for about an hour while I made the trip to the dealer..actually it was a lot longer than that..I went for a battery came back with two batteries, one was in new bike, but that's another story...I just felt the Buell needed a new friend from Wisconsin...
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