Bonneville America Forums Forums Technical Forums General Tech Best Battery Known

Hi all, twice now for various reasons I've flattened my battery and I'm now not sure of it's reliability.

So firstly I'd like to know if anyone can confirm to me that once a battery is flattened, they are never as good again?

Second, if this IS the case, is there a preference to any one particular battery for my 05 Speedmaster that is considered the best???

I will go to a dedicated battery store if the bike shops around me don't stock what I'm after and I also don't care if a good one costs more.

Thanks to anyone who has got any ideas on this and yes, whilst I could get an OEM, I want to keep my options open given how important our batteries are.

MMM, maybe I could rig up a kick starter

cheers
stacka

Well Stacka, there was a time I lived in the bush without conventional electricity, however I ran a lot of stuff in my cabin with 12 volt DC. Having said that I learned a bit about chargeable batteries. What I found was that automotive batteries (which includes bike counterparts) were good for at least a few total discharge cycles, or flattenings as you put it. The average automotive battery could suffer perhaps 8-10 total discharges (cycles) before becoming less effective at holding a charge. A better battery for my cabin's 12 volt requirements was a marine battery, or one made for an electric golf cart (what's known as deep cycle batteries), as those batteries could go from being fully charged to flat maybe a couple hundred times before showing signs of deterioration.

I can boil it by down by saying that the average lead/acid based bike battery can take a flattening a few times (not just one) before it's not longer useful. But once fully drained it is advisable not to leave it in that condition for an extended period of time. Doing THAT can kill a battery.

Today's sealed gel batteries are very good and maintenance free. There are so many brands out there but I trust most of it. I'd go for one that you have to add the acid yourself to the cells after you buy it rather than one that is ready to go off the shelf. That way you know it's 'fresh' and hasn't been sitting in a readied state for who knows how long.

Hope this helps... btw, for my 4 wheeler I use a marine battery over a regular car battery. It's a logic left over from the cabin-in-the-bush days when I would park my truck beside the cabin and plug the truck into the awaiting umbilical cord. The marine battery lasted longer (for cabin purposes) while providing all the crank power I needed for the truck.

Every Lead-Acid battery will sulphate when deeply discharged and it will NEVER recover to its peak capacity again
Deep Cycle batteries will generally tolerate more discharge than starting batteries, however still suffer from the same fundamental issue.

If you have am infrequent usage situation then the ideal battery is an LiFePO4 battery. These have extremely low internal resistance and hence low self-discharge rate.
A bit more expensive up front but the lifetime should repay that.
Regardless of the battery technology, if not using it, take it out & stick it in the Fridge.

Well that's good news. The times my battery was fully discharged was only for a couple of hours max so I guess what I thought I read or heard was inaccurate . I'm thinking it may well get down to sulphation of the lead plates which would need a bit of time to do, but I'm only guessing.

Considering the majority of time when home I plug into a quality C-Tek pulse type charger, the ability for sulphation has been minimal and therefore I really have very little to be concerned about.

Thanks very much for your replys boys, I can now move onto other things as I was thinking maybe I was going to need a new battery.

Good stuff

Stacka

Don't know much more than I read, but a sulfated battery if hot charged will shake of the sulfates. (to a degree) Gotta watch it carefully though.

I've just bought one of these after my 20 month old OE battery failed.

http://www.mad4bikes.co.uk/batteries-pre...2b4-p-1449.html

Absolutely awesome. Its like having a truck battery fitted.

Should be available in Aus from someone.


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I like the look of the Motobatt - gel absorption glass mat. I did a little research and it's available in Australia from these guys @ $110 incl shipping:
Third Gear link.
of from this guy for $97 incl shipping:
Ebay page link.

Worth every cent plus its 12v 12amp rather than the stock 12v 10amp.
It does need a cover though, unless you like 'Bright Yellow'

I just used some 0.5mm aluminium.



Gary.

Hmmm - good point about the cover. No great issue though - looks like you used a piece of anodized sheet aluminium?

Edit: Duh! I just re-read your post above - sheet alimunium it is.

Yes, it is. It was just some I had lying around and although its sort of a 'bronze' finish, it actually looks OK.
The battery comes with 4 angle pieces and stainless bolts for fixing the cables. I used two on the 'pos' and one on the 'neg'. This allows the top battery cover to sit flat rather than curve upwards. (Triumph take note).

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