Topic: New battery, no lights/electricity with ignition turned on.

[Ocfug]

Hi there, it's been a while.

I have a 78 CB750F. Recently I noticed that the electric starter was getting less powerful and eventually I was only able to kick start the bike. I realized my battery was like 7 years old, so I decided to buy a new one. Received the new battery today, removed the old one, plugged in the new one. I turned on the ignition key, instrument lights went on, headlight went on etc. Cool I thought, new battery seems good.

Then the problems started. I press the starter button and I hear like 1 little crank and everything went out completely... I thought maybe I blew a fuse. They all looked fine but I replaced them one by one with new ones (and eventually just replaced them all at once) and nothing changed. Still no electricity throughout.

Interestingly enough when I put my old battery back in and the lights work as expected. Got a tiny weak crank out of the starter when I pressed the button but I'm sure it will start if I kick it.
Old battery seems to be OK and reads 11.9 volts. New battery doesn't do anything and reads 12.8 volts. What is going on?
After some more investigation I've noticed that with the new battery, if I turn the key to Park, the tail light does come on. Very faint at first but gets brighter after a little while.

Any ideas what it might be or any suggestions on what to check next? Thanks!

[scottly]

Maybe the new battery needs to be charged before using it?

[Ocfug]

Well it read 12.8V. I can plug it in the battery tender and let it sit for a few hours and try again.

[Don R]

 Recently we had a bad battery, it read 12.6V but under a load it read 0.5V it could happen to a new one especially a die-hard which I was told by an Advance Auto counter guy had a run of bad batteries in our size.
 Ask your parts guy to check it. They also said my replacement battery had the same start date on the 90 day warranty as the original one. I had 3 days left and made them test the new battery before I left.

[scottly]

A "battery tender" may not charge a battery, just maintain a certain voltage. A lead acid battery needs to be brought up to at least 13.8 volts to charge. See if your tender can do that, or if it only gets the battery up to 13.2v or so.

[Ocfug]

Ok, yeah the battery tender is going to 13.2V right now. But I've been able to charge my previous battery with it in the past to a state where I was able to start my bike when it didn't want to start anymore at all (didn't even kick start). I'll let it sit overnight and try again tomorrow. If not I'll get the battery checked out as Don R suggested. Thanks!

[newday777]

What battery did you get exactly? Where did you buy it?

A load test as Don said is necessary to know if any battery, new or old, has an internal short(there have been new batteries that go bad right off the shelf) or if it is good. Your description of "1 little crank and everything went out completely" points to a possible internal short from a weak connection in the plates of the battery.

Other possible causes of loss of power.....
Did you clean the cables of any oxidation with a brass brush and battery cleaner while cables are off? Baking soda and water mix is old school cleaner or Noco battery cleaner spray has an acid detection in it turning color. Both rinse off with water.
Are the bolts tightened with a socket and no movement of the cables afterwards?(I've found loose cables from too long of bolts put on not tightening the cables even though the bolt was tightened with a socket, thus not allowing full tight connection and not start even though the batteryhad a full 12.7 volts when I measured with a good multimeter and hit the starter button)

[Ocfug]

The battery was indeed faulty. Got a replacement and the bike started up without problems. Thanks everyone!

[newday777]

The battery was indeed faulty. Got a replacement and the bike started up without problems. Thanks everyone!

Did you test the old battery?

[Deltarider]

The battery was indeed faulty. Got a replacement and the bike started up without problems. Thanks everyone!

Did you test the old battery?

Here's the test that has always worked for me.
After being charged 100% and left unused, it should still have 12,6V or more some 10 hours later.
When during cranking voltage drops to less than 10V - monitored with an analogue (!) meter - it has at least one cell that is nearing its end. 
There's no need to take it to a shop to be 'tested.'
Awareness is another thing. When you have plans for a big trip and your battery is older than 7 years, you may want to replace it prematurely.