Author Topic: Anyone using these tiny 12oz. lithium batteries? - Sold Out! (Read 12189 times)

kayaker43 · « **Reply #25 on:** November 21, 2010, 07:35:35 AM »

The different shaped discharge curves prevent any real comparison. A lead acid drops in voltage as it discharges and at some voltage it won't turn your starter but it may still have 60% of its capacity left. Its just at too low a voltage to be usable to us. A123's hardly drop at all, the last crank is nearly as fast as the first, and then they almost seem to turn off. You can use much more of their capacity.

Because of this I figure you only need an A123 with maybe 30% of the amp hour capacity as your lead acid to get similar results. Of course you can always add cells to match the AH ratings and still save huge weight. Then you will have much more cranking amps and usable capacity. The only downside would be price.

freedomgli · « **Reply #26 on:** November 22, 2010, 10:32:08 AM »

I purchased a 4-cell battery from Maviryk Design. I found they they had the best balance of price and customer service. There are several others who offer A123 cell motorcycle batteries. When doing my research about 6 months ago people generally seemed happy with Ballistic Performance Components. I had a bad customer service experience with Speedcell and I cannot recommend them. Also, I cannot recommend Full Spectrum Power for philosophical reasons arising from their dispute with Speedcell over trademark infringement.

Anyways, they're all pretty much using the same A123 cells. The main difference is whether you are buying hobby grade, research/military grade or are recycling them from another source like a DeWalt drill battery pack. Unless your paycheck depends on maximizing the performance of your battery I wouldn't be too concerned with recycled vs. hobby grade. Back during their dispute Speedcell and Full Spectrum Power were going back and forth with accusations re: build quality and safety of their battery packs so be mindful of that. My battery seems built just fine and I have no worries but remember you're still dealing with a fair amount of potential energy so be smart.

I bought mine directly from Jim @ Maviryk Design and paid the following:

$60 MDA123.4-D
$35 6A Charger
Subtotal: $95
Shipping: $10
Total: $105

jessezm · « **Reply #27 on:** November 30, 2010, 12:24:20 PM »

I have been running the 4-cell pack shown in the first post for the last 750 miles. It's on a 466cc-kitted bike with no kickstarter. I have been more than pleased. I just started my bike two days ago on a 40 degree day, after 2-3 weeks of not starting it at all. The bike started with the choke on almost immediately. I'm very happy with my purchase, only wish I saw this when they went on sale!

cdoggy81 · « **Reply #28 on:** November 30, 2010, 09:34:15 PM »

That's pretty sweet! Oh Santa......

scottly · « **Reply #29 on:** December 01, 2010, 06:13:32 PM »

Picked up the battery at the Post Office today; it got to AZ before I did. Thanks kayaker!!

scottly · « **Reply #30 on:** December 04, 2010, 08:22:44 PM »

I've had a chance to check this battery out. It weighs 2.42 lbs less than the 3 Ahr lead-acid battery I had been using. Very cool!

I ran several discharge/charge cycles using a car halogen headlight as a load:
At 5 minutes, battery voltage was 12.75, with a current of 4.79.
10 minutes: 12.67 V, 4.77 A
15 minutes: 12.58 V, 4.77 A
20 minutes: 12.45 V, 4.72 A
25 minutes: 12.08 V, 4.66 A
At this point, the voltage drops dramatically in a matter of minutes.
This is a "stiff" battery!!! I'm happy with my purchase!

wannabridin · « **Reply #31 on:** December 04, 2010, 10:57:51 PM »

thanks for those specs scottly!!! very helpful indeed! i can't wait to get mine installed

Kong · « **Reply #32 on:** December 06, 2010, 04:35:34 PM »

I was about to order one of these batteries and then it occurred to me that my bike won't be running until spring and it might not do the batter a lot of good to just sit for the next five months while I build a bike to put it in and the temperature hovers well below reasonable (sub-zero on both scales for long periods). Obviously I could bring it inside, and that brings up a question, could I use my Makita 14.4 Volt charger that's for my drill on it or would I use my regular battery charger set to its 2 amp setting?

cdoggy81 · « **Reply #33 on:** December 06, 2010, 05:03:34 PM »

Yes, thanks for those specs Scottly!!! Good info & very helpful indeed!

scottly · « **Reply #34 on:** December 06, 2010, 06:09:35 PM »

Quote from: Kong on December 06, 2010, 04:35:34 PM

I was about to order one of these batteries and then it occurred to me that my bike won't be running until spring and it might not do the batter a lot of good to just sit for the next five months while I build a bike to put it in and the temperature hovers well below reasonable (sub-zero on both scales for long periods). Obviously I could bring it inside, and that brings up a question, could I use my Makita 14.4 Volt charger that's for my drill on it or would I use my regular battery charger set to its 2 amp setting?

You could use either charger to re-charge the battery, provided you monitor the voltage. The charging curve is like the discharge curve in reverse; the battery voltage rises very quickly at the end of the charge cycle. Max charging voltage is stated as 16.8, recommended is 14.4.
I would not leave either charger connected all the time, as they will "cook" the battery, due to over-voltage.

gnarlycharlie4u · « **Reply #35 on:** December 08, 2010, 02:06:16 PM »

oh my gawd this looks like an AWESOME solution!

I wanted to clean up the triangle and lose weight at the same time and this looks like the perfect solution. Especially since I can still keep lights and controls.

Excellent, thanks for this!

Quote from: scottly on December 06, 2010, 06:09:35 PM

Quote from: Kong on December 06, 2010, 04:35:34 PM
I was about to order one of these batteries and then it occurred to me that my bike won't be running until spring and it might not do the batter a lot of good to just sit for the next five months while I build a bike to put it in and the temperature hovers well below reasonable (sub-zero on both scales for long periods). Obviously I could bring it inside, and that brings up a question, could I use my Makita 14.4 Volt charger that's for my drill on it or would I use my regular battery charger set to its 2 amp setting?

You could use either charger to re-charge the battery, provided you monitor the voltage. The charging curve is like the discharge curve in reverse; the battery voltage rises very quickly at the end of the charge cycle. Max charging voltage is stated as 16.8, recommended is 14.4.
I would not leave either charger connected all the time, as they will "cook" the battery, due to over-voltage.

dead on. unless your 14.4 charger has a way to monitor the battery charge it will cook the battery.
Li batts don't work like lead-acid. L.A. batts like to be left on charge indefinitely to be kept "alive". Li don't need to be.

Now the other question is... what lights am I going to run?
I'll probably get a couple of these for my 750 but I don't want to over tax them while idling at a stoplight.
I already plan on doing LEDs for the turn signals but what about the headlight? Do you think they would handle idling at a long stoplight without being drained by the stock headlight?

wannabridin · « **Reply #36 on:** December 08, 2010, 04:41:21 PM »

Quote from: gnarlycharlie4u on December 08, 2010, 02:06:16 PM

Now the other question is... what lights am I going to run?
I'll probably get a couple of these for my 750 but I don't want to over tax them while idling at a stoplight.
I already plan on doing LEDs for the turn signals but what about the headlight? Do you think they would handle idling at a long stoplight without being drained by the stock headlight?

well if you want to leave the headlight on all the time, then i suggest upgrading to a modern headlight housing, like an H4, you can run a DDM HID headlight. they're only 35W and they put out a TON more light than a stock halogen/silverstar. they're cheap too! if you really want to put as little strain on the system as possible, wire a switch in there too so you can switch it on and off for daytime riding. here's a thread i started discussing HID's:

http://forums.sohc4.net/index.php?topic=67320.0 hope this helps!

gnarlycharlie4u · « **Reply #37 on:** December 09, 2010, 09:04:51 AM »

Quote from: wannabridin on December 08, 2010, 04:41:21 PM

http://forums.sohc4.net/index.php?topic=67320.0 hope this helps!

tremendously. thanks.

edit: alright looks like I'll be ordering myself an early christmas present.
I won't need them for a while but I'd like to get them while the gettin's good (and cheap).

kayaker43 · « **Reply #38 on:** January 04, 2011, 10:20:33 AM »

batteries are all sold out - thanks

gnarlycharlie4u · « **Reply #39 on:** January 04, 2011, 11:15:36 AM »

Quote from: kayaker43 on January 04, 2011, 10:20:33 AM

batteries are all sold out - thanks

oh my god. did I buy the last one? AHHAHAHAH

Qty Name SKU Each Subtotal
------------------------------------------------------------------------
1 X-Cell Battery 8 cell - Clearance xcell8 $130.00 $130.00
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Subtotal $130.00
Shipping: Priority Mail(R) $4.95
Tax Total $0.00
Grand Total $134.95

kayaker43 · « **Reply #40 on:** January 04, 2011, 11:23:24 AM »

Quote from: gnarlycharlie4u on January 04, 2011, 11:15:36 AM

Quote from: kayaker43 on January 04, 2011, 10:20:33 AM
batteries are all sold out - thanks

oh my god. did I buy the last one? AHHAHAHAH

Qty Name SKU Each Subtotal
------------------------------------------------------------------------
1 X-Cell Battery 8 cell - Clearance xcell8 $130.00 $130.00
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Subtotal $130.00
Shipping: Priority Mail(R) $4.95
Tax Total $0.00
Grand Total $134.95

Sure did,.. it will ship today....... Thanks

gnarlycharlie4u · « **Reply #41 on:** January 04, 2011, 11:27:30 AM »

You're awesome, thanks so much!

Kong · « **Reply #42 on:** January 06, 2011, 05:07:54 PM »

Man, am I happy I got mine last week.

gnarlycharlie4u · « **Reply #43 on:** January 06, 2011, 09:09:12 PM »

ya think how I must feel.
soooooo glad I got paid when I did.

sorry to everyone else <3

shizzomynizzo · « **Reply #44 on:** January 15, 2011, 11:54:14 AM »

Wow.

Is there going to be more for sale in the spring or summer?

kayaker43 · « **Reply #45 on:** January 15, 2011, 12:39:32 PM »

Sorry, I got a good deal on new cells because a contractor needed the empty cases to make tool adapters for the military. Apparently they wanted to be able to run Dewalt drills from a vehicle with jumper cables. They attached some cables to an empty battery case,.. and I bought the cells real cheap.

That was either a one time order or they found a source for empty cases? I would now have to buy the same new cells from Dewalt and double my prices. I originally planned to do that but the level of skepticism for new technology is so high I had to argue with people too much just to sell them something for half price. I could still continue and make money at it but I got tired of being treated like a scammer.

Lithium batteries are a good thing and will get better as all the pirate cells work their way out of the market place, allowing new production to pick up so prices come down.

gnarlycharlie4u · « **Reply #46 on:** January 15, 2011, 05:09:33 PM »

Quote from: kayaker43 on January 15, 2011, 12:39:32 PM

They attached some cables to an empty battery case,.. and I bought the cells real cheap.

haha that is freaking awesome!

thanks for passing along the savings

wannabridin · « **Reply #47 on:** January 18, 2011, 12:57:51 PM »

woo!! i'm glad i got the deal while i could! can't wait to get it in the bike!

until then i keep it maintained on a charger every 7-10 days, just to make sure the voltage doesn't drop too much.

kayaker43 · « **Reply #48 on:** January 18, 2011, 01:31:56 PM »

"Battery Tender" brand is the only one I trust to leave on indefinitely. These are true float chargers and will not cause harm. Most regular or automatic chargers don't shut off completely but cut back to a low rate that's still too high for smaller batteries. Some have an anti-sulfation mode that's not so good either.

These lithiums have a super low self discharge rate. If its indoors and not connected to a load you shouldn't have to touch it for over a year. You certainly don't need to charge every week,.. I would just top it off before use. If connected to a bike with electronic instruments that have a small draw, then more attention is needed.

wannabridin · « **Reply #49 on:** January 18, 2011, 11:27:44 PM »

Oh all I do is check on it to make sure the voltage is good, and mAybe top it off if necessary, I don't leave it on!

Either way, thanks for the great deal!!

News:

Author Topic: Anyone using these tiny 12oz. lithium batteries? - Sold Out! (Read 12189 times)