Topic: Battery, Regulator, and other questions

[Nachtderuntoten]

Battery tenders hold the battery voltage to a "float" level, where the battery is neither charging or discharging, around 13.2-13.6 V. Occasionally, lead acid batteries need to have an "equalizing" charge of 14.4-14.6 V, but the battery tender thinks the battery is charged so won't switch to the full charge voltage. One way to trick the charger is to put a load on the battery like the headlight and run the battery down a bit.
Batteries seem to last longer when cycled, rather than sitting idle, with or without a float charger. Even a cheap lead acid battery lasted for over 3 years, and may have gone longer if I had used it more often?

I remember watching a video of a fellow on YouTube [I don't offhandedly remember the exact video] who stated how he made his Yuasa lead acid battery last for eight ( years(¡!) with cycling via use, storage inside, refilling of electrolyte, and a proper trickle charger.

[dave500]

I had a motobatt last 8 years with just normal use.

[scottly]

I had a motobatt last 8 years with just normal use.

"Just normal use" is the key. Batteries need to be exercised to keep the lead and acid mixed up. Holding the battery at a "float" voltage like maintainers do isn't the best for battery life, and neither is letting the battery self-discharge over time.

[M 750K6]

A good maintainer is under £100. It stops charging when the battery is full, monitors it and will put it on a cycle to discharge it a little, then charge it back up. I have leads permanently bolted on the battery terminals. I leave the maintainers constantly on. Just unplug them from the lead and go for acride, plug them back in afterwards.

My oldest battery is probably 10 years old (in my Dad's old car). It still starts it up, but I'm suspecting it needs replacement,  as it needs charging up after a run, which it didn't need last year.

[HondaMan]

(Is it me, or are battery threads starting to challenge oil threads?)
 

Can we get Motobatt batteries in the USA? I've not seen one (at least, here in Colorado...).

[CycleRanger]

Can we get Motobatt batteries in the USA? I've not seen one (at least, here in Colorado...).

Easily. I order them from Amazon.

[HondaMan]

Can we get Motobatt batteries in the USA? I've not seen one (at least, here in Colorado...).

Easily. I order them from Amazon.

I think I might try one in my CB350F next.
(Since the 350F/400F guys are now bugging me for another book...).

[Nachtderuntoten]

Can we get Motobatt batteries in the USA? I've not seen one (at least, here in Colorado...).

Easily. I order them from Amazon.

I think I might try one in my CB350F next.
(Since the 350F/400F guys are now bugging me for another book...).

Ofher than the name, ¿What're the differences between ‘motobat’ and other powersports/motircycle battery brands?

[newday777]

Can we get Motobatt batteries in the USA? I've not seen one (at least, here in Colorado...).

Yes we can.
I met a sales rep for Mottobatt while out in Oceanside CA a few years ago when they were getting going.

[dave500]

the motobatts are bout 3/400 grams heavier than the others like katana Ive used,gotta be more lead.

[Stev-o]

(Is it me, or are battery threads starting to challenge oil threads?)
 

Can we get Motobatt batteries in the USA?

Yes, I have them in my Kawasakis.

Here's the specs on one for the CB750 and as Ranger mentioned, buy it on Amazon

https://www.motobattbatteries.com/motorcycle-battery/honda/750cc/honda-cb750k-four-1969-1982.html

[MauiK3]

Looks like a nice battery!

[PeWe]

(Is it me, or are battery threads starting to challenge oil threads?)
 

Good idea Mark!
Not about zink this time, lead!

I have a rather good charger brand,  Swedish CTEK MXS 5.0. It has modes for car (max 5A) and motorcycle batteries (max 0.8 A)
The specification says it can be connected for a long time.

I also think batteries need to be excerzised.

I charge over night or at least until it reaches the green led status once a month or second month.

It depends on my rides, I can give the batteries a charge over night during the season too.

My car's 79Ah battery gets a 2- 3 days charge now and then. Mostly short drives and a constant alarm system. 5A mode.
The Bosch battery has survived 7 1/2 year now.
Cheaper batteries died at 4 1/2 years.

[Stev-o]

(Is it me, or are battery threads starting to challenge oil threads?)
 

I have a rather good charger brand,  Swedish CTEK MXS 5.0. It has modes for car (max 5A) and motorcycle batteries (max 0.8 A)

CTEK's are the best chargers, we use them on all the exotic cars...



Per - is CTEK a big company over there?

[PeWe]

(Is it me, or are battery threads starting to challenge oil threads?)
 

I have a rather good charger brand,  Swedish CTEK MXS 5.0. It has modes for car (max 5A) and motorcycle batteries (max 0.8 A)

CTEK's are the best chargers, we use them on all the exotic cars...



Per - is CTEK a big company over there?

I have no idea about how their facilities look like.
I heard about their chargers from colleagues around 20 years ago.

I do not know if they have production here or only development (R&D).  Production in low cost countries.

Their webpage about the company shows a few cities here in Sweden.
https://career.ctek.com/locations

Maybe Falun is the head office. It started not far away, Vikmanshyttan close to Hedemora I often pass on my rides.
Falun a little bit more north on the same road, 69. 138km away from me.
A reason for a longer ride when weather is over 15*C

[BenelliSEI]

Looks like a nice battery!

I have one in the Varadero I bought a couple of years ago. The fellow I bought the bike from said it was one year old then. I plugged my trickle charger/ maintainer into it a couple of times this past winter (too cheap to buy more than one)and within minutes it showed as “fully charged”. Seems like a really good battery.

[HondaMan]

(Is it me, or are battery threads starting to challenge oil threads?)
 

Not about zink this time, lead!

I also think batteries need to be excerzised.

Per, you are absolutely right on both counts, here!
I worked with the battery engineers in the 1990s at Gates Energy who created the Optima battery technology (it was for military at the time, went public in 1999). While we can't get those batteries anymore for these bikes (which would be a WONDERFUL thing), the one thing that I learned was most important for any lead-acid battery type is: the lead must be full-density, virgin lead.

The way we "see" this today in batteries is simple: if the same-size battery weighs more (a lot more) from one maker than another, the lead is dense and virgin. As the battery cycles up-down, the lead slowly dissolves into electrons (and some detritus, that white-looking powdery stuff) when the incoming (re)charge can't quite re-create the pure lead that was once part of that cell. The lead breaks down a few lead atoms into electrons each time the battery discharges, and if those electrons, protons and neutrons are still nearby when re-charged, they will recombine. But they are heavy and sink quickly, so some get lost on each discharge cycle. This causes the lead to become porous and contaminated with broken-down acid electrons instead.

The famous Gates Energy Cell from 1980 (we know these as the spiral-wound or "6-pack" battery) has tens of thousands of tiny rectangular holes punched into the lead plates, and then those plates are wound together with thier insulator sheets VERY tightly (6 tons of force) with acid then being captured inside each tiny cell. In those batteries (I have one in my motorhome, now 20+ years old and working fine) the amperage available is almost 80% more than from a normal-sized plate battery, and they are VERY heavy for their size (mine weighs nearly twice the normal-size car battery equivalent). They last for many decades: the ones I had in my portable oscilloscope were just D-sized batteries, but they lasted for almost 40 years. Sadly, when Enersys bought out Gates Energy and moved it to Kansas, they quit making motorcycle batteries that will fit our machines.