[tfactor]

Something weird happened today, and I'm curious if it's just a coincidence. My wife and I went for a ride, 10 miles up a double track dirt road, then a pretty steep loose rocky 5 miles back down. I rode some of the sections on both our bikes, it was steeper and looser than I remembered

Anyways, at one point I walked back uphill to get her bike and it was not running. I tried starting it, and the battery was absolutely dead -- turning the key did nothing, light didn't come on, no neutral indicator, nothing. It happened all of the sudden. I started it by letting it run downhill in second gear and popping the clutch, so we were fine. It was some 45 minutes into our ride. When re-started by popping the clutch all the lights worked -- so I wouldn't think that some connection came loose.



I had the battery most of the winter on a Battery Tender, and it seemed in good health. It is a 2003 bike and the battery is probably the original. I am charging it up now and we'll see how it fares.



I'm curious if today's ride, hot bike, dusty roads, etc, could have something to do with it, or just a coincidence. Thanks,



tom.

 

[pgilles]

A hot wired is chaffing against the frame/ground and blew the main fuse.



Or a battery connection is loose. Lights still work without a battery, they will run off the alternator.

 

[Rohnsman]

A 2003 with the original battery ?! if so, my math says that's a 9-year old battery. I would have thought you would have seen decreased performance long before this. The thought that a chaffed wire blew a fuse is a credible theory given the circumstances of the ride you outlined and it's sudden failure. None-the-less, if you got 9 years outta that battery I wanna know your secret!

 

[elime]

Add a kick starter.

 

[Rainman]

A hot wired is chaffing against the frame/ground and blew the main fuse.



Or a battery connection is loose. Lights still work without a battery, they will run off the alternator.

Exactly. I'd check connections first.



Or, your battery finally just died of old age.

 

[tfactor]

I'll re-check the wiring -- maybe something got loose from when I installed the battery tender pigtail last fall.



I agree the battery is old, it was just strange how it seemed to have no issues until suddenly kaput.



The bike is light enough that even on flat ground I can easily run with it to hot-start it, no need for kickstarter

Thanks, will post update later today,



tom.

 

[TW_in_BC]

I killed a relatively new battery once just by riding it up a rough trail. Something inside the battery gave out and I was riding a sputtering bike back to the truck!

It's possible that a plate broke off inside...or a loose connection to the post (that happened to me once too!)...or a short, although that would usually blow a fuse.



Then again...if you have a 9 year old battery, you are indeed living on borrowed time. Replace every 3 - 5 years.

 

[tfactor]

The connections looked good -- and so did the fuses. No manufacture date on the battery so I cannot tell if it's original or newer. The battery levels are rather low though -- I don't know much about battery maintenance, other than plugging it into a battery tender. The voltage from the battery was around 13V, didn't check the current. From the levels, looks like I need a new battery... or do I refill it somehow?



Anything else I should check while I'm at it? Thanks everyone for suggestions,



tom.

 

[frog13]

Maybe purchase a shorai battery...a little $$$,but no chance of acid spills.....shoraipower.com.

 

[pgilles]

The connections looked good -- and so did the fuses. No manufacture date on the battery so I cannot tell if it's original or newer. The battery levels are rather low though -- I don't know much about battery maintenance, other than plugging it into a battery tender. The voltage from the battery was around 13V, didn't check the current. From the levels, looks like I need a new battery... or do I refill it somehow?



Anything else I should check while I'm at it? Thanks everyone for suggestions,



tom.

I'd go with a new battery since you need one anyway. The plates can corrode when the water is low. They can corrode with proper water levels and lack of maintenance charge over a few months. And not knowing the age of it can warrant the purchase. Start from a clean slate and know what is good.



Could have a corroded key/main switch, too. It's another piece of the puzzle to take a look at if a new battery doesn't take care of the issue.



Since the lights don't work, I don't suspect a neutral or kickstand safety switch.



I've ran jumper cables from a vehicle to the TW battery and tried it to aide in the diagnosis. Do the lights pop on? Does it start? Then replace battery for sure.



Here's the wiring diagram...

 

[TW_in_BC]

The connections looked good -- and so did the fuses. No manufacture date on the battery so I cannot tell if it's original or newer. The battery levels are rather low though -- I don't know much about battery maintenance, other than plugging it into a battery tender. The voltage from the battery was around 13V, didn't check the current. From the levels, looks like I need a new battery... or do I refill it somehow?



Anything else I should check while I'm at it? Thanks everyone for suggestions,



tom.

This battery is toast.

Who knows how long the levels have been so low, but chances are it was long enough to do irreparable damage. Topping up will accomplish nothing.

Get yourself a new battery...either a Lithium/Iron or at the very least an AGM lead-acid type.

 

[tfactor]

Thanks -- I will order a new battery and see if that fixes the issue. I do basic maintenance (oil changes, etc) but have lots to learn... Thanks!

 

[peruano]

Wet cell batteries have plates and as they age they corrode and become thinned. Rough rides can cause the plates to collapse, and short out the battery. The rough road to Chaco Canyon National Monument is famous for killing car batteries, and MC batteries should be no exception. Try a new battery and don't spend much time looking for shorts elsewhere until your symptoms reappear. Good luck. Tom

 

[qwerty]

Most any kind of maintenance charger/tender is an iffy proposition on a TW battery. Most devices have a minimum charge rate far in excess of the TW's dinky battery's ability to absorb without over heating and boiling out the electrolyte. The solution is to put the charger/maintainer on a timer so it only runs a few minutes at a time a few times a day. It only takes a few minutes to overheat a TW battery, and the timer will provide charging and cooling periods.



A Chinese AGM battery costs about the same as a good charger/tender and will hold enough charge to start the bike about 10 times longer than the older technology. Unless the bike sits for months no charger/tender is necessay.

 

[tfactor]

I bought a Scorpion battery from BatteryStuff.com and the bike runs great now. Thanks to everyone for their help!



tom.

 

[lizrdbrth]

Most any kind of maintenance charger/tender is an iffy proposition on a TW battery. Most devices have a minimum charge rate far in excess of the TW's dinky battery's ability to absorb without over heating and boiling out the electrolyte. The solution is to put the charger/maintainer on a timer so it only runs a few minutes at a time a few times a day. It only takes a few minutes to overheat a TW battery, and the timer will provide charging and cooling periods.



A Chinese AGM battery costs about the same as a good charger/tender and will hold enough charge to start the bike about 10 times longer than the older technology. Unless the bike sits for months no charger/tender is necessay.

+1 on the charging info. Be careful with your choice in tenders.

 

[tfactor]

I have this battery tender from Deltran. The instructions for it say it's for six cell lead-acid batteries -- so maybe the international version (designed to work with AGM) would be the better choice... and I think my WR250R has an AGM battery now too.



I live in the high rockies, and we don't get to ride our bikes much in the winter. I usually put the tender onto my bike for a week, then my wife's bike for a week, then mine, and so forth. Is that a good approach? Removing the batteries from our insulated but non-heated garage is another option too...



tom.

 

[PalmStateCrawler]

Battery tenders are smart. They have four modes but all you really need to know is that it switches from a trickle charger to a float charger and back as your battery needs.