Vintage Motorcycle Eccentrics

What are your opinions on the cost effectiveness of different types of batteries? It sure seems the conventional lead acid types are pathetic and I would buy better if I could trust it was worth it.

Doug:

I've used three types over the years.

Standard, flooded acid - relatively cheap, but vibration sensitive, heavy, discharge just sitting so need routing charging

Absorbed glass mat - good vibration resistance, mount in most any position, still heavy. Very sensitive to being fully discharged and left that way. Once is enough to ruin the battery. Better for storage discharge, but not much

Various lithium - light, must be charged within very narrow specifications, most older bike systems don't properly charge them. Much better storage discharge rate, but fire hazard if not charged correctly.

If you ride the bike frequently and the charging system is working correctly an AGM will last a long time.

Lithium stuff, I take out of the bikes and charge on the bench. Don't put them back in until I plan to ride the bike again.

Gordon

The Shorai battery was a big hit when they came out but at a high cost. They were sensitive to charging and cycling with a battery charger. They are still around but so many other companies have come into the market with similar units, I honestly
don't know what I would choose today. I do like the maintenance free gel battery and they seem to last quite a while.
I just started the GW today, first since last August. It spun the engine quite a while before it started. It's a Deka I got at
Heartline.

I tried a Shorai in my KTM 300 dirt bike. It was nice and light (I got the biggest that would fit where the original
AGM fit)- but didn’t work for a darn in cold weather.
Of course the pre-17 KTM 2-stroke starters were notorious crummy.

I didn’t think it was worth it.

I ran the original AGM in my Ducati since 2005. I just replaced it this summer. It still worked, but I just didn’t trust it at that age.
I always have it on a Battery Tender (brand) float charger when not riding.

I still use the AGM at this point. But stay away from the cheap ones. They do not seem very vibration resistant compared to the better ones.

Mark

I appreciate the replies. Looks like Coya's GS450 will be getting a gel type, any input on brands?

AGM is different then Gel. Mostly those are used for stationary applications- and not that many anymore. I would never use one in a motorcycle.

AGM works quite well.

Back when I was working- we used flooded lead/calcium battery banks. They were huge, heavy and a pain to deal with. BUT they would easily last 20 years and many in service more than that and still working great. They are most definitely stationary batteries. Each cell is 2.3 Volts in a clear jar (so you can monitor the plates). Just wire in series cells together to produce the required nominal voltage, add in parallel for more Ah.

Mark