bighawk Posted March 23, 2018 Share Posted March 23, 2018 What battery are you all running? Looks like mine is starting to fail at just one year. Do people generally stick to yuasa? I have run the cycle gear ones in the past that have died in 6 months. I see there are more options these days... Looking for recommendations. Thank you Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Contributer fink Posted March 23, 2018 Member Contributer Share Posted March 23, 2018 Mine is still running fine on the original battery. Aftermarket i I usually choose Motobatt Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blake Posted March 23, 2018 Share Posted March 23, 2018 You may not have to winterize your bike but in NY we have to. I take the battery out and leave on a battery tender all winter. During the riding season I’ll hook it up,to the tender/ charger if I feel it’s starting sluggish. I still have the OEM battery the bike came with. 2014 deluxe BTW. Lead acid batteries work best and last longer if you keep them well charged, try putting on a batter tender after you ride for a while. They have quick connect plugs that connect to the battery, it takes seconds to hook it up. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kwee69 Posted March 23, 2018 Share Posted March 23, 2018 I fitted a Skyrich Lithium battery on mine. Work great. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Contributer Philois1984 Posted March 23, 2018 Member Contributer Share Posted March 23, 2018 Saw a post on either this site or VFR World a few months back where someone recommended using the battery from a VFR 1200 in the VFR 800s. Stock part is I believe YTZ12S for the 800 vs YTZ14S for the 1200. Apparently they are the same size the only difference being that the 14S has more cold crank amps (230?) being for the larger motor. Apparently no reason you can’t use this battery, just turns the motor over much easier. Sounds logical to me. I intend to try this when my original battery dies, still going strong after 21 months and 17,600km. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Contributer Grum Posted March 23, 2018 Member Contributer Share Posted March 23, 2018 22 minutes ago, Philois1984 said: Saw a post on either this site or VFR World a few months back where someone recommended using the battery from a VFR 1200 in the VFR 800s. Stock part is I believe YTZ12S for the 800 vs YTZ14S for the 1200. Apparently they are the same size the only difference being that the 14S has more cold crank amps (230?) being for the larger motor. Apparently no reason you can’t use this battery, just turns the motor over much easier. Sounds logical to me. I intend to try this when my original battery dies, still going strong after 21 months and 17,600km. You are right Philois1984. Will be doing the same and fitting the YTZ14S when the time comes for replacing the original. Mine is a 2014, done 51,000k, (43 months)and whenever the bike is not used for a couple of weeks l hook it up to the charger/maintainer for a few days. The original battery still cranks the bike over fine even in cold! weather. Cheers. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bighawk Posted March 24, 2018 Author Share Posted March 24, 2018 7 hours ago, Grum said: You are right Philois1984. Will be doing the same and fitting the YTZ14S when the time comes for replacing the original. Mine is a 2014, done 51,000k, (43 months)and whenever the bike is not used for a couple of weeks l hook it up to the charger/maintainer for a few days. The original battery still cranks the bike over fine even in cold! weather. Cheers. Wow thanks guys. Are you sure about this conversion? This battery is actually much cheaper. Also my battery is about 1 year old and having difficulty. Original yuasa battery.. bike moves at minimum once a week. Strange it would die so early. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Contributer Philois1984 Posted March 24, 2018 Member Contributer Share Posted March 24, 2018 haven't done this myself yet but if you search "YTZ14S" on VFR world it will bring up the relevant thread. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Contributer Grum Posted March 24, 2018 Member Contributer Share Posted March 24, 2018 On 24 March 2018 at 4:31 PM, bighawk said: Wow thanks guys. Are you sure about this conversion? This battery is actually much cheaper. Also my battery is about 1 year old and having difficulty. Original yuasa battery.. bike moves at minimum once a week. Strange it would die so early. Hi Bighawk. The Yuasa YTZ14S is exactly the same dimension as the YTZ12S 150mm x 87mm x 110mm also the terminal connections are the same however the 14S has an extra 20cca (Cold Cranking Amps). I have had thoughts about a Lithium Ion but until I'm convinced on reliability and durability of these, shall stick with a conventional battery. Yuasa are generally a hi quality product and with the right care they can last many years! The killer for lead acid batteries are cold weather and a lack of regular use or charging, prolonged discharge. Perhaps your rides of once a week is only a short one, not really giving the battery a good charge, strongly suggest you hook up a good quality motorcycle charger/maintainer if the bike isn't getting a regular lengthy run. Also check your charging voltage at the battery. I can assure you the 8gen microprocessor controlled R/R provides a very stable 14.5v to the battery with engine running irrespective of load and rpm. I haven't actually had to replace a battery yet and when I sold my 6th gen after 94,000kms it still had the original Yuasa battery and cranking just fine. Cheers. Grum Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Contributer Rectaltronics Posted March 24, 2018 Member Contributer Share Posted March 24, 2018 Without looking at the specs right now, because I'm lazy, would the YTZ14S not require slightly more charging current at least temporarily if it gets run down? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bighawk Posted March 24, 2018 Author Share Posted March 24, 2018 10 hours ago, Grum said: Hi Bighawk. The Yuasa YTZ14S is exactly the same dimension as the YTZ12S 150mm x 87mm x 110mm also the terminal connections are the same however the 14S has an extra 20cca (Cold Cranking Amps). I have had thoughts about a Lithium Ion but until I'm convinced on reliability and durability of these, shall stick with a conventional battery. Yuasa are generally a hi quality product and with the right care they can last many years! The killer for lead acid batteries are cold weather and a lack of regular use or charging. Perhaps your rides of once a week is only a short one, not really giving the battery a good charge, strongly suggest you hook up a good quality motorcycle charger/maintainer if the bike isn't getting a regular lengthy run. Also check your charging voltage at the battery. I can assure you the 8gen microprocessor controlled R/R provides a very stable 14.5v to the battery with engine running irrespective of load and rpm. I haven't actually had to replace a battery yet and when I sold my 6th gen after 94,000kms it still had the original Yuasa battery and cranking just fine. Cheers. Grum Excellent. Perhaps, most of my rides are short these days thanks to the busyness of life. No outlet for a battery tender - hard times living out on LA :P Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Contributer Grum Posted March 24, 2018 Member Contributer Share Posted March 24, 2018 On 25 March 2018 at 6:15 AM, bighawk said: Excellent. Perhaps, most of my rides are short these days thanks to the busyness of life. No outlet for a battery tender - hard times living out on LA :P Hi Bighawk. Why not try hooking your battery up to a charger, some of the Smart Charger/maintainers have a recovery mode, it may return your battery to good health again, you might not need a new battery, worth a try. Surely you could power a charger with a long extension lead!! For info the charger I have is a Noco Genius G7200, it's a very smart device. Chargers and maintains Normal Lead Acid, AGM, Lithium Ion etc. also has a repair/recovery mode. Cheers Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Contributer Philois1984 Posted September 3, 2018 Member Contributer Share Posted September 3, 2018 My battery finally gave up on Sun morning after a 250 km ride. Had it on a battery tender for around a week before hand. As I mentioned earlier in this thread I went ahead and replaced it with a YTZ14S ($259AUD Or US$186 !! Ouch) I was thinking of replacing it with a Lithium battery but as I just bought a OptiMATE 4 battery tender that isn’t suitable for Lithium batteries I stayed with the stock type. The guy at the battery world shop said the only problem with lithium batteries is they don’t like the cold weather. Not a problem in sunny North Queensland but maybe in your neck of the woods. Also FYI the battery was around three years old, I have had the bike 26 months but it was a year old (still brand new) when I got it, sitting for a year may not have helped it. Hopefully now I am using a battery tender and the bike won’t be sitting idle this one will last a little longer. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Contributer VFROZ Posted September 3, 2018 Member Contributer Share Posted September 3, 2018 $259 for a battery?? Oh, you went to battery world. Paid $65 for my gel battery from an Ebay seller in Wollongong, three years and going strong. I believe SSB lithium batteries can be charged with any charger. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Contributer Philois1984 Posted September 3, 2018 Member Contributer Share Posted September 3, 2018 The instructions that came with the OptiMATE 4 say not suitable for lithium batteries. Sounds like you got a great deal on your battery, unfortunately I needed mine ASAP. I was expressing my shock at the price 🤬😭😤 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Contributer fink Posted September 3, 2018 Member Contributer Share Posted September 3, 2018 As far as I was aware lithium batteries needed a special charger. Optimate do do a lithium option. https://www.infinitymotorcycles.com/product/optimate-lithium-battery-charger-08a?gclid=EAIaIQobChMIxoz-yJ6f3QIVzed3Ch2NHwlDEAQYAiABEgJXzfD_BwE Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Contributer Stray Posted September 3, 2018 Member Contributer Share Posted September 3, 2018 Lithium batteries do need a different charger to lead. In fact lead needs an intelligent charger that pulses/trickles and dump charges at different stages in the battery’s state. Lithium on the other hand just wants a direct 12-14V charge that cuts off when full. I charge my lithium with with an old laptop charger customised with crocodile clips. Takes about 30mins Also, it’s a myth that lithium doesn’t like cold. They thrive in cold! It just takes them a moment to power up from their hibernation when cold. So I turn on the headlamp for 20 seconds in the coldest months which draws enough current to “wake” the battery up. Starts no problem. In fact lithium has significantly more cold cranking amps than lead/gel. Mine is the size of thee 20 pack cigarette boxes and can launch the space shuttle. Surprised me how much power they have. Lead has another advantage though: amp hours. You can run accessories off lead for three-four times longer than lithium. So think of lithium as the power sprinter and lead as the long distance runner. On a running bike however accessories are run are run off the charging system so no problem. Unless you leave the heated grips on - then you’re toast (excuse the pun). One advantage of lithium: it will give you full cranking even when severely discharged (20%!) whereas lead struggles if it loses 5-10% charge. In fact a severely discharged lithium can be filled up without issue whereas a lead that drops to 80% often needs scrapping. One note: if you’re winterising lithium run them down to 50% and they hibernate to live longer. Lead wants topping up all the time. These are just rough rules based on comparable lithium and lead/gel. If you want to stick with lead/gel look at Motobatt. Mine is 10 years old and still kicks over an old air cooled 1300 even after months of neglect. Good value for money. Got my lithium for £50 from a local chap. Cheaper than the lead replacement! Just throwing out some options. Stray Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Contributer JZH Posted September 4, 2018 Member Contributer Share Posted September 4, 2018 Just to clarify: Lithium is lithium, but gel and AGM are both "lead" (as is the old-style wet-cell battery with liquid electrolyte that you periodically have to top up with distilled water). Since the 1990s most bikes have come with AGM batteries from the factory, but a few still had wet cell batteries and some had gel batteries. (AGM batteries are sometimes called "gel", but the two technologies are different, so whenever someone says they have a gel battery I assume they mean AGM...) Ciao, Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Contributer scottbott Posted September 4, 2018 Member Contributer Share Posted September 4, 2018 I used to work for a company that had a contract with the NHS (national health service) in the UK and we had electric wheelchairs, for some reason some of the chargers could charge Gel and wet batteries and some could not, it caught us out a few times when a charger packed up and we just grabbed one off the shelf as a replacement, they had it printed on them if the could charge both types in small print apart from that they were identical do not know if the same thing applies to automotive chargers Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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