Question.. should my battery look like it is "Sweaty" around the top? Probably not is what I am thinking. Time for a new Battery?

 

Bump... give me an answer guys.

 

You know what, I just bought a new battery and it's sweaty around the top too!

 

Interesting! MT Where are you from/located? I am in In Metro Atlanta, and it has been hotter than hell here for a while. At night in my garage it is still 85 degrees or so I bet. I have basically been hving starting problems.. see my thread about "Starting problem... SOLVED" at least i thought I had it figured out, then I basically drained the battery trying to start the bike.... basically took the batt in to get it tested at Advance Auto and it was really low but on thier machine it immediately started to charge and the batt got warm.. took it home dropped it in and it fired up.. SoI will see how the battery and starting of the bike performs over the next few rides.

 

You would do well for yourself to stop at Autozone or Advance auto or whatevr other place there is and buy the $29 Schumacher charger. It's a 1.5 amp charger with the smart technology that charges the battery and then shuts off and monitors. I just opened mine this morning and used it and it seems to work well. Recharged a battery that was about 12.6v when I got it and ithin a half hour, the charge cycle had cut off.

Anyway, the heat probably had someting to do with it. If you have a battery with inspection caps and you need to add water, do the check for sure. Water around unsealed caps means you need to inspect and add water if necessary.

 

Thanks man. It is one of those maint free batteries.. I did pick up a multimeter to test the R/R, the battery and the Stator to see if the problem lies with with one of them.

 

I live in Hawaii and it's been hot here too!

My bike is outside but under a cover. I sure hope the battery isn't being damaged.

 

WellI bought a multimeter and checked it... it seems to be fine. Could not get a reading at all on the R/R. So I am a litt

My problem was that i was not patient enough in the starting process and then I was trying to restart (wet plugs) and ran it down. Battery is good, my starting process and my patience has gotten better. I am going to take it to a shop and let them test the full system to make sure all is well. Will keep you all posted.

 

Good luck.

I'm going to test mine with the voltmeter too and do it while revving the bike at 5,000 rpm.

Just gotta find a park or someplace private so I don't make anyone mad.


We'll see! I'll keep you posted too

 

Just head to the mall or somewhere with lots of pavement. Heck, a business park after 5pm works well.

I don't know if I mentioned this before in another post, but I also found out that even if the battery is putting out 12.8v sitting and the system seems to be charging, the battery could still be bad. (putting out voltage, but dropping very quickly under load) I was getting correct readings, but the battery would crank the bike slow and the bike would not start without me push starting it. I popped in a new battery and the thing cranks like a champ. It used to stall if I let the choke out too soon and even at some traffic lights. Now it runs great and my idle speed is actually almost where it should be from the factory.

I think I was having the problems because when the old battery would try and start the bike, the voltage would drop well below 12v, which would either not allow a spark, or produce a very weak spark. I also found out that checking commercial battery suppliers is very worthwhile. I ordered a battery on line for $60 shipped to me and all the local places wanted $60 plus tax. Called local battery commercial supplier and found one for $32 with tax. (I didn't think the on line supplier would ever send me my battery) Anyway, I now have an extra newbattery sitting around, but at least I never added the electrolyte.