Battery sizes and odd electrical gremlins

iwilson

iwilson

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Out for a ride a few weeks ago. Noticed that the Speedo had stopped working and the voltage display was 11.5v. Figured must be the battery on the way out so purchased the factory spec size a 14-BS. Noticed that the dealer had fitted a 9-BS a much smaller battery (90cca vs. 200cca).

But upon fitting it I noticed two things, firstly the factory spec. size means the positive terminal touches the ali tank of the Domi (saved only by the rubber cap over the terminal) - this is why the dealer had fitted a much smaller battery. So I went and bought the in between size a 12-BS (150cca). So all good except that wasn't the problem! So I've now got three batteries! Scott/Voodooo/other owners with an ali tank what size battery do you run in your bikes?

For ref. here's the difference in size.

Battery sizes and odd electrical gremlins


The bike was starting fine, but whenever I turned the ignition on the voltage display would start to drop down to around 11.5v, despite a brand new fully charged battery installed. So either a fault with the voltage sensor in the instrument cluster or a problem in the wiring loom.

Started metering the loom and discovered the 30amp fuse holder near the battery had some carbon scoring on it and wasn't sitting tightly in the fuse holder. So cleaned it up and squeezed the connector to get a better grip on the fuse. Noticed that the voltage drop wasn't quite so much, so continued on.

Battery sizes and odd electrical gremlins


Never found a smoking gun, but cleaned connectors and applied a bit of dielectric grease as I went. Ended up inside the headlamp assembly. Where I noticed a bit of surface corrosion getting underway - so if you haven't looked it might be an idea to remove and treat before it becomes serious.

Battery sizes and odd electrical gremlins


This is after I'd cleaned it up - it looked a lot worse to start with!

Battery sizes and odd electrical gremlins


By the time I'd finished the voltage display on the instrument cluster matched what I was seeing at the battery. But just to be sure I took the opportunity to fit a CTEK battery sense to the terminals. This only draws 1mA and displays the battery condition via bluetooth to your phone.

Battery sizes and odd electrical gremlins


So clearly worth while occasionally pulling connectors apart, cleaning and applying a smear of dielectric grease.

One last observation that someone might be able to explain. I notice when I have my charger connected the speedo needle will often rhythmically 'tick' as the battery is being charged. Doesn't do it throughout the charging process but it has something to do with the charger being on. Anyone else notice the same thing? Using a CTEK mxs 5.0 charger on motorbike and AGM mode.

 
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I switched to a Shorai. Much smaller so no touching issues. Also my tank came with insulation on the battery area just in case.
My Tach would do something similar when charging. I was also having excessive battery drain when bike was switched off. I emailed Norton about it and they said there was some clocks that gave trouble. They sent me a troubleshooting bulletin and I found my Tach was did not comply with their recommendations so they sent me a new one. Cured clock "ticking" but I'm not 100% certain it cured a parasitic drain.
 
speirmoor said:
I switched to a Shorai. Much smaller so no touching issues. Also my tank came with insulation on the battery area just in case.
My Tach would do something similar when charging. I was also having excessive battery drain when bike was switched off. I emailed Norton about it and they said there was some clocks that gave trouble. They sent me a troubleshooting bulletin and I found my Tach was did not comply with their recommendations so they sent me a new one. Cured clock "ticking" but I'm not 100% certain it cured a parasitic drain.
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The dealer put insulation on my tank as well. But... over time with the vibration etc, it's not hard to imagine it wearing through and with no fuse to blow the battery would quickly burn through the tank and I don't need to tell you what would happen next!

Could you send me the bulletin on the ticking please, mine is the speedometer not the tacho, but it might be useful to understand what's going on.
 
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speirmoor said:
I switched to a Shorai. Much smaller so no touching issues. Also my tank came with insulation on the battery area just in case.
My Tach would do something similar when charging. I was also having excessive battery drain when bike was switched off. I emailed Norton about it and they said there was some clocks that gave trouble. They sent me a troubleshooting bulletin and I found my Tach was did not comply with their recommendations so they sent me a new one. Cured clock "ticking" but I'm not 100% certain it cured a parasitic drain.
Click to expand...
I had parasitic drain but my clocks didn't 'tick'. Norton traced my current draw to a faulty speedo and replaced it, battery drain when not on charge is much better.
 
Do you use the 1K ohm resistor to fix the flashing fuel light ? This may also be a source of some drain. raise the resistor to 10K ohm and try again .
 
TonyA said:
Do you use the 1K ohm resistor to fix the flashing fuel light ? This may also be a source of some drain. raise the resistor to 10K ohm and try again .
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No. This is the first I've heard of this. Whats the gist?
 
I've had the CTEK battery sense connected for a few days now. I normally always have the battery on a maintenance charger when parked up. But I want to see what happens if I left it for a period of time. As you can see I'm down to 91% already after just three days. I've been for one ride which you can see on the graph as a the flat period. So it's not hard to predict that after a couple of weeks it could be starting to get down to the border line, particulary if the engine took a few cranks to start. This is a brand new battery in the prime of its life!

Battery sizes and odd electrical gremlins
 
I monitored my battery voltage before and after the fix. What I did was monitor the V for a day then crank the bike over, then monitor the V for 2 days then crank, then 3 days etc. What I found that after the fix the V dropped significantly slower and at around the 7 day mark the cranking became sluggish. I was happy with that, it suggested whilst V dropped slowly the capacity to provide the Amps dropped more quickly..... but still far better than was prior to the fix.
 
iwilson said:
This only draws 1mA and displays the battery condition via bluetooth to your phone.
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If the CTEK draws 1mA and your battery is staying charged for an extended period then you are doing well and probably have little else to worry about. My battery had a parasitic drain of 19mA as measured by me and confirmed at my last service at the factory. After the fix they measured it at less than 1mA and my battery is now good for a week , maybe a little more, without a charge. This is good for me but nowhere near as good as others have reported.
 
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