fiedler.casey
Active Member
Hey all,
I was riding just the other day, on only the third or fourth ride of my new build, when suddenly she bogged out and refused to rev at 55 in 6th gear. She ran right down to nearly nothing and sputter and putted along at what was nothing more than a coughing idle in first. Initially I suspected lack of fuel from carbs but it turned out not to be the case.
As I started looking more closely I realized I'd lost all electrical, apparently she was running erratically on the power provided by the low RPM output of the charging system. None of the lights (headlight, speedo backlights which are LED, turns, Voltmeter, etc) function off the battery. I did some tests and found that a test light was also erratically lighting up when connected directly to the battery posts. It would flicker, then nothing, and after moving the leads around on the post the test light would flicker again, light up fully, and fizzle out over and over again.
After these test results, I hooked the battery up to a battery tender which went from red, to blinking red, to solid green within 5 minutes, leading me to believe the battery must be holding charge...
Voltmeter tests show ~13.3V consistently without erratic readings from (-) to (+) terminals (after the battery tender charging was applied). I tried hooking up the 12V headlight directly to the battery posts using alligator clips and the headlight will not draw enough current to light up. The test light is erratic or non functional even with the battery completely removed from the bike and sitting upright on the bench.
The battery is an 8Ah 12V AGM battery from DCC purchased ~12 months ago and kept on a battery tender almost exclusively.
I did ride the bike for ~20 miles or so on the first test ride without the battery fully secured. I.E. there was about a 1/4" gap between the battery and its mounting assembly which allowed for some vibrational movement. I know this because I realized it was a problem when I saw small flecks of plastic around the battery from where it had rubbed and chaffed on the metal housing around it. The chaffing did not, however, breach the battery's plastic outer housing and there is no leaking evident anywhere. I have since secured the battery mount more properly.
I am afraid that perhaps the inaugural test ride jiggled the battery's internals apart somehow... I'm really not sure what else would explain the erratic function.
Does anyone have any suggestions on where I should go from here? Battery tests that may prove more conclusive?
Thanks!
I was riding just the other day, on only the third or fourth ride of my new build, when suddenly she bogged out and refused to rev at 55 in 6th gear. She ran right down to nearly nothing and sputter and putted along at what was nothing more than a coughing idle in first. Initially I suspected lack of fuel from carbs but it turned out not to be the case.
As I started looking more closely I realized I'd lost all electrical, apparently she was running erratically on the power provided by the low RPM output of the charging system. None of the lights (headlight, speedo backlights which are LED, turns, Voltmeter, etc) function off the battery. I did some tests and found that a test light was also erratically lighting up when connected directly to the battery posts. It would flicker, then nothing, and after moving the leads around on the post the test light would flicker again, light up fully, and fizzle out over and over again.
After these test results, I hooked the battery up to a battery tender which went from red, to blinking red, to solid green within 5 minutes, leading me to believe the battery must be holding charge...
Voltmeter tests show ~13.3V consistently without erratic readings from (-) to (+) terminals (after the battery tender charging was applied). I tried hooking up the 12V headlight directly to the battery posts using alligator clips and the headlight will not draw enough current to light up. The test light is erratic or non functional even with the battery completely removed from the bike and sitting upright on the bench.
The battery is an 8Ah 12V AGM battery from DCC purchased ~12 months ago and kept on a battery tender almost exclusively.
I did ride the bike for ~20 miles or so on the first test ride without the battery fully secured. I.E. there was about a 1/4" gap between the battery and its mounting assembly which allowed for some vibrational movement. I know this because I realized it was a problem when I saw small flecks of plastic around the battery from where it had rubbed and chaffed on the metal housing around it. The chaffing did not, however, breach the battery's plastic outer housing and there is no leaking evident anywhere. I have since secured the battery mount more properly.
I am afraid that perhaps the inaugural test ride jiggled the battery's internals apart somehow... I'm really not sure what else would explain the erratic function.
Does anyone have any suggestions on where I should go from here? Battery tests that may prove more conclusive?
Thanks!