Ballistic Batteries Thumbs Up or Down

[appiebroomer]

I'm on my 3rd Ballistic battery this season. I'm not sure if these batteries are capable of surviving in the rough and tough motorcycle enviroment. My charging system checks out fine, puts out about 13.8 volts at about 2500 rpm, but I've pooched 2 of these batteries in about 5 months of normal use.
Anybody else have any experience with these Ballistic Batteries ?
I like em because of their small size, and I've built a special battery box under the tail section to fit the Ballistic battery. So I'm trying to decide if I should give up on these batteries or if I just had a couple of flukes.

 

[Tim]

I haven't had experience with Ballistic, but have been running a Shorai in my XS650 for this season with absolutely no problems. Beat the crap out of my bike too, rev the snot out of the engine and the battery vibrates a lot under my seat with the XS engine pounding away.

I hope Ballistic is taking care of you on the batteries? Can't imagine you're forking out $ every time. What model are you using?

 

[warthogcrewchief]

half/half...

They come with a three year warranty. I've emailed the company when my first battery failed within about 3 months... They shipped me a new one, no questions asked, no need to return the old one. Great customer service. If you get a Ballistic battery, one MUST read the fine print on their website: http://www.ballisticparts.com/tech/charging.php

Ballistic Performance Components Batteries are very different in chemistry and construction from traditional lead acid batteries. Ballistic Batteries do not require regular maintenance charging and will only lose less than 10% of their total charge over a twelve (12) month period of static use. They are compatible with your vehicle’s charging system and can be used in a ‘total loss’ application. Any automotive or motorcycle based charger is acceptable to recharge your Ballistic Performance Components battery as long as it has an automatic shut-off at 14.4V to prevent over charging. If you are using an automatic charger, be sure that it is not used in automatic desulfication mode designed for lead-acid batteries. This can damage the cells.

1.) When charging a Ballistic Performance Components Battery with a traditional automotive or motorcycle based external charging device, the following input specifications are recommended:

Standard Charge: 2A @ 13.2-14.4V for approximately 45 minutes or until the battery registers 14.4V.

Maximum Charge Rate for Standard Automotive or Motorcycle based Charger:

Scooter Battery (100-009) – 5A @ 13.2-14.4V for 15 minutes or until the battery registers 14.4V.
4 Cell EVO 2 (100-010) – 10A @ 13.2-14.4V for 15 minutes or until the battery registers 14.4V.
8 Cell EVO 2 (100-011) – 20A @ 13.2-14.4V for 15 minutes or until the battery registers 14.4V.
12 Cell EVO 2 (100-012) – 20A @ 13.2-14.4V for 15 minutes or until the battery registers 14.4V.
16 Cell EVO 2 (100-013) – 20A @ 13.2-14.4V for 20 minutes or until the battery registers 14.4V.

2.) Ballistic Performance Components EVO 2 Battery Management System (BMS) Professional Intelligent Digital Balance Charger: Please refer to the EVO2 BMS charger instructions included with your charger.

3.) Ballistic Performance Components Standard Charger: Connect battery to the charger and plug the charger into a standard wall socket. The Charger body will display a red light if the battery requires a charge. When the battery is completely charged, the light will turn from red to green and the charger will shut off automatically. Do not leave plugged in after the battery is charged. Do not attempt to charge while the battery is connected to other electrical devices.

Warnings:

Do not charge a Ballistic Performance Component Battery above 14.4 Volts. This will damage the battery.
Do not charge with an automatic charger in desulfication mode.
Do not allow the battery to be drained below 9.0V, this will damage the cells. If your powersports vehicle has a parasitic draw like an alarm of similar devices, disconnect the battery when not in use. If the battery is allowed to be drained below 9.0V, it may not recharge to its maximum capacity. If the battery does become discharged, recharge immediately.

Do not attempt to charge a Ballistic Performance Component Battery that is below 6.0Volts. A Lithium battery below 6.0Volts is considered dead.
Failure to adhere to these charging specifications or exceeding these limits may cause battery failure and will void any potential warranty claim.

 

[appiebroomer]

After the first one failed I contacted Ballistic and after emailing back and forth for a couple of weeks they shipped me new battery no charge, which I thought was great. But I had already purchased another one so I could ride my bike. So I kept the battery they sent me as a spare, and good thing I did cause within 1 1/2 months the second one died too.
I have read all the instructions supplied with the battery and don't feel like the batteries were abused. I have found more comments from other buyers on the web with similar experiences, but I'm not sure if these failures are a random few events, or if these batteries are just not rugged enough for the wide variety of motorcycle applications. That's why I'm asking for other people's experiences.

 

[MotoMadness]

Check out Antigravity batteries. Have heard mixed reviews about the Ballistic but have heard nothing but good things about the Antigravity ones.

 

[mohabie]

Customer service with Ballistic is unmatched in my opinion. When a 8 cell wasnt enough for my R65, they sent me a 12 cell no questions asked, and no need to return the 8 cell. I have that in my wifes CM400! So far, the 12 cell in the BMW R65 is great, mounted in the tail section on its side.

 

[jimmer]

I have an 8 cell and I charge it with the Ballistic charger.I use it in a total loss setup.I have been using it since early spring and so far it is very strong.Two thumbs up from me.

 

[Sonreir]

Do not charge a Ballistic Performance Component Battery above 14.4 Volts. This will damage the battery.

Repeated for emphasis.

Most of the charging systems on our older bikes do NOT meet the requirement. They will continue to charge up as high as 16 or 17 volts at redline. If you're unsure about this, warm up your bike and then put a multimeter across the positive and negative terminals on the battery. Rev the bike and if, at any point, the voltage exceeds 14.4V, you know you need to get a newer voltage regulator. Oregon Motorcycle Parts sells quality combination regulator/rectifiers that will meet this need.

 

[RevDecay]

I have used the 8 Cell EVO2 and 4 Cell EVO2. I have not had no major problems with them at all. As well I own the charger that goes with these. About every 2 weeks I balance charge my batteries on the 0.3 A setting usually takes about 15min.

Currently using the 4 cell in a 78 xs 400 with a starter. If it is 30° - 40° out then it will take about 3 bumps to spin over.
Currently using the 8 cell in a 78 gs 750 with a starter. Thing fires every time no issues at all.
Have had these batteries for almost 2 years.

 

[pecanflyboy]

I have built a custom Café around and SR500 frame and motor. I purchased the 100-009 Ballistic battery because it was small and I could hide it. The SR is a kick start, self-charging bike. It doesn't need a battery. I wanted a battery to keep the lights bright at idle. I figured a 12V battery that was designed to start a scooter could handle being a reservoir for low idle, power off situations. I was wrong.

The first battery died quickly. 0.0V, and wouldn't take a charge. Because I wanted to ride, I purchased another -009 while having several conversations with Ballistic about a warranty replacement. They made me mail the failed battery back, and then warranty/replaced it with a -010, because they had stopped producing the -009. My second purchased -009 died three months later. This time Ballistic refused the warranty claim (second purchase, first failure), because they said I was using it in the wrong application. My bad, the SR500 is not on Ballistic's application list. Lessoned learned: If the battery you are using is not an approved application, they have the option to refuse warranty. My only issue is that they did not tell me until after the second failure.

So, now I have a novice education on LiFePO batteries:

The problem with LiFePO starter batteries, is that they have no protection and are susceptible to failure. If the battery get's below 5 or 6 volts, it's dead forever. If it is over-charged, it is dead. If it is over-discharged, it's dead. A Protection Circuit Module (PCM) can be used to protect the battery from these situations. However, during a high amperage start the PCM will be destroyed. So, PCM's are not used on the starter batteries. Maybe there are manufacturers that have some kind of protection?

My second thought was to use a smaller camera/tool type battery. Many of the camera/tool 12V LiFePO batteries will have a PCM that prevents over-discharge/charging/drain......perfect!?......nope.....These PCM's get destroyed if they are subjected to a charge over 2amps. The SR charges up to 11amps.....no worky

The lesson learned is that if you use a LiFePO, be careful with it. I think a better option are the lead acid or AGM batteries. They are typically cheaper, more durable, but larger.

Ton up,
J

 

[TonieR]

As a note for anybody doing this research in the future:

I also did a ton of research on the Ballistic 4cell Evo. Ended up purchasing it and running it on my completely rebuild '72 Cb 350.

New wiring harness, running with electronic ignition and a Rick's charging system and regulator (puts out a steady 12.5v). After one start the battery failed and drained to 8v and would not run/start the bike. Very odd. Charged it as directed by Ballistic and tried again. Same thing.

So got in touch with Ballistic that told me I wasn't covered by warranty since the CB 350 is not a recommended bike on their list. They only go back to bikes made after 1980 on their list. A rather small point considering my whole system is "modern" spec. But to be fair they do not list the CB 350 so I get their point.

There just seems to be too much speculation on the net about this running the small twins. Instead of buying a new battery I've decided to go the Antigravity route. Rather taking the time and effort to rebuild my battery mount than fork over cash for another Ballistic that might fade on me "in a couple of months" and then would not be covered by warranty in anycase.

(Disclaimer: Also posted this on HondaTwins.net)