Choice of battery

[Richard]

My AT is fitted with a Sprint battery that is starting to loose its chrge quite quickly so it needs to be replaced. Even when it was fully charged (i.e. after a long run) the cranking speed is pretty poor. Terminals have been cleaned but made no difference.
So what is a good battery for delivering loads of amps for starting? Someone told me that Gel-filled batteries are better.
Richard

[jvaughan]

Gel are good.
You used to beable to buy sulphuric acid to replenish motorbike batterys.

I have done it a new times... wash with deionised water and top up with Sulphuric Acid. Charge overnight.

[robelst]

Yuasa make good batteries. Got one in the AT and in the Buell, none of them are gel-ones. The Yuasa in the Buell is 4.5 years old, pressed the starter after 3 months of not running: the lumpy big engine started without the slightest hesistation. That's good enough for me

[xrv_jim]

I replaced my ailing battery with an OE spec one (I think it's a Yuasa?) - anyway, it's acid filled, sealed for life and doing it's job.

What's the big advantage of gel batteries?

[Dilbert]

What's the big advantage of gel batteries?

They be made with extra special electrickery magic, supposed to hold their charge better and are slower at eating your foot away if you drop one on the floor!?

[Maverick]

I had one of those gel batteries in my Beemer, it sure turns the motor hard and quick. Only problem I found that in the cold if you have problems starting a bike it runs down much quicker than an acid battery and they go completely flat.
With the old acid batteries they tend to regain some charge if you leave it for a couple of minutes - the gell does not seem to do that.

[BobA]

Hmmm!

The only experience I've had with Gel/Maintenance free batteries were bad ones, up until the point when I bought and permanently started using an Optimate, whilst the bike was being stored/not used.
In the space of 3-4 weeks, the battery was being completely drained by the alarm. A re-charge with anything other than an Optimate (even expensive Halfords intelligent chargers (do those two words go together?!!) which is the only charger I use now, seemed to cook the battery and it either recovered briefly, or never recovered.

These experiences weren't with an AT, but something of Italian origin, however I have to say that the bike and alarm (Datatool) were not at fault, it was always the battery. They just can't seem to handle the small but constant drain of an alarm.

Stick with the original battery. At £23 they're cheap as chips, and last well enough.

Bob

[Maverick]

Halfords intelligent chargers (do those two words go together?!!)Bob

Ohh Bob how you made me laugh and laugh this morning, nearly spilled my cuppa all over my keyboard when I saw that combination - Halfrauds suck

[BobA]

Maverick

You were having a cuppa this morning!! Jeeezus, it was such a nice day I thought you break out the Bri !!

Best Wishes

Bob