new to the club

[Rotten]

So does my new "Scepter O' Doom".

If you want yer Johnson swollen that badly throw it down on table and I'll make it fat and hard for ya.

[elfboy]

Yeah but the venom makes it swell so big!

[Rotten]

I don't think it's been said yet:
Check electrolyte levels - add distilled water or battery (sulfuric) acid if any cells are low.

Modern batteries are sealed so I wouldn't worry about hydrometer testing or rely on topping them off. if they needed topping off they are toast. Buy a new one.

But, holding the battery up to the light and checking for even electrolyte levels *IS* a great Idea. If the the levels are low do NOT top off and recharge. It's a total waste of time. Toss it and replace the battery but make sure there is not an overcharge condition that will destroy the new battery first.

On modern batteries trying to refill fluids and coax them back to life is a big waste of fucking time unless your idea of a good time is pushing a bike home down hwy. 1 from Pescadero.


Don't fuck around. Just buy a new one once you *know* the charging system functions correctly.

And that's how it IS...



I can't promise you sticking your dick in a Diamond Backs mouth and zapping it with a cattle prod *will* get your pecker bitten but I can promise you it's a BAD FUCKING IDEA!

Don't tempt fate...

[lugnut]

I don't think it's been said yet:
Check electrolyte levels - add distilled water or battery (sulfuric) acid if any cells are low.

[Rotten]

Charger must be 2 amp MAXIMUM! there are special trickle chargers just for bikes. A normal car charger will fry it so check the charger settings carefully. Most have multiple settings and you want the lowest.


FWIW if you don't ride the bike daily or the battery is two or more years old you are pretty much wasting time trying to bring it back to life. Even if it does work it will not have full cold cranking amp capacity and it will let you down when it counts.

Jump the bike from a non running car batt. to get it started and take voltage readings across the battery terminals once the jumper is removed. it shoulrd range a minimum of 12.5 or so @ idle and 13.5 or so at 2K rpm. No lower than 12.5 volts at any rpm or over 15 volts at high idle indicates a damamged reg/rect. assy. and putting a new battery in will not *fix* it. If readings are out of spec high or lower clean all battery contacts at both ends of both cables and recheck. Don't install a new batt. if charge output is too high.

Get back to us with your results and we'll try to get someone out to you with a wiring diagram and tools to help you trouble shoot it if need be.

Good luck and don't hesitate to chech back in with addition questions or prefferably a resolution.

Lon.

[epim]

Well, it's not their batteries, it's their charging systems. One is just a symptom of the other. Also, many honda sportbikes don't charge the battery at all below 4K rpm, which is why a ride through the city could run the battery flat.

You'll be able to figure out what's going on once the battery is charged and the bike is running.

[samatye]

Yep! Mine died on the Kilt Ride! :-/

[Gabitril]

Thanks for the responses. I got a friend coming into town on Wed. who's going to bring me a charger, but if that doesn't do it I'll head over to Cycle Imports.
I'm in Santa Cruz right off of Ocean st. and the bike is a Honda Hawk (I guess the thing about the Honda batteries having issues continues)

[epim]

Seric is right, jumping a bike from a car can damage it's relatively fragile electrical system.

It's best to remove the battery and toss it on an automatic charger for a couple days. What make and model of bike? Certain bikes, (well, pretty much every honda) are prone to charging issues.

A flat battery could be due to:
-You left the bike in the 'park' position (one notch past 'lock') that leaves the tail light on.
-The stator died.
-The Reg/Rec died.
-The battery is just old.

I would fully charge the battery, fire the bike up, and put a multimeter across the leads. You should see between 13.5 and 14 volts. Many bikes have to be tested with the engine speed somewhere above idle, so check your owners manual to find out where.

Let me know if you need any more help. Also, if you need any work done: Cycle Imports off South Rodeo Gulch is awesome.

[seric]

You could damage the Voltage Regulator/Rectifier assembly jumping it from a car. How old is the battery? There's a few different things that could be causing the issue.

Here's a good flowchart to help troubleshoot:

http://www.megageek.com/mcelectric/mcflow1_raster.gif


I'm sure you could also get responses from the forum with some more information. You should probably take the battery out and have it charged. A shop like Cycle Imports on Rodeo Gulch would probably do it for u. Where are you located in town?

[Junkie]

Jump it with a car that ISN'T running... but if the battery died, there's likely something else wrong too.

[Gabitril]

Hey, I'm a new rider in Santa Cruz. I just bought a bike, but the battery died on me. I don't really know what I'm doing and figured this would be a good place to talk to someone who did. Can I just jump it from a car, or would that blow up the battery or something? Suggestions? Thanks!

[samatye]

oh yeah, staff is awesome, the Roastmaster is awesome, just the owner is bad news. Couldn't give a fuck who came in and gave him money, and gave no respect to his customers or employees. Bad all around. But yeah, I miss Coffee Cat's great products and the staff has always been great! :-D

[epim]

I made those back in the day. Before I got fired. Coffee Cat has a great product, I just wish the owner wasn't a total DOUCHEbag...

Sucks to hear the owner sucks, the people behind the counter are always nice.

[samatye]

I made those back in the day. Before I got fired. Coffee Cat has a great product, I just wish the owner wasn't a total DOUCHEbag...