[Thanas]

Hi everybody,

SO normally i wouldn't be thinking of these devices, because i pretty much ride year round, so not much change of the battery going dead from not beeing used.

Here's the situation.

It's winter here (the Netherlands) And this week the temperatures went below 0 (celsius, that's 32 Fahrenheit). And i'm currently not riding every day, because i'm trying to "save" some km's (miles) because i have a 10.000 km service due in wk3 of 2010. So instead of riding every day, i was going every other day.

So monday the battery didn't get the bike started, so i bump started the bike, worked on the 2nd try. Tuesday i used the car, and come wednesday. Not by battery, not by bumpstarting. So supspected the battery might have to little demi water. So yesterday i took the fairing off. In the freezing cold by the way. Not fun. And found the battery had morge than enough water. So what is up with the battery then. I have no idea what the age of the battery is. It worked fine last winter. Riding pretty much everyday, for a year and a half, with 2 starts minimum everyday, that's about a 1000 starts. And it has been sitting in a showroom for an unknown time. SO perhaps the battery is just old. It actually didn't ride for about a month last year winter and still got the bike cranked and started.

SO what to do, just get a new one, or top off with Demi Water and see what happens.

And part 2, Since i'm messing with the battery anyway, perhaps installing a plug for a battery tender might be a smart idea. I currently do have the bike for sale also, not that i really want to part with it. But would make it more sellable. And saves me the trouble of having to take the entire faring of, just to get to the battery if i do let it sit for a while. I dont have a 12V plug, so that's not an option.

Can somebody give some suggestions what kind of plug would be good to use so it can be used with a charger.

Thanks.
Thanas

 

[Bill_Anderson]

Does your ST2 have a BMW type power port? If so, Powerlets product #PPC-018 will let you plug the Battery Tender into it.

http://www.powerletproducts.com/product/battery-tender-yuasa-charging-cable/261

 

[Thanas]

Well,

I just ordered a Tecmate Optimate 4, so the plug thing will be solved. Just going to get some Demi water first and top up the battery, then put the optimate on there to see what happens. And then perhaps get a new battery, or not. Strange thing, i have a permanent Volt gauge installed, and it reads a bit over 12 Volt, so should be ok, but won't really crank. Well, it will, but very slowly and hessitantly.

I'll post some pics when it's been done.

See ya.
Thanas

 

[RDuc3]

You really need to check the voltage while the engine is cranking. It may show 12V with no load but drop under load. Also check all battery and starter cable connections for tightness and corrosion.

 

[SFDuc]

Jumpers

On my ST3, I permanently connected heavy gauge wire to the battery terminals and ran it up inside under the seat. The ends have powerpole connectors on them. I made a separate length of wire with large alligator clips on one end and powerpole connectors on the other. Instant jumper cables. I also made a length with the powerpole connectors on one end and the SAE connection that battery tenders use on the other. I connect this to the battery charger. You have to use fairly heavy gauge wire and powerpole connectors, but its saved my ass several times.

 

[Geoff_ST_III_1]

Yeah I know it's called a 12volt battery, but it really is 13.2 volts. If you only see 12volts I suspect you have a cell going/gone bad. As you've discovered you can't start a Ducati with "only" 12volts. Since the battery is close to 2 or more years old, save yourself the grief and get a new one. Sitting for a week is not enough of a drain to cause a weak battery unless it's going bad.