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[ultrafxr]

Riding buddy bought a Battery Tender brand lithium iron phosphate battery a couple months ago.  He marveled at its small size, light weight and how fast it spun the starter motor and cranked the bike.  On all my Harleys during the cranking phase the HK radio shuts off and then comes back on after start up.  This battery has so much oomph that his radio never blinked as he cranked.

But no joy can last.  Today he found that this wonderful battery has gone flat.  He was out of town for a couple weeks and had it on the battery tender he bought to go with.  It didn't have enough juice to even run the air pump for his Legend shocks much less crank the bike.  And the battery tender was showing a green light indicating that the battery was fully charged.   

Oh well.  Fortunately he didn't discard his old H-D AGM battery that was in the bike.  Hopefully that'll work for our ride later this week.

[moscooter]

 

You or your buddy might want to stop at the book store or magazine shop and pick up the latest (or next to latest) issue of American Iron magazine.  They did a very extensive article on all types of batteries for motorcycles including lithium types.

There are some (downside) issues with lithium batteries given short duration rides and/or extremely cold climate conditions, and other issues.  A read of this article will give you more info on bike batteries than you really even want to know.

[ultrafxr]

I'll check that out but I've read enough already to think they are not yet ready for prime time as a motorcycle battery.   

[grc]

I'll check that out but I've read enough already to think they are not yet ready for prime time as a motorcycle battery.   

I agree.   One thing I don't trust about the sudden influx of LiFePO₄ batteries claiming to be for motorcycles is the fact that all sorts of small operations sprang up that just bought cheap Chinese cells, bundled them in a plastic case with a cheap controller board, and started selling them with all the usual marketing tricks.  At this point it's almost impossible to figure out which products are well engineered offerings using quality components, and which are just junk.

I've advised people in the past that these batteries might make sense in a small racing bike, where every pound saved can be very important, but saving a few pounds on a 900 pound Touring rig, not so much.   They cost as much as three times the price of a good AGM battery, and don't necessarily last any longer.  They also will die a quick death if you let the charge drop below a certain level, like if you have something on the bike running a constant draw and the bike sits for a long time.  There are many other negatives as well.  And the small print for those three year warranties reveal that it's really a one year warranty, where you pay 50% of full MSRP to have one replaced between one year and two, and you pay 65% of full MSRP between years two and three.  In other words, after the first year you will pay the manufacturer/distributor more for a replacement than they normally charge the retailers for a new one, and more than a brand new AGM would cost.

JMHO - Jerry

[SDCVO]

You guys are scaring me! I have been loving the Anti Gravity I put in when I did the 124. It cranks like a Japanese bike. I will just keep my fingers crossed that I don't have any of these issues..

[Lone Rider]

You guys are scaring me! I have been loving the Anti Gravity I put in when I did the 124. It cranks like a Japanese bike. I will just keep my fingers crossed that I don't have any of these issues..

I was "…" this close to buying one and then found some links highlighting similar issues. 

I'm glad I've seen this….I'm out. I'll put my order in for an Odyssey tomorrow.

[Jbbrown73]

I'm glad I've seen this….I'm out. I'll put my order in for an Odyssey tomorrow.

The Odyssey is the way to go!!!

[ultrafxr]

The Odyssey is the way to go!!!

I looked at batterymart.com and found the Odyssey PC925L for $161.95 and the Big Crank EXT-30L on sale for $99.95 (but they run this battery on sale quite a bit and I've seen it for $109.95 even when not on sale).

The Big Crank has 400 CCA and the Odyssey 330 CCA.  So just wondering why the Odyssey is better, other than it has a 2 yr warranty vs 1 yr for the Big Crank.   And it looks like you also have to buy some terminal adapters for the Odyssey. 

[grc]

I looked at batterymart.com and found the Odyssey PC925L for $161.95 and the Big Crank EXT-30L on sale for $99.95 (but they run this battery on sale quite a bit and I've seen it for $109.95 even when not on sale).

The Big Crank has 400 CCA and the Odyssey 330 CCA.  So just wondering why the Odyssey is better, other than it has a 2 yr warranty vs 1 yr for the Big Crank.   And it looks like you also have to buy some terminal adapters for the Odyssey. 

You weren't supposed to dig deep enough to find that 330 CCA rating.  Odyssey used to hide it much better, preferring to advertise their "900 pulse cranking amps" rating, which is a totally made up number that has no corresponding industry standard, like CCA does.

They used to charge much more for the Odyssey, like in the $300 range, many years ago.  For those who believe all the claims, at least buying it at Battery Mart will save them from paying the ridiculous prices Odyssey charges.

Jerry

[ultrafxr]

You weren't supposed to dig deep enough to find that 330 CCA rating.  Odyssey used to hide it much better, preferring to advertise their "900 pulse cranking amps" rating, which is a totally made up number that has no corresponding industry standard, like CCA does.

They used to charge much more for the Odyssey, like in the $300 range, many years ago.  For those who believe all the claims, at least buying it at Battery Mart will save them from paying the ridiculous prices Odyssey charges.

Jerry

Exactly.  I've had my fill of Kool Aid, lol.   

[Jbbrown73]

I had an Odyssey for 2 years, never used a battery tender, the bike would sit for months over winter (it was in a garage kept at least 40 degrees), and it would still spin the engine just as fast as it would after sitting overnight. It would hold voltage well enough the radio would not cycle when starting. This was on a 103" engine. I traded the bike so I can't tell you how it will do after 4 or 5 years.

That price listed below is a great price. I just gave $180 delivered straight from Odyssey for a new one for my 2012 CVORG.

As for the terminals, if you just bend the factory cable lugs so they're parallel with the cable they attach just fine.