Motorcycle Store Online

- Classic Honda motorcycle battery dying.?
I have a 1978 Honda CB550k. It was running really well and it had a new battery on it when I purchased it. It got rained on one day and I had difficulty starting it. Battery problems followed, in spite my efforts to keep it charged with a Battery Tender Jr. I concluded that I toasted the battery by leaving the key in and trying to start it. I bought a new battery (from Wal-Mart), filled it with electrolyte, let it sit for an hour, charged it for 9 hours, put it on my bike and started it right up. I rode it for a couple days but, after an hour or so of riding one day, I parked it for 10 minutes and got back on to find that it would start, and that the lights very quickly dimmed to the point of insignificance. I noticed that the electrolyte wasn't to the high level that it was prior to charging/riding, so I promptly bought some distilled water, put a small amount in the battery before being firmly corrected by a friend saying that doing so was not necessary and potentially detrimental. I instead retrieved some left-over electrolyte and topped the battery off and attempted to charge it overnight. It is worth noting a couple things: 1.) The Battery Tender, on both batteries, the old and the new, has shown exclusively a flashing red light which indicates "Battery not charging." This happened with the old battery that was ostensibly new, though which had experienced problems and the brand new battery prior to sealing the cells and putting it on my bike. The battery charger belongs to a friend and though I haven't had the chance to test it on his bike (A Honda CB360), he says that it doesn't continue to flash for him, which is perplexing. 2.) I had the bike jumped and had a mechanic check the voltage meter. He determined that the battery was shot, but that it did charge up to 13.5 amps whenever I raced the engine and dropped down to 7 whenever the bike was off. He also removed the ground wire to see if there was a spark when it was pressed against the battery and found that there was no short. Additionally, my bike has an idle problem where I have to keep the throttle going and adjust the idle manually to keep it from dying. When the bike is not in gear, the idle tends to (but doesn't always) jump up to 2.5 or 3000 rpms. I usually circumvent this by either letting of the clutch slightly and/or adjusting the idle screw. This problem is likely due to a fouling plug. The mechanic recommended that I simply buy a higher quality battery made for my particular bike and attributed my problem to the fact that I purchased the battery from Walmart. Buying a battery is somewhat of a pricey investment and I simply want some additional opinions before I resort to that.

A I think Slashcan may have your answer..... tender vs. charger. 1.) NEVER add additional electrolyte! Use distilled water only. It is the water portion that evaporates. 2.) The electronics in the charger will not let it charge a severely discharged, shorted, or otherwise bad battery. (They will not charge if the battery voltage is too low) 3.) 7 volts is a severely discharged and possibly bad battery. Running up to 13.5 means the regulator is working. 4.) Low voltage causes ignition problems. Ignition problems manifest themselves as erratic engine speed. Replace the battery with a new, fully charged one. It is doubtful that your current battery can recover. It is almost impossible to do with today's charger designs. Check your charging system again. This ensures that the bad battery did not hurt your bike. One will kill the other, and vice-versa.

- Which motorcycle would have the most insurance?
I'm thinking between (new motorcycles?) a Suzuki TU250 and a Yamaha V STAR 250. Which motorcycle would you prefer? Or a Honda Rebel....never had a motorcycle before, but plan on getting one after winter http://www.starmotorcycles.com/star/products/modelhome/589/0/home.aspx http://www.suzukicycles.com/Product%20Lines/Cycles/Products/TU250X/2011/TU250X.aspx#Specs I'm working part time so I don't know. Also, how much can I expect to spend on: rain gear winter gear Thanks

A They would be about the same for minimum, but expect to pay a lot of you want full coverage..