mjpchief
XS650 Enthusiast
Anybody here have any experience with the AGM batteries in their 650 Yamaha's. If you have what are the good and bad points with these batteries?
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AGM batteries
- Thread starter mjpchief
- Start date
cloudbreakmd
1979 Yamaha XS650 Special
I have one in my bike right now. Beyond the extra expense sometimes they are just slightly physically (a minute amount) bigger. But they have higher CCA and tend to last longer than traditional flooded batteries. They also benefit from not leaking.
The major positive to me, and I have them in four of my bikes, is that they are leak/spill proof. I get them for $45 each, each made fresh on the spot at a local battery outlet here in Syracuse.
mjpchief
XS650 Enthusiast
Thanks. I ordered one today for my '75. Was told all the good parts about them and liked what I heard.
mjpchief
XS650 Enthusiast
Didn't quite get mine that cheap. Cost me a little over twice that.
Royboy
many roads, little time
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Have them in all my bikes. Wouldn't go back.
roy
roy
weaselbeak
XS650 Junkie
+1.
What he said
What he said
I like the ones from motobatt. They are bright yellow, but they are half or less than the cost of shorai or yuasa, have a 2 year warranty instead of 1, and I had a small one on a ducati that easily cranked and started the bike after sitting outside in 19 degree weather for a month. My dad got one and it had no issues and was never trickle charged for 5 years before it finally started losing capacity on a vfr800. For the price motobatt ones cost about the same or a little more than a cheap flooded and work way better.
I glue a pair of 6v AGM deer-feeder batteries together.
Slightly smaller than the original, leaves room for foam padding.
Heavily padded, AGM, long storage types, $6 each.
Going on 7 years with this pair...
Slightly smaller than the original, leaves room for foam padding.
Heavily padded, AGM, long storage types, $6 each.
Going on 7 years with this pair...
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angus67
Welder's penetrate deeper!!
Motto bats in two bikes. Love em
mjpchief
XS650 Enthusiast
Mine should be here tomorrow. Now all I have to do is fix the dang starter gear.
We have had a bad run with Motobatt batteries failing prematurely. Have gone to Yuasa now.
I bought mine from mikes about 8 years ago and still going strong. Make sure you get a charger that is for those batteries and periodically charge in the winter. I put it on charge about every two months and remove it once fully charged. I do not leave a trickle charge on it all the time.
I have run a bunch of them in various bikes. I love the maintenance free aspect of them. So now I'll tell you a cautionary tale from my own experience. The batteries look sealed. The tops are sealed with some sort of plastic tape, and underneath the tape are caps that allowed the acid to be added the battery originally.
So...years ago on a previous bike, I could see the electrolyte was going down ( I live in a very hot climate) so I decided to peel the tape up and add some distilled water to my battery. Yeah....big mistake, it wound up puking acid all over my nice chrome exhaust pipes, and acid strips chrome right off. I e-mailed Yuasa and of course they told me to never mess with them. They are MAINTENANCE FREE!
So...years ago on a previous bike, I could see the electrolyte was going down ( I live in a very hot climate) so I decided to peel the tape up and add some distilled water to my battery. Yeah....big mistake, it wound up puking acid all over my nice chrome exhaust pipes, and acid strips chrome right off. I e-mailed Yuasa and of course they told me to never mess with them. They are MAINTENANCE FREE!
Now THAT is intriguing! Something to look into for sure.
I've had two out of five AGM's that have failed over the last ten years, possibly an internal post contact sepperation, not sure. One was a few years old and past warranty, the other was replaced in a years time. I'll be looking into the 6 V piggyback on any replacements in the future as it appears "The price is right!"
NJ, over those long ago years, I replaced hundreds of batteries. The vibrating singles and twins gobbled them up. Cracked plates, excessive sulphation, ...etc. Didn't see much of that on the smoother fours. I'm sure the foam padding is helping here...
mjpchief
XS650 Enthusiast
Mines in the bike. Same size as the yuasua that came out. Maybe it's the feeling of having a new battery but bike seems to start quicker and spins faster when it doesn't start right off. Lights are a little brighter also. Now the test of time. Guess I'm just going to have to ride it. Dang the luck.
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