|
| molinoman | | Set |  |  | | Reg. Date | : | 26/09/2010 | | Posts | : | 189 | | Location | : | Molino, Florida, United States |
|
| | Posted : 03 Oct 2010 - 09:42 Post title : More powerful battery for the T-bird | | | Has anyone given any thought to a more powerful battery for the t-bird? When I had the Rocket on cold mornings it could be a bear to start. The stock battery wasn't cutting it...even though I live in north Florida. A lot of guys switched over to a higher grade battery (the name/type escapes me for the moment) with a lot more cranking amps available. On the Rocket you had to slightly modify the battery box a little but it did wonders for cold weather starting. The battery was an Odyssey (just came to me) I believe.
Ideas anyone?
Dennis
171 dtg Dubai
172 dtg Home (Stallion and Triumph ordering/buying time)
| Last bike owned:
2007 Triumph Rocket III (sold in April, 2010)
Have finally ridden my 2010 Phantom Red Haze Thunderbird, picked it up in Feb 09, 2011, enjoyed the ride...now I am back in the sand box.
|
|
|
|
| ataDude | | Chaac | | | Reg. Date | : | 19/10/2009 | | Posts | : | 527 | | Location | : | Texas, United States |
|
| | Posted : 03 Oct 2010 - 16:22 Post title : Re: More powerful battery for the T-bird (Re: molinoman) | | | I like the Odyssey batteries and will have one before too long. Used them on my last three bikes and they worked well.
However, be aware that the typical Battery Tender chargers will not work correctly on them... won't charge them up the last little bit. Odyssey sells their own charger for about $80US.
| ________________________
|
|
|
|
| molinoman | | Set | | | | Reg. Date | : | 26/09/2010 | | Posts | : | 189 | | Location | : | Molino, Florida, United States |
|
| | Posted : 03 Oct 2010 - 16:58 Post title : Re: More powerful battery for the T-bird (Re: ataDude) | | | That is a very good point, but I'd pay the money just to make sure my battery was properly "juiced".
On almost the same note...just wanted to let everyone here know that the Triumph Optimizer charger did work real well in my Rocket after being gone for months at a time...bike started right up, that was a first for me in a long time (last April before I sold it). It does a great job of loading and unloading the battery to maintain a charge.
Dennis
171 dtg Dubai
172 dtg Home (Stallion and Triumph ordering/buying time)
possible:
73 dtg Dubai
74 dtg London
| Last bike owned:
2007 Triumph Rocket III (sold in April, 2010)
Have finally ridden my 2010 Phantom Red Haze Thunderbird, picked it up in Feb 09, 2011, enjoyed the ride...now I am back in the sand box.
| | Post edited by molinoman on 03 Oct 2010 - 17:00 |
|
|
|
| TraderVic | | Set | |  | | Reg. Date | : | 02/02/2010 | | Posts | : | 274 | | Location | : | Manahawkin, NJ, United States |
|
| | Posted : 04 Oct 2010 - 00:20 Post title : Re: More powerful battery for the T-bird (Re: molinoman) | | |
This is the charger that I've used for years on several different vehicles.
Link
|
|
|
|
| mat1600 | | Thunderbird | |  | | Reg. Date | : | 06/03/2010 | | Posts | : | 8,596 | | Location | : | Bridlington, Democratic Independant State of Yorkshire, United Kingdom |
|
| | Posted : 04 Oct 2010 - 00:36 Post title : Re: More powerful battery for the T-bird (Re: TraderVic) | | | I have never had a problem starting the Bird, even from cold. I keep it in an unheated garage and have used it through the coldest months. One thing I have noticed with battery optimisers (which we use on fire appliances) is that the batteries dont last as long.
| My first natural instinct is to breathe. My second is to evade tax's.
|
|
|
|
| feduke | | Thor | |  | | Reg. Date | : | 11/08/2009 | | Posts | : | 2,441 | | Location | : | Daytona Beach, Florida, United States |
|
| | Posted : 04 Oct 2010 - 01:28 Post title : Re: More powerful battery for the T-bird (Re: mat1600) | | | Does anyone have experience with gel batteries? The aircraft industry uses them extensively with great success.
| I'm a secondhand vegetarian. Cows eat grass. I eat cows.
|
|
|
|
| fasteddy | | Chaac | |  | | Reg. Date | : | 16/10/2008 | | Posts | : | 963 | | Location | : | Wisconsin, United States |
|
| | Posted : 04 Oct 2010 - 02:46 Post title : Re: More powerful battery for the T-bird (Re: feduke) | | | feduke, every time I see your name on a post..I never see what you write...what is up with that?
| www.fasteddysports.com
|
|
|
|
| mat1600 | | Thunderbird | | | | Reg. Date | : | 06/03/2010 | | Posts | : | 8,596 | | Location | : | Bridlington, Democratic Independant State of Yorkshire, United Kingdom |
|
| | Posted : 04 Oct 2010 - 09:11 Post title : Re: More powerful battery for the T-bird (Re: fasteddy) | | |
fasteddy wrote:
feduke, every time I see your name on a post..I never see what you write...what is up with that?
|
|
Oh - does he write
| My first natural instinct is to breathe. My second is to evade tax's.
|
|
|
|
| zolti | | Thor | |  | | Reg. Date | : | 23/03/2010 | | Posts | : | 3,127 | | Location | : | newcastle , United Kingdom |
|
| | Posted : 04 Oct 2010 - 11:51 Post title : Re: More powerful battery for the T-bird (Re: mat1600) | | | something about the regular beat of a parallel twin works for me
thats a blow.... now that your avatar has altered the initial comment is out of context lol
| | Post edited by zolti on 04 Oct 2010 - 18:48 |
|
|
|
| feduke | | Thor | | | | Reg. Date | : | 11/08/2009 | | Posts | : | 2,441 | | Location | : | Daytona Beach, Florida, United States |
|
| | Posted : 04 Oct 2010 - 13:04 Post title : Re: More powerful battery for the T-bird (Re: fasteddy) | | |
fasteddy wrote:
feduke, every time I see your name on a post..I never see what you write...what is up with that?
|
|
Sounds to me like your eyes need an asspherical correction. I'll make a change for you today.
| I'm a secondhand vegetarian. Cows eat grass. I eat cows.
|
|
|
|
| DizzE | | Thor | |  | | Reg. Date | : | 12/07/2010 | | Posts | : | 3,141 | | Location | : | Sunnyvale, CA, United States |
|
| | Posted : 04 Oct 2010 - 15:25 Post title : Re: More powerful battery for the T-bird (Re: feduke) | | |
feduke wrote:
fasteddy wrote:
feduke, every time I see your name on a post..I never see what you write...what is up with that?
|
|
Sounds to me like your eyes need an asspherical correction. I'll make a change for you today. |
|
It's the bi-spherical correction that is working for me. I can read that last line... R C H.
|
|
|
|
| rotog | | Set | |  | | Reg. Date | : | 23/02/2010 | | Posts | : | 143 | | Location | : | Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada |
|
| | Posted : 04 Oct 2010 - 18:27 Post title : Re: More powerful battery for the T-bird (Re: molinoman) | | |
molinoman wrote:
Has anyone given any thought to a more powerful battery for the t-bird? When I had the Rocket on cold mornings it could be a bear to start. The stock battery wasn't cutting it...even though I live in north Florida. A lot of guys switched over to a higher grade battery (the name/type escapes me for the moment) with a lot more cranking amps available. On the Rocket you had to slightly modify the battery box a little but it did wonders for cold weather starting. The battery was an Odyssey (just came to me) I believe.
Ideas anyone?
Dennis
171 dtg Dubai
172 dtg Home (Stallion and Triumph ordering/buying time) |
|
hmmm molinoman... for some reason the words "Florida" AND "Cold mornings" just don't seem to me to be something I would associate together... lol.
I started my bird the other morning, 38F it took two tries but she started just fine for me, did not even need to touch the throttle just wound up and started running at cold idle for around 5 min before it idled back down to warm idle speed.
|
|
|
|
| Birdy68 | | Thor | |  | | Reg. Date | : | 16/07/2009 | | Posts | : | 3,352 | | Location | : | Bad Zurzach, Aargau, Switzerland |
|
| | Posted : 05 Oct 2010 - 10:09 Post title : Re: More powerful battery for the T-bird (Re: feduke) | | | feduke wrote:
...I'll make a change for you today. |
|
Look at those 'Twin Lamps' on the table... 
Wonderful feduke!
| Birdy68
-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-
Leave the pork pies for now - get the sausage rolls while they're hot!
 -x-  -x- 
more info at Fuelly.com
|
|
|
|
| molinoman | | Set | | | | Reg. Date | : | 26/09/2010 | | Posts | : | 189 | | Location | : | Molino, Florida, United States |
|
| | Posted : 09 Oct 2010 - 16:20 Post title : Re: More powerful battery for the T-bird (Re: rotog) | | | Well....I wasn't home last year in the beginning of the year but my wife kept me posted of the mornings when we had "single digit" temperatures in Molino, FL which is just 15 miles north of Pensacola. Now it could have been wind chill but it still gets cold in north florida...all the way across to Jacksonville almost 380 miles away.
Since my old rule of thumb has been if it starts up I'll ride it into work (original justification for buying the Yamaha 400 back in 1981 after we first got married...she got the car) I rode it a lot on many a cold morning (be a Maaaaaaaaaannnnnn....sounded good back in those days). Now as I am significantly older I may take the car in when it's real cold...but I like the option of just firing the bike up on a cold morning and riding it into work or wherever just to show I can still do it...and on the Rocket I wasn't that successful that often in doing that (no garage or shelter for the bike).
On the Thunderbird, yeah..only two cylinders this time but the pistons are almost as big (maybe bigger) than the Rocket's and it'll still take a good (usually better than OEM) battery to get 'er going. So far I've heard 38 degrees, the T-bird has started up...I'm just curious if it get's colder than that if that will still be true.
Dennis
67 dtg Dubai
68 dtg London
165 dtg Dubai
166 dtg Home (Stallion and Triumph ordering/buying time)
| Last bike owned:
2007 Triumph Rocket III (sold in April, 2010)
Have finally ridden my 2010 Phantom Red Haze Thunderbird, picked it up in Feb 09, 2011, enjoyed the ride...now I am back in the sand box.
| | Post edited by molinoman on 10 Oct 2010 - 06:38 |
|
|
|
| curtis41 | | Set | |  | | Reg. Date | : | 28/08/2010 | | Posts | : | 191 | | Location | : | United States |
|
| | Posted : 09 Oct 2010 - 16:27 Post title : Re: More powerful battery for the T-bird (Re: molinoman) | | |
molinoman wrote:
Has anyone given any thought to a more powerful battery for the t-bird? When I had the Rocket on cold mornings it could be a bear to start. The stock battery wasn't cutting it...even though I live in north Florida. A lot of guys switched over to a higher grade battery (the name/type escapes me for the moment) with a lot more cranking amps available. On the Rocket you had to slightly modify the battery box a little but it did wonders for cold weather starting. The battery was an Odyssey (just came to me) I believe.
Ideas anyone?
Dennis
171 dtg Dubai
172 dtg Home (Stallion and Triumph ordering/buying time) |
|
Suggestion: There is another solution to this problem and a simple fix. I put an XTREME battery charger/desulfator lead on my battery under the seat and left the lead out. I was told to plug this unit in all the time I was not riding and it WORKS. It helps prevent suflate deposits on the battery and works with most motorcycle batteries and keeps them fully charged. An OEM battery is fine, IF you keep it fully charged and ready for use. I just unhook the leads and go and when I return, just hook the XTREME back up. If you do this, you may well not need more cold cranking amps, so long as your battery is near 100%.
|
|
|
|
| EnGage | | Thor | |  | | Reg. Date | : | 14/07/2009 | | Posts | : | 3,155 | | Location | : | Grand Rapids, MI, United States |
|
| | Posted : 10 Oct 2010 - 13:43 Post title : Re: More powerful battery for the T-bird (Re: molinoman) | | | I ride in the forties and the bird starts fine. I also run the Tbird periodically in my garage during the winter - I live in West Michigan, and it starts fine in sub-freezing weather. I don't keep a battery tender on it in the summer, but I do in the winter.
|
|
|
|
| Bender | | Chaac | |  | | Reg. Date | : | 26/09/2010 | | Posts | : | 682 | | Location | : | Toowoomba, Queensland, Australia |
|
| | Posted : 14 Apr 2011 - 07:02 Post title : Re: More powerful battery for the T-bird (Re: molinoman) | | | Do you leave the battery connected to the bike when using an optimizer, an does this damage the alternator ?
| BENDER Four wheels move the body. Two wheels move the soul.
Thunderbird 1600, Foran exhaust,cat eliminator,Twin T Bars, K and N filter, Led Headlight, Rivco driving Lights, Viking Bags,quick release sissy Bar,.Joker oil pressure Gauge met-cruise seat Dyno Tune + more
|
|
|
|
| EnGage | | Thor | | | | Reg. Date | : | 14/07/2009 | | Posts | : | 3,155 | | Location | : | Grand Rapids, MI, United States |
|
| | Posted : 14 Apr 2011 - 15:23 Post title : Re: More powerful battery for the T-bird (Re: Bender) | | | I keep everything connected. The battery tender I use is designed to leave the battery in place. It has a connector that attaches to the battery and you route it an accessible place - I have mine run behind one of the plastic covers.
|
|
|