Who has experience with lithium batteries in their Valkyrie?

[snakemeister]

  I'm thinking about replacing my four year old battery.I'm considering lithium but have no experience with it. Who's tried one and how did it go?

[Hoser]

Is there something wrong with your present battery?  Usually they are good for more years than that.  I have no experience in lithium batteries.  Hoser

[gordonv]

I've been looking them over for the last year.

http://shoraipower.com/products?action=vehicle&type=175&make=942&model=7639&year=7639

I want because of the discharge rate while in storage, .1%/month. In a townhouse and unable to plug the bike in, but I keep the bike insured year round now, and could take it out in fair weather, if there is any.

You either need a special charger, or use a good quality AGM battery charger. I've a Ctek 3300.

I've a GW, and was going to go with the higher CCA battery, for me, $270 through Amazon was the best price I found, instead of $320.

My battery just doesn't last in storage, 2 weeks and I need a jump, and not being able to ride often enough, I'm sure I'm not fully charging it during the winter. Need to get it to a charger, maybe pull the battery every month or 2.

Then there is the weight, about 2 lbs instead of 14 lbs !! This way I don't need to worry about how many beers I have when I'm not ridding.   

[macsblack]

I've had a Shorai lithium iron battery for nearly two years and have never had a charger on it. The Valk was stored for 3 mths last year and fired right up in the spring with good cranking power. The nice thing is the battery gets stronger the longer you crank the engine. Suppose to last 10 yrs. I believe I paid $230 at a local battery shop. And as mentioned its light as a feather.

[Earl in Pensacola]

Only two things to comment on:
1.  That's a pretty high price!!

2.  Why would you need a "special" home/trickle charger, when the bike's alternator hasn't changed and there would seem to be no problem charging the Lithium batteries using the bikes's alternator??

[Ricky-D]

It seems to me there was a thread a few years ago on this exact subject.

Might be worth a search.

I think the consensus was: overpriced and poor serviceability.

***

[Jetflyer]

I wonder if anyone on the other side is a Japan Air Lines 787 mechanic, and can offer their opinion on lithium celled batteries?

[Ricky-D]

I believe lithium batteries require a very low rate of charge to keep from heating up excessively.

That is the why for of a special charger.

As to the Valkyrie alternator and it's applicability, that's the question.

***

[larswlvs]

I was thinking about going lithium too and Scorpion has one for under 150 dollars but  I stayed with the  regular battery because lithium batteries really have very little capacity and I use my bike to keep my cell phone and other toys charged up when not riding it.Here is the link for Scorpion  batteries   http://www.batterystuff.com/batteries/lithium-iron-batteries/sstx14h-fp.html

[gordonv]

You are right about the Air Lines, but we aren't flying. If I get a failure, then I would replace with a std AGM/Lead acid battery, and say too soon. But I also think that was about 5+ years ago, they have changed.

As for capacity, isn't the replacement one 220 CCA? Since size is almost not a factor any longer, you can get one with more CCA which is what I mentioned, I think something like 260 was what I was going to buy, and you have a longer life on your battery. Cells and the like aren't a problem. More lights and heating gear might be. But our alts a 500+ W should be enough to run all that without a battery for storage.

As for charging, these are being use everywhere, and should charge fine from the alternator. I was first mentioning about the charger, because at some point, new or excessive storage, you will want to charge the battery. It's nice to know upfront, if a different charger is need or not.

[rekit]

I've been using lithium batteries in my radio controlled planes. Here's what I've learned:
They are made up of cells wired in series-about 3.7 volts per cell. 2 cells=7.4, 3 cells =11.1 volts, etc. They use a "balance plug" to charge so that each cell has it's own wiring and the charger monitors each cell as it charges the pack. It is a safety feature so that if 1 cell is damaged, the charger won't blindly overcharge the remaining cells trying to get to the nominal pack voltage. Not sure how that happens on a motorcycle battery. As for long-term storage, they should be stored at less than a full charge, I think around 80%, I forget. If you run them down much below 70% capacity, they will go bad soon. And if overcharged, damaged, or shorted they will puff up and catch fire. Not sold on them for a vehicle just yet. Google lipo fires, and R/C lipo problems.

[Sam Shlitz]

I run a lithium battery in my 2003 Standard for 6 month now. Very happy I made the change. It has a lot of cranking power and ample capacity to support my extra lighting and accessories. Once in a while (once a month) I connect an external charger (not a trickle charger) for peace of mind. I purchased the battery from Amazon. It is expensive, but in my opinion, it is worth the price. It fits in our compartment, but required a little modification to the battery cables. I live in So Cal where the temp never falls below freezing and I know the battery does not like cold weather. Occasionally, when it is colder than usual, I turn on the headlights and auxiliary lights for about 30 seconds to let the battery warm up before starting. What is amazing, the longer you crank the starter, the stronger the battery gets. Valk charging system works perfectly with the lithium battery,my gage is reading 14.1v when charging and this is the exact voltage these batteries require.

[Bighead]

What is amazing, the longer you crank the starter, the stronger the battery gets.

How long does it take to start your bike?

[Sam Shlitz]

Usually right away.

[Bighead]

I was just wondering because of the statement of the longer you are on the starter the stronger it gets,and if were taking a while to start something could be wrong.