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SOHC.co.uk Forums => CB500/550 => Topic started by: mickwinf on November 14, 2011, 04:13:19 PM

Title: battery problem
Post by: mickwinf on November 14, 2011, 04:13:19 PM
hi all now i have a problem with a battery.It is new, and was ok until i left the ignition on for 2 days! I tried to recharge it with my optimizer charger but no joy, is there anything i can do or is it dead?
Title: Re: battery problem
Post by: daz on November 14, 2011, 04:22:25 PM
If it was totally discharged i think its a new battery for you. You tried the best thing with the optimizer, Daz
Title: Re: battery problem
Post by: stidds on November 14, 2011, 04:45:02 PM
I had this problem with one of my batteries and I took it along to a local car electricians and they put it on their 'industrial' battery booster which kick started it charging again.

Title: Re: battery problem
Post by: matthewmosse on November 15, 2011, 08:00:32 AM
I di this to my rebel. check the levels and top up as usual, on my rebel I was able to bump start it and the bike managed what the charger (optimate) could not- the optimate wouldn't even aknowledge the battery  was connected. I'm still running that battery now. As bump starting a cb550 is a bbit difficult with a dud battery or at least mine always was even on the kickstarter I'd try a cheap battery charger that just keeps pushing charge in rather than one of the clever ones as I've had luck with this way in the past with a
Title: Re: battery problem
Post by: florence on November 15, 2011, 11:22:21 AM
If it's quite new then total discharge shouldn't cause problems, unless the battery is faulty.  Is it under warranty? 

Normal car battery charger should sort it out, that's what I always use.
Title: Re: battery problem
Post by: mickwinf on November 15, 2011, 08:06:02 PM
thanks for advice guys wil try a car charger!
Title: Re: battery problem
Post by: K2-K6 on November 15, 2011, 08:08:01 PM
I'd agree with the others in going for a non intelligent charger that just keeps going as a way to get it back again, go for the lowest setting if there is one and just trickle it for a long time.

I've had one before that appeared to be totally dead, so tipped the acid out and washed all the crud out with tap water and refilled with new acid and it worked for ages after that.

If there is any real level of sediment (think this is product of sulfated plates) at the bottom of the battery then it usually compromises how the cells work.
Title: Re: battery problem
Post by: mickwinf on November 16, 2011, 02:19:14 PM
problem solved! I used my very old car charger and it started to charge, so i swapped to the optimiser to fully charge. The lesson here is the optimizer needs at least a bit of charge to work properly so will keep my old charger as a backup! Thanks for help everyone, cheers,Mick.
Title: Re: battery problem
Post by: florence on November 17, 2011, 11:14:36 AM
Gosh, just looked at those optimising battery chargers.  They cost an absolute fortune!  My extremely neglected battery has been on the bike for four years and only cost
Title: Re: battery problem
Post by: meerkat on November 17, 2011, 05:35:24 PM
Gosh, just looked at those optimising battery chargers.  They cost an absolute fortune!  My extremely neglected battery has been on the bike for four years and only cost
Title: Re: battery problem
Post by: florence on November 18, 2011, 09:36:04 AM

Nowadays on modern bikes with CanBus systems (no fuses), smaller gel batteries and computerised management, an optimising charger is more or less a painful necessity. :(
[/quote]

Sounds like pure science fiction to me and downright dangerous; no fuses!, sounds like a good way to have ones bike explode.

I'm glad to say the newest bike I've ever ridden was made in 1979.  (I'm getting worried, I find it hard to cope with the modern world and I'm nowhere near fifty yet; it's just going to get worse.)
Title: Re: battery problem
Post by: matthewmosse on November 18, 2011, 11:50:56 AM
I quite agree on having a phobia of the modern world and modern technology. I'm 30 so in theory should be of the tech friendly generation but I'm not a fan and the tendancy is for each vehicle I get to be older than the last. I'm now on a quest for something affordable to buy and run thats older than our 1960 landrover....
Title: Re: battery problem
Post by: florence on November 21, 2011, 08:55:11 PM
I have a series 2a landrover and I love it.  When it breaks I can mend it with three spanners, a screwdriver and a hammer, ...oh and a stick welder ;D
Title: Re: battery problem
Post by: florence on November 21, 2011, 09:04:25 PM
.....and it spends it's life logging, taking pigs to market, stump pulling and general tractor work. (I'll stop now because this is a bike forum :-[)
Title: Re: battery problem
Post by: matthewmosse on November 21, 2011, 09:17:55 PM
Are you on the series 2 forum? it's a good place to get info on those versatile vehicles. Ours too does a lot of tractor jobs, we even run an old hayliner baler behind the landy though information on using the more tractor functions is harder to come by. ;D
Title: Re: battery problem
Post by: K2-K6 on November 21, 2011, 09:28:25 PM
A friend restored and runs a S3 short wheelbase in the USA, also has a snow-plow fitment for it to clear his a nieghbouring driveways.

Has a SOHC link as he's to owner of a 750F2 stored with me!
Title: Re: battery problem
Post by: florence on November 22, 2011, 09:31:23 AM
I'm not on series 2 forum, didn't know there was one.  I'm only on this one.
Title: Re: battery problem
Post by: matthewmosse on November 22, 2011, 03:12:58 PM
search series 2 club. The forum is very usefull, especially if you are after advice on what parts to get or avoid for quality reasons. They do also have quite a few restoration dissenters who still run their vehicles as workhorses on there. You don't have to join the club to use the forum.
Title: Re: battery problem
Post by: hairygit on November 22, 2011, 04:44:33 PM
I didn't know there was a series 2 forum either, but I'm definitely a restoration dissenter, mine has never been washed in all the years I've had it, landrovers look so much better dirty, and not one panel is without a dent or scrape on it, and people see it and stay well clear of it! A bit of a contrast compared to my F1 ;D
Title: Re: battery problem
Post by: UK Pete on November 22, 2011, 05:40:44 PM
That f1 looks good, is the exhaust new or re=chromed
pete
Title: Re: battery problem
Post by: hairygit on November 22, 2011, 06:08:06 PM
The exhaust is about 7 years on the bike (I bought 2 complete systems from Dave Silver almost 20 years ago,
Title: Re: battery problem
Post by: SteveD CB500K0 on November 22, 2011, 10:16:31 PM
There's a complete re-chromed F1 exhaust on eBay (in Australia) at the moment.

Yours for
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