Electrical problem

[DC]

Sounds EXACTLY like mine did when the original battery bit the dust. Sometimes it would start on the second try, sometimes on the third, and then it would turn over like there was nothing wrong. I got the next size up (amperage) battery, and everything has been fine all year.

Was it the 270 CCA battery?  What's a good place to get it from online?

[dakuhosu]

A battery tender will not charge a low battery, it is meant to maintain a good charge. I would put the battery on a trickle charge at 2 amps for 24 hours and do a load test on it. Sounds like you have a dead cell or two. Clean all the connections and check your grounds. How old is the battery?

A dead cell would show up as 1.2 volts down and two cells would be 2.4 volts down , etc... So it's not a dead cell, if the solenoid clicks but there is no current draw it would have to be something like a dirty connection somewhere. It starts sometimes so that eliminates any battery problems... I'm reasonably sure it's a starter/solenoid issue, I'd rapp on the starter a few times the next time it acts up.

[chief]

A battery tender will not charge a low battery, it is meant to maintain a good charge. I would put the battery on a trickle charge at 2 amps for 24 hours and do a load test on it. Sounds like you have a dead cell or two. Clean all the connections and check your grounds. How old is the battery?

Depends upon the tender... both mine will bring a low battery to full charge and maintain it there.

[Drifter1500]

A battery tender will not charge a low battery, it is meant to maintain a good charge. I would put the battery on a trickle charge at 2 amps for 24 hours and do a load test on it. Sounds like you have a dead cell or two. Clean all the connections and check your grounds. How old is the battery?

[Troll]

Sounds EXACTLY like mine did when the original battery bit the dust. Sometimes it would start on the second try, sometimes on the third, and then it would turn over like there was nothing wrong. I got the next size up (amperage) battery, and everything has been fine all year.

[DC]

So I rode in to work on Friday.  I came out to ride home, turned the key, pushed the starter button, and click-click-click-click-click-click-click-click-click-click.

So I'm wondering what's going on. . . . . bad battery, short, loose connection?  I checked the battery terminals and everything was tight.  But I pulled on the Battery Tender line and the cap was off the end, exposing the metal contact.  So then I think maybe this either shorted to ground or a battery terminal.  So I put the cap on, let the bike sit for a while, then tried starting it every few minutes.  After waiting about 15 minutes altogether, one of those click-click-click-click sessions turned into a turnover and it started.  So I figured that's all it was.  The bike was running, but the battery was weak.  I had to keep the revs higher than normal to keep it from dying.  I rode home on the back roads and figured it would be fully charged by the time I got home.  When I got home, I put it on the battery tender over night.

The next day, Saturday, I took it off the tender, and got ready to start it, hoping to go to a bike meet that afternoon/night.  I went to turn it over and click-click-click-click-click-click-click.  I tried a minute later and it turned over. Again, I checked the bat leads and tender leads. . nothing out of the ordinary.  I let it run a while at higher idle in the garage trying to decide whether or not to take it to the meet.  I decided not to, not wanting get stranded and have a three ring circus trying to get my bike home.  I left it on the tender again last night.

This morning I tried starting it and it fired right up.  So I figured again, maybe all it needs is lots of riding to charge it.  So I ran around doing errands and such.  Toward the end though. . . click-click-click-click-click-click-click-click, and then it finally turned over.

So I'm at a loss as to what the problem could be.  Any ideas?