Battery Of Choice

Its time for a new battery for my 03 and I would go to the dealer but I was wondering if there is a better alternative out there.

Better how? I went to my local Honda dealer, he had our size on the shelf for $68. 2 yrs later it's still good.

Ive always had good luck with OEM batterys, I was just wondering if there was a brand that was better out there. Thanks for the input.

I got 10 years and 165,000 miles out of the OEM Yuasa. Never used a battery tender; just a top-off charge twice during the four+ month winter layoff. The OEM Yuasa batteries are made by GS Yuasa (Japan). In North America, there is "GS Batteries" and "Yuasa Batteries" - both companies are subsidiaries of Japan's GS Yuasa. https://www.gs-yuasa.com/en/company/group.php I am not 100% certain that identical specifications and QA/QC standards apply to the Japanese batteries as the North American ones but the one replacement Yuasa I bought worked OK for the relatively short time I had it (sold the bike).

With the incredible good luck I had with the original one, I am inclined to give them the benefit of the doubt.

harpo said:

Its time for a new battery for my 03 and I would go to the dealer but I was wondering if there is a better alternative out there.

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https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B001AWDX92/ref=oh_aui_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1

This has served me well at 60% the cost for a dealer battery .. My 2 cents ...

harpo said:

Its time for a new battery for my 03 and I would go to the dealer but I was wondering if there is a better alternative out there.

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I had a Shorai in my '05 and loved it. I only went back to lead-acid because I installed battery isolator and an auxilliary battery and didn't know how to make it work properly with different chemistries. The Shorai was great at starting.

Lithium-Iron can peter out in cold. I never had a problem and had parked the bike outside work back in Ohio when the highs were in the low 30s.

Got my last two from Batteries Plus, making three over the time I've had my '05. I replace the battery about every 6 years. Even though I know they could be stretched, it's worth it to me to not have to worry about something so essential. WBill

RossKean, That reminds me of something. I heard that Japan Yausa uses fresh metals in there batteries where the US uses recycled metal. Japan's last longer.

Ludwig61, I was wondering about the Shori, I know they are pricy but they are light and pack a good amount of cranking amps.

harpo said:

RossKean, That reminds me of something. I heard that Japan Yausa uses fresh metals in there batteries where the US uses recycled metal. Japan's last longer.

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This has been claimed by others in the past but, as a chemist with extensive knowledge of battery metallurgy, I can assure you that the use of "recycled" lead alloys vs "fresh" metals is not a determining factor in battery longevity. There is absolutely no difference between chemically pure new lead vs chemically pure recycled lead. (Lead doesn't "wear out"!) In fact, it is easier to produce pure lead from scrap lead than it is from the original sulfide ore concentrate. Purity of the alloy is critical but this is a function of manufacturer's specifications, not the original source. Naturally, very high purity alloy is more costly to produce and that is one of the reasons why premium batteries are often more expensive.

The differences in battery life for one manufacturer compared to another may be a function of many factors.

Alloy specification - not fresh vs recycled but percent purity and maximum allowable levels of specific contaminants.

Battery physical design - not all configurations are equally robust. Grid design (structure & thickness), glass mats, cell interconnections.

Battery chemical design - there may be differences between manufacturers alloy choices, acid concentrations.

Choice of materials other than alloy - acid purity, glass mats, physical separators, plastic cases, terminal posts etc.

Allowed manufacturing tolerances - size, shape, thickness, purity, assembly etc.

Biggest thing is often quality control. Consistency in manufacturing and an adequate inspection and test program to ensure that quality is established and maintained.

Man, that was a fun read, Ross. Thanks for posting that. I learned something.

harpo said:

RossKean, That reminds me of something. I heard that Japan Yausa uses fresh metals in there batteries where the US uses recycled metal. Japan's last longer.

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I too have often wondered where/when this was a belief or why ... Fresh lead has been in the ground since the dawn of time ... Recycled lead is still lead ... So what could the difference possibly be ? Its an element .. If reclaimed and melted back into pure (or nearly pure) lead, there should be no difference chemically ...

Id love to hear if there is any technical reason that I don't understand that would make this the case ... Or is it just an old wives tale ?

MrZappo said:

harpo said:

RossKean, That reminds me of something. I heard that Japan Yausa uses fresh metals in there batteries where the US uses recycled metal. Japan's last longer.

Click to expand...

I too have often wondered where/when this was a belief or why ... Fresh lead has been in the ground since the dawn of time ... Recycled lead is still lead ... So what could the difference possibly be ? Its an element .. If reclaimed and melted back into pure (or nearly pure) lead, there should be no difference chemically ...
Id love to hear if there is any technical reason that I don't understand that would make this the case ... Or is it just an old wives tale ?

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If all you were doing is melting old battery grids down and recasting into new plates vs. refining from scratch then you would give the nod to "new" vs recycled. The fact is that there are pretty stringent specifications for lead going into batteries and the refining of this material ensures that "contaminants" that could be present in the raw materials are removed. Interesting (simplified) blurb on lead refining from Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lead_smelting . Generally, scrap lead is introduced into the furnace with lead ore (concentrate) and fluxes etc. The "contaminants" in the raw ores and concentrates are vastly higher than in scrap lead. The Betts electrolytic process is frequently used when VERY high purity lead is required - often in the case of alloys for batteries as well as certain other applications. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Betts_electrolytic_process

I worked in an integrated lead-zinc refinery (analytical laboratory) for a couple of years...

So, your obviously samrter than I am in this area ... As I read this it says that there is no measurable difference between "new" lead and "recycled" lead after processing.

Glad we put that to bed ... My wasn't that easy !

harpo said:

Ludwig61, I was wondering about the Shori, I know they are pricy but they are light and pack a good amount of cranking amps.

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I loved it. The only time I had trouble was when I left the key in and the headlights on. I jumped it and rode for 30 minutes before stopping to make sure it charged up.

I need to list it and sell it. I have it, and the Shorai charger...

Only issue I had with the Shorai was cold cranking. Li batts need to "warm up". When it was in the teens, and maybe low 20s in the garage, took up to six cranks before it would fire up, getting stronger with each successive crank. Waiting about 30-60 seconds between cranks. I started putting a 100 watt bulb under the bike and a tarp over it when it dropped into the teens.

FJR Flyer said:

Only issue I had with the Shorai was cold cranking. Li batts need to "warm up". When it was in the teens, and maybe low 20s in the garage, took up to six cranks before it would fire up, getting stronger with each successive crank. Waiting about 30-60 seconds between cranks. I started putting a 100 watt bulb under the bike and a tarp over it when it dropped into the teens.

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I never rode in the teens. I wouldn't ride if there was ice or noticeable salt residue on the road. The Shorai was fine down into the high 20s. Cranked and started better than my new Yuasa. I miss that.

OEM Yuasa battery still going strong in my '07. But I have it apart installing new grounding harness and am thinking of replacing it just because it is 12 years old. Opinions?

'07 was apparently a good year for Yuasa batteries. After over 10 years and many miles, I replaced mine. Still worked just fine but reserve capacity was down. I do a fair number of longer trips as well as MC camping and didn't want to risk a failure at a remote campsite somewhere. If you do much riding away from your local area or into remote areas, I would probably replace it. Especially if reserve capacity is down. For my battery, a restart was becoming iffy if ignition was left on (with lights) for any more than 5 minutes or so.