1. What if the battery is weak?
This is a continuation of the maintenance record “Engine doesn’t start”.
It is hard to start engine by an old battery if you haven’t ridden for a while.
If you only ride on sunny holidays, you often can’t ride for two or three weeks.
And if you don’t ride for 3-4 months during the winter, the battery will be completely exhausted.
Once a battery is weak, it will be easy to be exhausted.
So, it may often have to be replaced normally.
However, it is wasteful to replace batteries so often, so I use a charger to charge the battery.
Therefore, I have summarized the following tasks in this article.
- Cleaning the batteryリスト
- Refilling the battery fluid
- Charging the battery
| Date | 28th March 2021 |
| Subjects | Maintenance, Failure, Repair |
| Shop or DIY | DIY |
| Difficulty | |
| Working hours | 1 (Charging time not included) |
| Costs | 0 Yen (Use of owned goods) |
2. Battery charging (STEP 1-11)
Cleaning of battery plugs
＜Cleaning of battery plug＞
Sand and dust were on the plug part where the battery fluid is replenished, so first clean it with a toothbrush.
When cleaning, the nut in the terminal part fell off.
Be careful not to lose it by dropping it unnoticed.
Removing battery plugs
＜Removing battery plugs＞
The plug is held with pliers and lifted out.
The battery fluid is dilute sulphonic acid, so I worked with safety glasses on.
Refilling battery acid
＜Refilling battery acid＞
The hose attached to the battery refill fluid is inserted into the plug section and the refill fluid is poured in.
This refill fluid was bought more than 20 years ago, but it’s time to get it working again.
I mean, I’m wondering it is safe to use it…
Battery fluid replenishment
＜Before＞
＜After＞
I poured up to the upper limit.
Not that more is better, but I thought it would be less anyway.
Charging the battery
Now I can charge the battery.
＜Charging the battery＞
Connect to a charger in a well-ventilated area to charge the battery (automatic shutdown after charging).
Charging took more than 6 hours and less than 13 hours.
(Charging was completed during the night, so the time was not known…)
Battery Voltage
＜Voltage after charging＞
Before： 12.34V →After： 12.68V
At any rate, I charged the battery and got over 12.6V, so I think it’s OK, but I’m a bit worried.
Battery voltage measurement
By the way, when I measured the voltage at the moto, it was 11.69 V.
But after some time after disconnecting the battery, it recovered to 12.34 V.
It is really difficult to know when to measure the battery voltage.
It is probably better to measure it before starting engine.
Cleaning battery installation location
The battery installation location was cleaned before installation.
It was quite dirty, probably from coniferous leaf debris, so I wiped it down.
＜Before＞
＜After＞
There are two drainage holes, so I dropped sand through them and a lot of it fell on the chain cover…
There is a rubber plate laid down, which was also cleaned.
Installed battery
＜Installed battery＞
Then install the battery.
- Do not forget to plug in the drain hose.
- Connect the terminals in positive and negative order.
Positive terminal cover
The positive terminal cover doesn’t work though I had been a concern since delivery.
＜Before＞
＜After＞
So, this time I shifted the position of the cover, but it is a little off.
It can’t be helped.
Next actions
If the battery is not in good condition, it will have to be replaced in the future.
The battery is a Yuasa 12V5.5-4A battery, but the original parts were already discontinued.
Therefore, I need to buy a commercially available battery.
3. Summary
It’s a headache because I can’t charge the battery enough at the frequency I ride.
I feel that carburetor can work by once the engine is starting, but fuel injection is not easy in these situations.
- If you cannot ride frequently, you can charge the battery.
- Safety glasses are essential when topping up battery acid.
- Charging is automatic.
Goods used:
| No. | Name | Manufacturer | Parts number | Quantity | Amount[Yen] |
| 1 | Toothbrush | – | – | 1 | (100) |
| 2 | Pliers (Standard type) | KTC | PSL-150 | 1 | 3,930 |
| 3 | Battery-strengthening replenisher fluid | PRO STAFF | – | 1 | (400) |
| 4 | ProTec BATTERY CHARGER | (Alps Electric Instrument) | P2018Q | 1 | (28,200) |
| 5 | Digital multimeter | Sanwa Electric Instrument | PM3 | 1 | 4,950 |
| 6 | Resin handle driver (No.2 Plus) | KTC | PDD1-2 | 1 | 1,420 |
*Regarding No. 6 in the photo, I did not put “No. 2 plus” but “No. 1 plus” by mistake.
