I'm about to replace the battery in my Road King. It's been acting a bit weak of late, so I think it might be prudent to go ahead and replace. For that, I'm considering the Deka EXT-30L AGM battery. I believe this will be a good battery from the reports I've seen.

What I currently have is the HD Smart Battery Charger/Tender. So, I'm curious if this tender might have a problem with an AGM battery? I don't know if the battery I have is AGM or not (I'm at work and can't confirm), but I believe it is the original battery (I'm not the first owner of the bike). This battery should only be about 4 years old, and it does still work, but, like I said it's showing signs of failure (hard starting on warm starts, long delay on cold starts). I do keep it on the tender, so the battery is fully charged when I back the bike out of the garage.

I looked on the HD parts page for the tender, but it didn't really say anything about AGM technology. I have read where you want to make sure your tender works with AGM batteries, though I don't have any specific references - just stuff I've read here and there. So, I'm curious if anyone has any information on this tender and it's use with an AGM battery like the Deka. I think using the two will be okay after all it is a "Smart" battery tender! Thanks for any replies.

 

Not a problem.....have 3 of them in various forms in the garage, all topped off with the Harley trickle charger.....

 

I have the same Deka battery and use an Xxtreme maintenance charger. No problems. My last four batteries on my Harleys all lasted over seven years.

 

The Harley batteries have been AGM for several years now and what should be in your bike now. That's what your Harley charger/tender is made for.

 

just got a new Battery Plus AGM this spring.. a new one from HD is the same and they said the tender is fine to use on them..




.

 

On the other hand, my Adventure Power battery is going on 6 years old, and has not been on a battery tender at least for the last three years. I have charged it twice from a regular two amp battery charger, once when my regulator quit and ran the battery down, and once when the stator went bad and ran it down. The AGM batteries seem to hold a charge far longer than the old lead acid batteries.

 

Thanks for the replies... I'm currently out-of-town, so I have a bit of time to research batteries before I actually buy one. I am definitely going to get an AGM type battery. Have read that most are made by Penn Eastern (or some such company), but will look around. Batterymart has an AGM for about $97 which sounds reasonable. I looked at Battery Plus some time back and seems like they were about $15+ higher. I don't have to have the cheapest price, but it would be nice.

 

This place sound fair.,, http://www.batterymart.com/p-Big-Cra...-flh-2000-2006

 

I'm sure my experience was a one off, but....

A couple years back I needed a new battery for the bike. Went to the local Battery Warehouse where I get all of my vehicle batteries, and they talked me into/sold me an East-Penn Dekka. (Yes, that's who makes HD's battery) Installed late that summer, used a tender on/off all fall/winter but come spring it was dead. Brought it back and they basically said sorry, you need a new one.

Battery warranties are pro rated. Meaning if I used it for 10 months, they'll only cover the cost of the remaining 2 months. After a lot of bitching on my part, he offered to sell me another one (same exact battery) at his cost. With the good luck I had from the HD battery, I passed on his offer and just overspent for another HD battery. All has been well for the 1.5 years since.