softtail battery going dead
 

My son has a 05 softtail springer classic. It has a new battery. A couple of times in the last few weeks, the battery was flat enought that it wouldn't start. He posted on this forum a couple of days ago(bgizmo20). I charged the battery overnight. The next morning, I load tested the battery with an automotive tester(Sun VAT-40). It held a 180amp load at almost 11 volts for over 15 seconds. I checked the charging system. It charged about 30amps at 14.8 volts. I checked for a current draw. There was about a 40ma draw. When connecting the battery ground cable to the battery, there is a brief humming noise from the speedo, and the speedo needle moves downward for about 2 seconds. This is with the key off. Is this normal? Thanks ken

RE: softtail battery going dead
 

Check that you don't have a pinched wire somewhere causing a draw while the bike is off, re-trace your steps if you have made some recent mods/changes


Bone

RE: softtail battery going dead
 

Thanks Bone. I checked and there is about a 40ma draw with the key off. It seems to maybe be from the speedo. Most cars can handle a 100ma draw with no problem. The bike is ridden on a regular basis. Ken

RE: softtail battery going dead
 

If he has no security system, I wouldn't think there should be any current draw with the key off.
It is normal to get a light spark when reconnecting the battery but this is normally due to the charging ciruit and is only on initial connection.
I think you maybe need to look for a wire rubbed thru or somthhing like that. Since you are seeing a deflection in the speedo in the - direction, that circuit would be a good place to start.