I just finished the installation of my battery and cable upgrade and thought I would post a write up about it even though it is relatively easy.

for some reason the way pictures are being handled is not working right so I will redo this on my laptop with hopefully better results than on my iPad

 

Hey Prot, just out of curiosity why did you go with a 720 cca battery?

 

Let's try this again.

I ordered 2 gauge Sumax battery cables from JP Cycles. I researched to find the most powerful battery I could find and of course was interested in newer battery technology. I ended up with the Antigravity 720 Cranking Amp lithium battery. I ordered the battery from GNH Cycle because they had the lowest price in it but I am not sure I would order again from them due to poor communication and delayed shipping. The cables were $50 which I find to be outrageous. The battery was $365.

So the question is why.

1. I only get two or three years out of HD battery, so I am looking for longer life.
2. A battery that is not susceptible to negative effects of vibration seems like a desirable characteristic for an Evo Softail.
3. I am running slightly higher compression. Nothing crazy, but still having more power to turn it over would be better.
4. Our recent discussion about batteries and charging systems revealed that on a bike, the battery is more like a capacitor and has a somewhat different function than on a car. That being the case, more power would enhance this function.
5. Antigravity specifically states no charging or tender should be used even though they sell a special charger for lithium batteries. They said if it needs to be charged or put on a tender, then there is something wrong with the bike. So, one less thing to mess with.
6. I am curious about this technology. I can afford to feed this curiosity easier than many people can and make recommendations.
7. I went with the most powerful battery antigravity makes so that I have plenty of reserve power available in the event my bike is having trouble starting due to other malfunction. In other words, I could crank it many times if I have to without depleting the battery. These Evo's are old, so stuff will eventually break, wear out, or malfunction.
8. Because of the bike's charging system and battery function, going to a kick starter to use if the battery is dead still might not allow the bike to run, hence increasing the number of times the battery can be used is better in that circumstance.
9. Looking at the hour rating, to get to a comparable hour rating with a lithium battery as the oem battery required a lot higher cranking amp rating for some reason. So much so that an equivalent hour rating as OEM was the second most powerful lithium battery, which wasn't that much cheaper than the most powerful.

 

Here are a few shots of the OEM battery and a comparison of the replacement. The 720 cranking amp I bought was only a little smaller and a lot lighter. I don't care about the weight though. A less powerful lithium battery would be smaller and thus free up even more space in the battery box.

 

Here are a couple of shots comparing OEM cables to the Sumax 2 gauge cables. Not only are the wires heavier, but the eyelets on the end are made out of thicker heavier duty material. Lengths matched OEM.

 

I used a 10mm ratchet wrench to disconnect the cables from the OEM battery. Remember to disconnect the negative cable first.

 

Undo the rubber strap that holds the battery in place and move other wiring and accessories out of the way gently. Pull the battery out. Compare polarity with replacement.

Under the battery, there is a rectangular rubber piece. Pull it out. The positive cable is threaded through one corner of it. Pull it out and set it aside because you will reuse it.

 

With the rubber out of the way you can look down into the horseshoe near the bottom corner on the right side to see where the positive cable attached to the stud on the starter.

The cable goes down the left corner but the stud is accessible on the right corner. We will change this when we reassemble it.

I used a 12mm angled ratchet wrench to remove the nut that holds the cable on the starter's stud.

 

You're right, $50 is a bit much for those cables. Those could be made by anyone with a good sized crimping tool and a heatgun to constrict the heat shrink material. Maybe a total of $10 in materials?

 

Don't bother removing the rubber boot from the OEM positive cable because it won't fit on the larger cable. I tried to stretch it on but couldn't.

The next thing to do is reinstall the positive cable. If you put it in the same way as the original one was, it won't be able to attach to the battery because of the way the plastic is molded around the top posts. Instead of going down the left corner then passing under everything to get to the starter stud, go directly down the corner in the right hole to the starter stud instead. I tried it the other way and no matter what I did, I could not make it attach to the battery properly, so this was an easy way around that problem. No big deal.

Slide the rubber battery tray floor over the cable and work it down into place. Luckily this rubber tray liner has holes in both corners.

Attach the cable to the positive terminal of the battery. Do it with the battery not where it belongs. If you put the battery in place before attaching the positive cable, it will be too difficult and things will be in a bind. Instead, hold the battery up, attach the cable using the provided screw by hand but don't tighten yet. After it is on, maneuver the battery into place while pushing the cable gently into an easy bend.

Be careful not to allow the forward portion of the battery strap to get caught and become disconnected from the frame. I almost needed a third hand to do all these things at the same time. Once the battery is in place, wiggle the cable on the terminal to ensure it is sitting flat and not binding then tighten down with the 10mm wrench.

Here is how I routed my positive cable.

Notice how it goes towards the right before it bends to go down. I wish the cable would have been a little bit longer so that I could have routed it like OEM, but this won't hurt anything.