Sharing Information.

I’ve just replaced the Harley Davidson Brand battery in my Fatboy. I installed the battery 6.5 years ago and have religiously used a battery tender if the bike sat for more than a week without being ridden. The battery is still strong and holds a charge and I only replaced it because of its age. Don’t want to test fate and discover its true lifespan when away from home. Harley batteries are not top of the line products but this is proof that a battery will last many years if properly cared for. A battery tender is well worth the money and I highly recommend owning one and using it.

6.5 years of use out of a $120 dollar battery! R.I.P.

 

My original one only lasted three years and I too religiously kept it on a tender. Go figure. Gonna try something different this year and only keep it on the tender when it's cold.

 

6.5 years is a long life for a battery. I think that I am also good on the batteries, but 4 seasons is as long as I have ever gotten one to last.

 

My HD battery is POS. I hate it. Never lasts

I have a lot of custom wiring on my bike which I thought there was a constant draw of power but I installed a on/off switch to things that are directly connected to my battery such as my air ride to solve it. Still the battery is junk.

 

I second the value of a SMART battery charger, like the Battery tender models, and the smart charger available from HD which are even better because they are "water resistant".

If you have one of HD's "water resistant" mdoels, you can use one on a bike stored outdoors, provided you don't tempt fate by exposing it directly to rain. i.e. at least place it under, not beside, the crankcase, and make sure it is on a board so that it is elevated versus the surrounding ground, so that it doesn't get "flooded" in a heavy rain.

It's also important to:

- Check the tightness of the battery terminals periodically, since the vibration on a bike tends to loosen them. How tight? Basically, they need to be tightened via a wrench, not by a screwdriver

- Clean the terminals when they start to look corroded, and after tightening them,"seal them" with dielectric grease

Jim G

 

Both my bikes stay connected to a Tender as soon as I pull back into the garage. I'm on 5 years with my Softail and 4 years on the SG and both are testing strong.

 

I use my battery tender all the time. If I'm not going to ride for a few days it's on it. I got 6.5 years out of my first Harley battery (it finally started turning over really slow) and thought since I had such good luck with the first Harley battery I would buy another. I'm on year 5 with it and have yet to have any problems with it. I'll probably keep buying Harley battery's till I get one that is not worth a darn.

 

I replaced my battery a little over 2 years ago with a battery i bought at wal mart. The first winter it was on a battery tender for a few months of not riding it. This last winter it went all season off the tender and not being ridden. I fired the bike right up without issues..