I need a new battery for my Ultra, are they all the same? My dealer bought has not been that reliable over the last two years, by that I mean it really does not want to start the bike when its cold out. Starter and alternator check out . Have had to boost it a few times to get home. Are their any differences between makes, any to stay away from?

Thanks everyone,

 

The best MC battery I have ever had is an odessey. They are completely sealed, so you don't get the corrosion and acid leaks like normal batteries. You can even mount them upside down. They last a lot longer then conventional batteries. I would however, get a battery tender to use when your not riding your bike. It will extend the life of you battery.

 

I have heard lots of people braggin up the odessy but i have only know 2 people to have them and both of them had issues?

 

I had an Interstate in my softtail and it was very dependable. I do use a battery tender during the off season, this battery has let me down leaving work when it is cold at night. Some of the guys I know use cheapos from Wal-mart. Will probably lean to the interstate, hoping they have not changed quality in the last few years

 

Odessey is the only one for me.
It's on the bike for 5 years now and never had a problem.

Peter

 

What issues ?
What do you mean "braggin up" the Odessey ?
It's the best battery I've ever had.
Last week, after sitting in the garage for 3 months
it still had 12.65 volts without using a battery tender.
Put it in the bike, and it fired right up.
Not bad for a 5 year old battery.

Peter

 

Ironically, I was worrried about my stock battery (bike is 3 years old this month). Took it in for it's 10k on Thursday (yes, I haven't been riding as much as I should have been!) and asked them to check the battery as it was stock and 3 years old - no issues though at all. They said it was fully juiced up. I always keep it on the tender when I'm not riding though, and the type of riding affects the batteries alot too. Most of my rides are tend to be longer (very little bar hopping riding for example), and that is actually better for battery life (as it takes the bike about 15 minutes to bring the battery back to full charge they said). Potentially it could last me another year or two....we'll see!

Not sure which battery to get next given how well this one has worked, might just stick with a stock HD battery again!

 

odessy batteries are used in the home built aircraft community and have proven to be very reliable, its whats going in my bike when the time comes

 

The first battery on my '02 Ultra lasted five years with a lot of desert heat and no battery tender. I probably abuse my battery more than the average rider.

I'm sure there are cheaper batteries but the ones Harley uses are very good. The battery Harley uses AGM batteries. I stole the following from another web site.

AGM: The Absorbed Glass Matt construction allows the electrolyte to be suspended in close proximity with the plates active material. In theory, this enhances both the discharge and recharge efficiency. Actually, the AGM batteries are a variant of Sealed VRLA batteries. Popular usage high performance engine starting, power sports, deep cycle, solar and storage battery. AGM batteries are typically good deep cycle batteries and they deliver best life performance if recharged before the battery drops below the 50 percent discharge rate. If these AGM batteries are discharged to a rate of 100 percent the cycle life will be 300 plus cycles and this is true of most AGM batteries rated as deep cycle batteries.

 

Thanks for all the replies, I ordered my Odessy yesterday, should be here end of next week. Go figure that it is supposed to be above freezing here beginning of next week. Incidentally for the flht they recommend their metal wrapped battery. Apparently it is better dealing with any heat issues. Heres hoping