Dead Bike
Elite HDF Member
Joined: Nov 2013
Posts: 4,377
Likes: 646
From: Santa Clarita
I'm almost certain you've got a battery problem. 12.85 or 12.91 isn't enough to turn the starter. I've had many a battery showing that kind of voltage with these identical symptoms, and ended up being the battery. Is it risky business buying a new battery? Yep. But maybe you have a friend with a known good battery that you can swap out with.
There's a thing called a 'surface charge', and I'm not gonna go into a technical dissertation here, maybe somebody else wants to, either to edify, or to pooh pooh what I'm saying, but this can be VERY misleading.
What I want to see before I start the bike is at least 13.2 to 13.5 volts on the battery. The small difference between 12.8 and that is small, but significant. Honestly, the age of the battery can also be misleading...there are a lotta things that can go wrong inside of them, even when new.
The suggestion to load test the battery is a great one, but keep in mind that with electrical things, meters and diagnostic equipment can lead you down the wrong path. As the years have gone on for me, the seat of my pants has become far more accurate than any multi meter, or any other device...and right now, I'm sensing a bad battery for you.
There's a thing called a 'surface charge', and I'm not gonna go into a technical dissertation here, maybe somebody else wants to, either to edify, or to pooh pooh what I'm saying, but this can be VERY misleading.
What I want to see before I start the bike is at least 13.2 to 13.5 volts on the battery. The small difference between 12.8 and that is small, but significant. Honestly, the age of the battery can also be misleading...there are a lotta things that can go wrong inside of them, even when new.
The suggestion to load test the battery is a great one, but keep in mind that with electrical things, meters and diagnostic equipment can lead you down the wrong path. As the years have gone on for me, the seat of my pants has become far more accurate than any multi meter, or any other device...and right now, I'm sensing a bad battery for you.
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