I have a 07 street bob. I let the bike sit for over a month. I tried to start it and no luck..Anyway took my battery into the dealership last saturday. He said I just need a battery tender. Well the voltage is up to 13 since it has been on the tender. I have tried to start it and still dead. I read in the manual that it should be @13.7. It seems that it has topped out at 13. Can someone shed some light on this for me. Eveything else on the bike is fine.

thanks

Darren

 

They should go higher on a charger and I don't know what kind you have. A small trickle charger won't "heat" them up much, but provides for maintaining a charge and will (should) over the course of a day or 2 bring a battery all the way up - assuming the battery is good.

Is it a sealed battery? and do you know what the output of the charger is (amps) and how long has it been on charge?

 

The bike should start with a battery at 13V. A battery at 12.7 is fully charged. The 13.7 number is with the motor running let's you know the charging system is working. I would make sure the cables are tight and measure the voltage while pushing the starter button.

 

Make sure your batter terminals are tight.

 

It is the Harley super smart Battery Tender: When I turned the ignition on today the voltage dropped to under 12v to 11.8. So when i hit the starter nothing. The battery is sealed. I made sure the terminals were tight too. Any more ideas.

thanks for your help

Darren

 

Does the yellow light ever go out on the battery tender and go to flashing green or solid green ? If not you probably need a new battery. I would let it charge for a day or two and if it still doesn't start a new battery is the best bet. Have you checked all the main fuses with a multimeter ?

 

Leave it off the charger for 48 hours then re-test the voltage. If it is below 12 then you got a bad battery.

 

Sounds like a bad battery. 11.8V is almost fully discharged. You can put a set of jumpers to the batter from another battery (like a car battery) and try to start it.

 

Thanks I will take it off the charger and try to jump up and see what happens..I am thinking it is a bad battery..we'll see.. The battery tender light was a blinking yellow to a solid yellow..thats when i tested it to be 13 V.

 

Blinking yellow is not charging. Solid yellow is charging but battery is less than 80% charged.