Here is my battery tender experience. I have the big name green and black battery tender (trickle charger). On my bike, I don't plug it in if I am riding regularly. I don't feel the need to if I know my bike is going to start anyways. Nuff sad there...

I had a big inch custom Hardtail, with a 1.75Kw starter. And a brand new battery. The engine had compression releases, and took a lot of battery to start. If it didn't, putting it on a battery tender until the little light flashed green wasn't enough to start my bike. I always had to go to a "regular" motorcycle battery charger to charge the battery enough to turn it over. The bike was fine, and the charging system was up to snuff. But the battery only had about 5-6 good cranks in it. If it didn't start, you needed to recharge the battery with a regular charger. Maybe my batteries were sub-par, I don't know. I tried the "big boar" Gel style and got the same results. I also put a "big boar" Gel style battery in my Evo Softail, and it lasted just as long as the one in the big inch motor. It only came with a big price tag. I usually spend around 90-110 bucks for a battery. If you are only spending 50-60 bucks on a battery for a Harley, you likely aren't getting a battery that was designed for a Harley. Vibration kills cheap batteries people! A better quality battery WILL last longer. I have read here on HD forums that OEM HD batteries don't always fare too well in comparison. I worked for Sears Automotive back in the 80's. You wouldn't believe how many New "Die Hard" batteries came back for warranty soon after being purchased. I think "Die Hard" was the most successful campaign for a mediocre product ever! Seems to me there is some kind of curve. Sometimes you get 3-4 years out of a battery, and some only go two years. And that performance is within the same brand. So go with what has been working, but don't get so locked in, that you refuse to try another brand. Product loyalty is only for products that deserve loyalty. The "trickle charger" isn't all it's cracked up to be. If you think it is, that's fine. Use it. But one thing it is NOT, and that is a "full on" battery charger. To charge a battery fully, you need a full on battery charger. My charger Hums a little when I plug it in. So I know it is working. My trickle charger...makes a little noise if the battery is in a state of discharge, then gets quiet.

I haven't been able to ride much lately, so my battery is out of the bike, and on my battery tender. I will be putting it back in soon. We'll see...stay tuned.

 

Is the use of a "tender" legit in their opinion? If the battery is not charging with a tender on it, constantly in the red, can I tell the dealer that?
Thanks

 

Wow..a mere 18 month resurrection. Take it to the dealer. If it’s covered under warranty they’ll cover it. If it’s not, they won’t. Ya can’t argue, because it is what it is. Use a tender, not a charger.

 

Rip, I think you meant 1 amp. I have many battery maintainers, most of them are 1 amp. I do have the Schumacher 1.5 like the other poster mentioned. I have two large batteries in my boat so I use that 1.5 on those large batteries. I keep both my Harley and old Suzuki GT750 on 1 amp maintainers. I do believe they extend the service life of most batteries, although you always get one that wants to die early no matter what you do.

 

The smart battery tenders will monitor the charge on a battery and if the battery falls below a pre-determined voltage the charger will start a charge automatically to a pre determined level, it will then stop charging and monitor the battery. This cycle happens continously. A trickle charger will charge all the time and actually cook the battery and could cause some sulfation on the plates. The Deltran smart charger is probably the most popular one around.

 

Yes, in fact you'll find re-branded Deltran battery tenders for sale in your dealer's P&A department. Bikes in winter storage at my local dealership are all connected to tenders as well.

 

I don't believe "trickle" and "maintainer" should be used on the same product. As Seniorsuperglide said, a "trickle" charger is a constant amp charge as long as it's connected. A "maintainer" keeps it topped up but will not over charge.

When I bought my Ultra the seller gave me his trickle charger. It was simply a 1 amp, constant charger. I don't use it on my bikes, although I'll hook it to my large boat batteries, but not forever.