Routy wrote on 10/23/10 at 05:20:28:



Hi Rout,

I looked at those 50 amp load testers, but questioned their utility.

The load test procedures I've seen say you should apply a load equal to 1/2 the battery's spec CCA figure for 15 sec, while continuously measuring the battery's voltage.

As the battery I currently have in my Savage (a mx-free Interstate) is rated at 190 CCA, you'd need to load test it at 95 amps.....something the 50 amp tester is unable to do.

Or, at least I thought.  How would you go about doing a load test on a 190 CCA battery using a 50 amp load tester?

Curious.

Digger Quote:
How would you go about doing a load test on a 190 CCA battery using a 50 amp load tester?
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About the same way as using a 100 amp, except hold it for 30 seconds instead of 15, and use a 10.5 min voltage instead of 9.5. This has never failed to find a bad battery. If it passes a 50 amp test at double time, you can bet it will pass 100 amp at 1/2 the time. If not, I have never found the time.

The advantage of a 50 amp (price?) is that "one fits all".... it can also be more safely used on smaller batteries that don't have.....and are not designed to put out  hi CC amps, such as smaller bikes, and like my 12/24 volt mower, and my battery powered P/A music amplifiers.

       




Battery Guide
Motorcycle Battery Maintenace Tips to keep your motorcycle at peak condition.
Motorcycle maintenance is more than doing maintenance on your motorcycle because you have to do it now or it is time to do it right away. On going general maintenance will keep your motorcycle in great condition with little or no unpleasant surprises on the road.

Typical Motorcycle Battery
Typical Motorcycle Battery



Motorcycle Battery Maintenance

Tip: There are dozens of parts on a motorcycle that could be checked on a regular basis and there is nothing wrong with check all those parts. But try to slim the list down to the most important items so you still have time to ride.

The Battery

THE BASICS

First things first. A 12-volt battery is not a 12-volt battery. Twelve volts is just a nominal, convenient term used to distinguish one battery from another. A fully-charged 12-volt battery, allowed to "rest" for a few hours (or days) with no load being drawn from it (or charge going to it), will balance out its charge and measure about 12.6 volts between terminals.

When a battery reads only 12 volts under the above conditions, it's almost fully depleted. Actually, if a battery's resting voltage is only 12.0 to 12.1 it means only 20 to 25% of its useful energy remains. It's either a goner or it has been deep cycled, and a battery can only be deep-cycled a limited number of times before it is indeed dead.

12-volt batteries supply useful energy only through a limited range -- from over 14 volts (when fully charged and unrested) down to 10.5 volts in use/under load (when lights dim, your motorcycle is hard to start). No 12-volt battery will remain at over 14 volts for more than seconds unless it's being charged. The lowest limit is 10.5 volts (used in testing) and obviously unsatisfactory in practical use.

This is the full page. Very good info.http://www.totalmotorcycle.com/maintenance/battery.htm

[quote author=48656B6B697E0C0 link=1287167340/15#19 date=1287979097]Routy wrote on 10/24/10 at 06:23:19:


Cold Cranking Amps is the measure of a new battery fully charged producing no less than 7.2 volts at 0 degrees F for 30 seconds under load.
Cranking amps are tested the same way at 32 degrees F. A battery less than 40 degrees F loses about 30% of its power, but it usually has enough energy to crank engines in good tune with a working choke or fuel injection. Those of us who remember 50s era vehicles with 6 volt systems probably remember the "ritual" for cranking their vehicles in cold weather. I remember taking batteries inside on cold nights. We got it good nowadays.  Boofer