SuzukiSavage.com - Battery shorting

killsport

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Battery shorting
01/10/15 at 18:19:38

had a great ride today and stopped to add fuel. Tried to start and nothing. No lights. No click. I have a battery tender on it, and I cant imagine that the battery went completely dead in an hour.
I was able to wiggle the red side of the battery connection and get lights but not enough juice to start. Managed to jump start and limp home. I don't want this to happen again. Any ideas on what my options are?
I was thinking I could put in a physically smaller/shorter battery in the same box. I would put in better insulation around the red terminal, but it is so tight in there even after taking off the seat... Suggestions? Anyone else have this issue? Know anyone who did?
Thanks! (2011 stock with 5500 miles)

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justin_o_guy2 Serious Thumper Offline What happened? Posts: 55279 East Texas, 1/2 dallas/la.	Re: Battery shorting Reply #1 - 01/10/15 at 19:16:34 Voltmeter,, know what the battery is. Wiggled the red side? Was it LOOSE?
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killsport YaBB Newbies Offline SuzukiSavage.com helps me. Not my wife. Posts: 34	Re: Battery shorting Reply #2 - 01/10/15 at 19:21:47 It was loose. But it's the 3rd time it's come loose in 2 weeks. If I put in a shorter/smaller battery I can do some electrical tape to ensure no shorting. Or, is there something else I can do to avoid the loosening?
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12Bravo Serious Thumper Offline SuzukiSavage.com Rocks! Posts: 628 Mid-Missouri Gender:	Re: Battery shorting Reply #3 - 01/10/15 at 20:00:12 Use a star washer (lock washer) on the battery terminals if they are coming loose. I've never had a problem on my S40 but terminals coming loose is quite common on the Intruder/S50. I had to use star washers on my 88 750
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gizzo Serious Thumper Offline SuzukiCabbage. It's Savage. Posts: 1318 Australia	Re: Battery shorting Reply #4 - 01/10/15 at 20:29:26 There's a difference between a short circuit and an open circuit, y'know? Shorting the red lead would cause the lead to melt and maybe burn your scooter down. A loose cable leading to an open circuit is a lot more benign and just stops you going somewhere
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killsport YaBB Newbies Offline SuzukiSavage.com helps me. Not my wife. Posts: 34	Re: Battery shorting Reply #5 - 01/11/15 at 04:18:48 Which would cause a battery drain quickly? From an easy start to not even clicks... In less than an hour. Even when I wiggled and got lights.
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bobert_FSO

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Wichita KS
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Re: Battery shorting
Reply #6 - 01/11/15 at 06:01:53

A short of the positive battery post to the frame (ground) would indeed make lots of sparks and heat, melt wiring and possibly catch something on fire.

An open connection (like when the connectors are not tight) can create a small amount of heat if the bad connection creates a point of high electrical resistance.

A bad or loose connection, in addition to not supplying enough current to run the bike, would also keep the bike or the tender from charging the battery.

Get your battery checked. It may be bad and not holding a charge. Also, if the battery charge is already low, a tender might not offer enough charging to charge it up to full voltage.

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koehlerrk Junior Member Offline One cylinder to rule them all... Posts: 98 East of Keuka Lake NY Gender:	Re: Battery shorting Reply #7 - 01/11/15 at 06:04:57 Any black spots on the battery terminal/cable? AKA, evidence of it shorting out/arcing. Otherwise, you can charge the battery and let it sit for a couple hours, or overnight, then try starting it. After tightening all the cables of course. If it doesn't start, you have a battery to replace.
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killsport

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Posts: 34

Re: Battery shorting
Reply #8 - 01/11/15 at 09:37:27

No sign of black spots. When wiggling and trying to tighten I did get sparks. That's user error... The screwdriver hit some chrome.
I've charged the battery (via tender) and have screwed tightly all connections. I used some thread locker. Also, the rubber boot over the terminal connector has been taken off and I put electrical tape around it. It did start up and I rode it for 10 minutes. Turned it off and started again. Will let it sit for a few days without tendering to see if the battery holds.
Should I have any concern using the electrical tape instead of the boot?

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Flint Full Member Offline SuzukiSavage.com Rocks Alberta! Posts: 124	Re: Battery shorting Reply #9 - 01/11/15 at 10:16:24 I have replaced old rotten rubber battery boots with self vulcanizing rubber tape. The stuff really sticks on well. The only bad thing about it that it's a bear to remove when you want to disconnect the battery.
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