Shorai battery

[HotRodZilla]

I have the 18ah also. Im in north central Indiana and am experiencing the same things gary is talking about. I went out to the garage yesterday to start the fjr and it wouldnt start till I woke the battery up. But it did start. The garage temp was 28 degrees. As far as price- I paid 169 bucks for it and thats what the dealer wanted for a OEM battery.

Yeah, but an OEM battery will start your bike without the shenanigans. AND...If you shopped harder, you could have found an OEM or close for around $100...

 

[garyahouse]

This morning:

Temp outside 38

In the garage: 49

First attempt: turned on key, checked voltage: 13.1

Hit starter button, engine cranked over fairly well, started within about 1 1/2 seconds.

Another day in paradise, temps headed for high of 57... a little cool, but sunny and light breeze. No complaints... however, I'd be willing to trade some sunshine for a few curves around here.

Gary

crow delight, my latest recipe

 

[blrfjr]

I have the 18ah also. Im in north central Indiana and am experiencing the same things gary is talking about. I went out to the garage yesterday to start the fjr and it wouldnt start till I woke the battery up. But it did start. The garage temp was 28 degrees. As far as price- I paid 169 bucks for it and thats what the dealer wanted for a OEM battery.

Yeah, but an OEM battery will start your bike without the shenanigans. AND...If you shopped harder, you could have found an OEM or close for around $100...

yah I know. My luck with batteries has been shit so I was searching for a better mouse trap and was willing to take a chance on it. I hear some you talk about batteries lasting 5 years or so but I have NEVER gotten more than two years out of one.

 

[drjfjr]

I have an18ah SHORAI live in Louisville, Ky and ride year around. Yesterday it was 31 degrees as a high temperature. First start attempt one second on the starter slow on crank. Second aqttemp fast crank and started withing 1.5 seconds. Did not reset any gauges. If i have any issues this winter I will report back on this thread. I thought i bought a bad battery in 2011 when it went bad in 3 months and decided to try a Shorai. Turns out i had multiple electrical issues that I have since repaired so this is the first winter to fully test the Shorai for me. I had an ignition switch intermittently working and finally gave out in April. Then i discovered a bad connection to my rectifier.It turns out voltage readings were good when bike was cool. It took a ride of about 30 minutes for the rectifier issue to show up and it was after i installed the Datel I discovered that issue.. This would explain my earlier battery issues. I bought the Sharai before the forums were reporting cold start complaints. Last February or so I returned my first Shorai due to resetting of gauges in cold weather. but it could have been my rectifier issue.

 

[garyahouse]

Another test:

Temp outside 31

Temp in the garage 46

First attempt: turned on key, checked voltage: 13.1

Hit starter button, engine cranked over at the lower range of what I'd consider to be the rpm's necessary to start the bike. After about 2 seconds of cranking, rpm's of starter began to slow somewhat, but the engine did start after about 3 seconds of cranking. Clock did not reset.

However this is what I'd consider to be about the coldest that the engine will start on the first attempt. Of course I already know that had the bike not started on the first attempt, it probably would have on the second attempt.

Gary

crow-time

 

[NightShine]

Bike sitting in carport for a few days under a half-cover. 31 degrees that morning.

1st start attempt - engine turned over "once" sluggishly, clock reset. Waited 10 seconds.

2nd attempt - engine turned over slowly 3 times, clock reset. 10 second of waiting

3rd attempt - engine turned over slowly 5 times, clock reset. Waited 20 seconds.

4th attempt - engine turned over more quickly several times, clock reset. Waited 10 seconds

5th attempt - engine turned over more quickly still. Bike started.

The chilly morning drama of an FJR with a Shorai 18AH battery...

 

[HotRodZilla]

All this slow labored cranking can't be good for the starters...Can it??

 

[petey]

I don't know what's happening, but I had mine ('10 FJR) with the Shorai 18A battery up in BC (parked outside) last year and one morning at 28deg and it fired right up first try, than another morning at 30deg and again first try, voom voom no problem. I must be one lucky SOB...

 

[Hornet Pilot]

New Shorai 18A battery installed over the holidays. Bike has been sitting in the garage all the time. Outside temps below freezing for at least the last 3 weeks. Garage temp this morning about 28 F. Outside about 20 F. Bike has been sitting w/o starting for weeks. First attempted start it fired right up. No clock reset, just plain started on first attempt. Battery was on the Shorai trickle charger for the last few days however.

 

[Bustanut joker]

All the trouble for a couple pounds and double the expense.. Not ready for prime time yet I say.

 

[Hornet Pilot]

your opinion????

 

[user 8909]

I'm curious, could the flooding experiences be caused by turning the key on and off, allowing the fuel pump to cycle each time?

Also, Gary, thanks for your input but I was also wondering if you turned the key on and waited 5 minutes before attempting to start? Seems the frequent attempts are as mentioned "waking the battery up" if the key was left on would that do the same but not as fast?

One more, Hornet mentioned a "Shorai trickle charger". Does this insinuate that a Battery Tender would not suffice?

Thanks

 

[escapefjrtist]

I'm curious, could the flooding experiences be caused by turning the key on and off, allowing the fuel pump to cycle each time?Also, Gary, thanks for your input but I was also wondering if you turned the key on and waited 5 minutes before attempting to start? Seems the frequent attempts are as mentioned "waking the battery up" if the key was left on would that do the same but not as fast?

One more, Hornet mentioned a "Shorai trickle charger". Does this insinuate that a Battery Tender would not suffice?

Thanks

All the fuel pump does is charge (pressurize) the fuel rail. Until there is a signal to the injectors, fuel is not sprayed into the intake tract.

From what I've gleaned from this and other Shorai threads, there needs to be a load on the battery to warm it up, The key alone won't provide enough load in a short period of time to wake the battery up. Think aux lights, heated grips and gear, etc. for that amp draw.

--G

 

[user 8909]

I'm curious, could the flooding experiences be caused by turning the key on and off, allowing the fuel pump to cycle each time?Also, Gary, thanks for your input but I was also wondering if you turned the key on and waited 5 minutes before attempting to start? Seems the frequent attempts are as mentioned "waking the battery up" if the key was left on would that do the same but not as fast?

One more, Hornet mentioned a "Shorai trickle charger". Does this insinuate that a Battery Tender would not suffice?

Thanks

All the fuel pump does is charge (pressurize) the fuel rail. Until there is a signal to the injectors, fuel is not sprayed into the intake tract.

From what I've gleaned from this and other Shorai threads, there needs to be a load on the battery to warm it up, The key alone won't provide enough load in a short period of time to wake the battery up. Think aux lights, heated grips and gear, etc. for that amp draw.

--G

Thanks,

found some info on charging,


Shora's dedicated charger model #BMS01 (Shorai Battery Management Charger) which plugs into that 5-Pin BMS connector on the top edge of the battery...the charger comes with a short extension cable and they sell as an option, a longer one, so that you can connect it to the battery and leave the cable on the bike for easy access.

They are pretty proud of their chargers too. A Tender should work fine.

BTW, has fjriders.com forum bit the dust??

 

[Hornet Pilot]

Be careful of using just any battery tender on a Shorai battery. Since this battery is composed of Li Iron cells it cannot tolerate a tender/charger that will use a desulfate charge level ever. The Shorai battery charger (and yes, they must be made of gold!) monitors the state of each individual cell in the battery and equalizes the cell charge levels. Li batteries are great technology but quite sensitive to how they are charged and maintained. Their self discharge rate is very low compared to Lead acid batteries and may not really require the use of a battery charger for most applications unless there is a constant load on the battery. I believe the FJR does draw a small amount of current when turned off and over time would tend to depleat any battery. just not sure how much current is drawn from the battery on our bikes when turned off.

 

[user 8909]

Well, I did it again. Jump on a site and ask a bunch of questions before using the search inquiry.

Oh well. Believe I'll pass on the Shorai, save a few bucks and I like to hit the start button without some high-tech procedure when it's close to freezing.

(also found out about fjriders.com)

 

[garyahouse]

Also, Gary, thanks for your input but I was also wondering if you turned the key on and waited 5 minutes before attempting to start? Seems the frequent attempts are as mentioned "waking the battery up" if the key was left on would that do the same but not as fast?

One more, Hornet mentioned a "Shorai trickle charger". Does this insinuate that a Battery Tender would not suffice?

Thanks

I tried this here CLICKY, but couldn't turn the key on AND the heated grips at the same time. Had to keep voltage above 12.4 or my Show Chrome CLICKY heated grips would automatically shut themselves off. So with key off, I ran the grips for about 3 minutes before beginning my starting procedure that day. It didn't start on the first attempt. Another time I tried simply leaving the key w/ parking lights on for several minutes before attempting to start, but no start that time either. Not sure about your suggestion of leaving key on for extended period before first attempt.

Concerning the idea of required amp draw to WAKE the battery, I'm thinking that I agree with ESCAPEFJRTIST here, that a higher amp draw has a greater effect at waking the battery. In my case, I've used the starter to create amp draw, and have noted the resulting higher voltages at each subsequent attempt to start. The gradually waking battery produces not only higher voltages, but higher amperages (and cranking speed) as well.

Hornet Pilot,

Concerning your starting attempts while utilizing a charger, I'm thinking that this keeps the battery "awake," and alters the results of what I'm trying to document here. I'm testing a battery that is NOT on any kind of charging device overnight. I'm guessing that this makes a huge difference.

Gary

passdacrowplease #44

 

[user 8909]

I appreciate your time and study but I don't think I'll deal with it. Much rather hit the button and go. The 10lb loss would be cool but one of the features I like on the FJR is its heavy front end.

Matter of fact I have removed ten pounds by swapping out different mufflers and really never noticed it. I'm back to running stock because I didn't like the added noise.

 

[garyahouse]

Keiffer:

That's EXACTLY why I did this study. So guys like you could make informed decisions about this new technology. Seriously, we're all agreed, it's a lot of money for a battery, and we all deserve to know what it is and IS NOT capable of. Though my results only represent one battery in one FJR, and there are exceptions to every rule, at least we have some sort of numbers to go by now. Just sitting back and reading through this thread ought to give any potential Shorai customer an honest education. It might be just the right battery for some, or perhaps a technology that needs a little more "time in the oven" for others.

Gary

Crowcastinator #44

 

[LAF]

Not to blast anyone but this is a battery. It has one function, to fire the bike. Way too much drama over a very expensive battery. When they get the tech caught up to the enviorment I will be interested, till then it is not ready for prime time in my part of PA.