No Dead Motorcycle Battery For Me!

When I go into the Chonda bike forums(RPS Hawk 250, TaoTao TBR7, etc.) I always find a hit list of items that will fail on the motorcycle within the first year of ownership. A dead motorcycle battery is one of the top items listed in the first year.

I read that most of the older motorcycle batteries with the TBR7’s and Hawk 250s were open-cell batteries. Meaning there was a set of caps to each battery cell, and you got a bottle of battery acid to fill the battery when you assembled the motorcycle.

My 2021 TBR7 came with a sealed battery. I am happy about getting the upgraded battery, but there are still stories of the sealed battery failing inside of 12 months.

Why Is The Non-Sealed Motorcycle Battery A Pain?

Watch any of the Hawk 250 or TBR7 assembly videos, and you can watch what it takes to fill those unsealed batteries. I watched people stab the bottles making a mess. Spilled most of the battery acid outside of the battery instead of inside, etc. So, some operator error was a concern. Since my battery came sealed and prefilled, of course, less error from this operator. 😀

OK, we all know what pain a dead motorcycle battery can cause, with the most apparent symptom being, no starting power. This lack of starting power means no running motorcycle engine, which means no riding. 🙁

The TBR7, like many of her Chonda-Cousins(Hawk 250, Brozz 250, etc.), has a kick start. Hold up; I have to say even with the feature of my TBR7 having a kick start, it has not been so reliable that I can trust it. If I kick start at my house and fail, I go inside and pout about it.

If the kick start fails while out of the house, I have to push my bike home. Now no pouting, I am crying. 

So my goal is NO DEAD MOTORCYCLE BATTERY!

How Am I Preventing A Dead Motorcycle Battery?

I bought a 12volt motorcycle battery trickle charger!  

A Motorcycle Battery Trickle Charger Is My Solution.

Now first motorcycle battery trickle charger I’ve ever owned, but let me explain what I took away from reading all the product descriptions:

A battery trickle charger can top off slightly depleted batteries slowly, and once fully charged, keep them ‘floating’ about the fully charged level.

So motorcycle lead-acid batteries lose charge just sitting around. Also, lead-acid batteries don’t like being cycled over large ranges. Meaning they like only operating at the top end of their charge level. This drawback is how if you fully discharge a lead-acid battery, it might not ever take another charge. :/

Read more about lead-acid batteries at Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lead%E2%80%93acid_battery

One solution could prevent a dead motorcycle battery if you were paying attention. A lead-acid motorcycle battery loses power sitting around, and if it drops enough in power, those power swings can kill the battery’s life. So, not letting your motorcycle sit around is the solution too. Ride often and then no battery issues. Right?

I wish I could ride often, with work and life; my motorcycle hobby is just that a hobby. So my TBR7 will not be ridden for several days, and in the winter months, I can guess whole months, if not the entire winter season. Very sad.

So, picking up a cheap, yes cheap, battery trickle charger is my solution right now.  

Do I Need A Trickle Battery Charger For My Motorcycle?

I plan to follow up post with the post of me installing. I figure it’s pretty straightforward, but if there are any tips or mistakes, I will share them with you and hopefully help you get your motorcycle ready to start up all the time, every time.

Ride Safe, Ride Fun!

Just in case you were interested in a motorcycle battery trickle charger as well, I got mine off Amazon cheap.

Author’s Notice: This page contains affiliate links, for which I may earn a commission by their use. Also, as an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying Amazon purchases.

Quick search link for the latest prices: https://amzn.to/3qgKPWs

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