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Lithium Or Not

Discussion in 'Wasteland' started by SteveE, Nov 7, 2019.

?
  1. No

    9 vote(s)
    37.5%
  2. Yes

    15 vote(s)
    62.5%
  1. What are the the community’s views in the pros and cons of changing to Lithium battery?
     
  2. Mate, do a search. CAN OF WORMS ! If you need to lose weight, your PP rectifier/regulator is fine for a lithium battery but lithium batteries do not like a small constant current drain so really need to be kept on a specific lithium battery maintainer. Lithium also doesn’t like cold weather and needs a technique to wake it up to deliver the claimed higher cranking amperage. Are they better than a conventional AGM lead/acid ? Juries out. I have a lithium in my V4 as standard so stuck with it. My Multistrada has an AGM lead/acid by choice. AGM cost me £55, not sure what a lithium costs, the first one I bought for my track bike was £120. Andy
     
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  3. Oh yes, read the small print in the guarantee. The Shido guarantee is VERY restricted. Andy
     
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  4. I looked into this at one point and came to the conclusion that the weight saving really isnt worth it.... the starting better can be achieved with a upgraged cable kit (Exige) and the potential risk of it spontanously combusting was too high for any of the supposed advantages.
    if it wasnt designed for a lithium, I decided it didnt need one and stuck with the AGM std battery, fitted Exiges cable kit and never looked back, I can trickle charge with no fear !! :D
    just my 2p
     
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  5. Thread moved
     
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  6. Fucking hell...here we go again....
     
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  7. And you can get higher than standard cranking amp Yuasa batteries now too...
     
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  8. Not even considered it after fitting the cable kit tbh....the difference is (as you know) night and day, its gone from "Oh God please start" to full confidence it WILL start....:)
     
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  9. Oi - less of it you!
     
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  10. Got a link to the cable kit?
     
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  11. I bought a Lithium Battery for my KR1000 Replica :bucktooth:
     
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  12. And?
     
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  13. I will be building the electrics to cope with it, unlike some earlier Ducati's that can self combust :bomb:
     
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  14. o_O :bomb: :skull:
     
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  15. Pro's:
    Double the Cranking Amps
    6~7 lbs (or aprox 3kg) weight savings....located at the top of the bike!
    Conserves power longer
    Longer life

    Con's:
    Cost more (offset by longer life)
    You'll need a new Lithium Tender

    Cold start issue is a non-issue. Even without a wake up, the big 480 CA that fits the Multi (AT12-BS-HD) starts it immediately at 1°C.
    However, at that low temperature, you should have the lights on for a minute or two prior to pushing the start button. You don't have to do this for the remainder of the day.
    Bought one for the Panigale. One for the Multistrada and looking at getting another to replace the OEM Yuasa for the Monster.
    It's a no brainier. Just get a Lithium when the time comes to replace your battery.
    There are many good brands out there but knowing that I ride in our cold weather Fall season, I particularly chose this one for its low voltage reserve.
    at12-bs-hd-rs-lithium-motorsports-battery.jpg
     
    #16 DarR, Nov 7, 2019
    Last edited: Nov 8, 2019
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  16. As others have said - there are pro’s and cons.

    On a modern bike like your’s the bikes charging circuit would be fine. On older bikes I would be wary unless you understand the limitations of the electrical system.

    Lithium based battery technology is a great step forwards over older lead acid technologies but get’s a bad name because the consequences of battery failure if misused are greater than with other technologies.

    If a lithium based battery gets damaged or misused it’s far more likely to catch fire. And once it does it’s very difficult to put out. However, that being said the odds of this are very slim. This is a great site for understanding battery technology and this article is a great start to understanding lithium safety.

    https://batteryuniversity.com/learn/article/safety_concerns_with_li_ion

    When it comes down to it we ride around with a tank full of highly explosive fuel and nobody posts scare stories saying we should all use Diesel bikes.

    I plan on installing a lithium battery in my 959 because I want to save weight on track. Yes there is an extra risk of a battery fire in the event of a crash - but is that risk any higher than a fuel fire?

    The best way to minimise risk if storing over the winter is to remove the battery from the bike and charge cycle it with a proper charger every 2 or 3 months. These batteries are not like lead acid - they can retain charge for a long period of time and don’t need a constant top up. In fact to maximise battery life they prefer to be stored with part charge - opinions differ on this but I would say discharging to around 60% capacity and then fully charging and discharging to 60% is all that is necessary to maintain a battery over the winter.

    If you do leave the battery on your bike over the winter then you do need a lithium compatible tender - this will keep the battery topped up and stop any residual current drain on the bike from completely discharging the battery. If a lithium battery is completely discharged it is both scrap and potentially dangerous to charge.

    However, constantly charging the battery in this manner will reduce it’s life in that same manner as leaving a laptop on a docking station and never taking it off charge. Lithium batteries perform best when used and charged regularly without letting the charge drop too low.

    I hope this is of help

    Steve
     
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  17. One of the best responses / posts I’ve seen on the site. Thank you. Certainly beats ‘here we ****** go again’!
     
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  18. The 'here we go again' is in desperation of the amount of times it has been discussed in the past on here, there are many lengthy threads with naysayers and doomsayers - but only one reality as shown in the above post and on the link:

    https://www.ducatiforum.co.uk/threa...ttery-in-place-of-my-lead-acid-battery.53457/
     
    #19 Exige, Nov 8, 2019
    Last edited by a moderator: Nov 8, 2019
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  19. Have the usual suspects joined in with condescending and patronising comments yet? Cant see, they are on ignore ;)
     
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