Here's a battery troubleshooting story some of you might find interesting.  It involves an Everstart (Wal Mart) ES10-LA2 about two years old.

Last week, I was on  my way out at about 9pm.  The temperature was around 15F - 20F when I took the GS off the battery tender.  I turned the ignition on, observed that the headlights and idiot lights came on as usual, then hit the starter button.  EVERYTHING went black instantly.  Hmm...  I know this game, or so I thought.  I had a problem with headlights last week, so I figured it was the headlight bullet connector under the steering tube or a blown fuse.  Nope!  I couldn't even hear the sidestand relay click closed when turning the key on.  Something in the main power circuit was wacked.  I was in a hurry at that point so I put the GS away and took the car.   

Last night I went out to look at it.  Here's what I found:

With the ignition switch off the battery was at 11.9V.  With the ignition switch on, the battery pulled down to .5V!  Obviously, it shouldn't be possible to pull the battery down to .5V through a #14 wire (the main power wire) without either blowing the main fuse, or burning the bike to the ground. 

Realizing this, I checked the starter solenoid to see if it was closing when the key was turned on.  Nope!  Starter solenoid was open, with 11.9V across the contacts.

That pretty much narrowed it down to the battery or the battery terminals.  To confirm this, I hooked up my big battery charger to the bike and turned the key.  Presto!  We have lights again!  I removed the charger, cleaned the battery terminals vigorously with Scotchbrite and tried again under battery power.  No lights...  That narrowed it to the battery.

Obviously, the battery was bad.  But why would it INSTANTLY self-destruct when I hit the starter button?  I figured one of two things had happened:

1)  The internal buss bar had partially opened
2)  One of the welds holding the terminals to the buss bar had come loose.

To test this, I took a section of .032" safety wire about 6" long and shorted the terminals on the battery.  Not even a spark!  The wire barely got warm to the touch.  However, I could hear an arc-fault hiss coming from below the positive terminal. 

Case closed!  The weld connecting the positive terminal to the positive buss bar was faulty.  The battery terminal was under no mechanical stress, so it was most likely faulty from the factory.  Even though I ride year-round there was something about the starting load that night to cause the weld to finally fail.  Luckily, it failed at home and not on the road.

So, if you have an instant battery failure and your battery draws down significantly with the key switch on, check the battery for a faulty terminal weld!

That IS an interesting battery failure.  Also, kudos on your troubleshooting skills -- that alone could help folks.

What was most "interesting" to me, however, was this thought:

QuoteLast week, I was on  my way out at about 9pm.  The temperature was around 15F - 20F

What are you, Iceman?  Holy crap......  I draw the line at about 40F and I never thought of myself as a wimp.   What kind of gear do you ride with in those temps?  Sorry for the threadjack...

I wear heated gloves, a heated jacket liner and womens snow pants (so they fit tight) under my leathers.  Then, to top it off I wear three heavy wool work socks.  Two on my feet, one wrapped around my neck.   

I think the lowest temperature I have routinely ridden in is -10F.  At those temperatures, the main problem for me is starting the bike.  The GS starter does not like turning over an engine that cold.  The temperature doesn't bother me much, getting stuck somewhere does.   

The SV has a MUCH better starter and it is fuel injected.  I have no problems starting it in any temperature.

Might chicken out and buy a windshield for the GS this winter.  Then again...   Maybe not. 

I'm still impressed -- heated gear or not.  And now you add that you have no windshield -- you ARE the Iceman.

Just out of curiosity, where in IL are you located?  I spent four years in college in Evanston, then two years at another point in my life in Champaign-Urbana.  I have good friends in Charleston and Edwardsville.  Some beautiful parts to that state, and some historic places as well.  But freaking cold much of the year. 

I'm East of St. Louis waaaay out in the stix.

Ahh yeah, all familiar places.  However, I go to Edwardsville fairly often.  In fact, I bought my heated gear at the new Aprilia / Vespa when they opened up.

The weather isn't bad.  We get about 7 months of warm weather from about mid-April to the end of October.  November though March are usually varying degrees of cold, with January / February being the coldest.  It isn't enough to keep me off my bikes though.  I'd go nutz.   

I was also hit with semi electical failure today making me take the POS nissan. The plug in to my electric pants failed ... and I only made the pants electric yesterday ... luckily I didn't scorch myself.
Today I fix it, tommorow I make electric jacket liner and booya ... I have ridden with a snomobile suit under the joe rocket I wear for much of the last month and 1/2. Not bad ... except I was feeling like a stuffed sausage. It was that tight.
Anyway, it was in the 30's this morning, and I have ridden in the teens earlier this winter ... unseasonally cold this winter. Canadian cold front in the US this year.
Cool.
Buddha.

Quote from: GeeP on December 07, 2008, 10:32:54 AM
Here's a battery troubleshooting story some of you might find interesting.  It involves an Everstart (Wal Mart) ES10-LA2 about two years old.

Yeah, I'm done with Walmart/autozone/advance auto junk - my two year old Advance Auto battery is dying so I just ordered a sealed glass mat battery, and a battery tender plus - nothing more annoying than a bike that won't start.

Thanks for this diagnosis.  It helped me today to figure out that the computer uninterruptable power supply battery (blade connector type) that I have been using for over a year has finally stopped working.  Oh well, good while it lasted.

Hey, GeeP!

Congrats on not giving in to the weather! I'm very like-minded and refuse to let a little cold weather stop me. I ride regularly when it's in the low 20's (F), and into the upper teens if I'm determined (I'm in SE Pennsylvania). I do, however, suffer from cold fingers and was wondering what type of heated gloves you use. I'm using a pair of un-heated gloves w/ 20G thinsulate. I usually have to stop every half-hour to toast my hands on the motor (when I'm at a stoplight).

I'm also wondering if you've used any other type of non-electric insulated glove that you were happy with.

Thanks,

Mike