Topica Loopframe_Guzzi Archive


Subject: Battery Story With Happy Ending

Author: JACK-@aol.com

Date: Jan 9, 2005, 10:06 AM

Post ID: 1718178518



Interesting battery event on the '73 Eldo. I replaced the old (as in 6 or 7 years old) battery in October with a new one from Batteries Plus. That worked fine for about 5 weeks. In November I rolled the Eldo out to go to monthly Goose luncheon, turned on the key, and .... nothing. Dead as a door nail. I rolled the Eldo back in the garage and hooked up the Battery Tender thinking that I had inadvertently left the ignition switch on or some other operator brain fart. The Battery Tender showed indication of improper hookup - not possible as I use Molex connectors and have used it on this bike/battery before. I didn't have time to diagnose this as we were off for Christmas holiday and it was too darned cold in the garage to work at night. I fretted about this for weeks, imagining all sorts of weird things that could have gone wrong. Yesterday I got serious about fixing it so I can ride it to today's Goose gathering and found (via multi-meter) about 6 volts across the battery terminals. I pulled the battery and tried my old trickle charger on it. This showed no current flow to the battery, so I hauled it up to Batteries Plus for testing. They put it on their tester, found it not receptive to taking a charge, and gave me a new battery. All is well now and I am off for a ride in a few minutes. What do you think went wrong? I thought of a mechanical failure within the battery (i.e. open circuit) but how to explain the 6+ volts measured between terminals?

No big deal but I am puzzled.

Further comment: Of all my bikes, the Eldo is my clear favorite. I have owned 4 Moto Guzzis, including an '03 Stone, but the simplicity, style, and ride of the Eldo beats 'em all.

--
Jack Lundberg
Colorado Springs, Colorado

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