Anybody using newer lithium ion batteries in their ST?

[ST1100Y]

The NOCO units seem to be a good choice and Walmart has them.

Skeptical about the LiFePO4 in the beginning, I went with NOCO last year (ST1100 & the GF's NT700VA, via Amazon actually cheaper the the classical OEM YUASA) and I'm highly impressed with them.
They do require a designated charger though, but already the GENIOUS 5 manages to charge an empty cell within 45 minutes (compare that to the charging times of regular AGM or GEL batteries...)
The BMS is also officially compatible with their GB** booster packs, so an eventual springtime issue is covered as well...
I'm also impressed with the solid plastic spacers they offer (contrary to the soft foam thingies other MFG's include...)
Whilst fitment was a simple drop in on my GF's NT700VA, installation in the ST1100 required some modifications of the unique solid brass(!) terminals...
Some cutting, a little filing, drilling an tapping a new M6 thread to make it fully compatible to the ST1100's connectors and it's rock solid now...

 

[diferg]

At the price for a Walmart AGM battery, using a battery tender is just not worth the time and trouble. The only battery that has ever left me stranded was the original Yuasa! Catastrophic failure at 6 months and about 4000 miles! That was 17 years ago.

 

[rwthomas1]

Some people like to have the latest and greatest, and that is fine. Lithium has some great advantages, long life, lightweight, delivers more amps at a higher rate, etc. But I don't see the advantage on my ST just yet. The only advantage may be long life, but the much higher cost of the lithium arguably offsets this. When a machine is designed around the advantage the lithium has to offer, well then it makes more sense. I am considering a lithium battery for my boat, as it allows me to relocate the battery to a better location whilst also being 75% lighter. This may be worth it despite needing a new solar charge controller as well. But the ST? Its gonna be lead acid for a while.

 

[St-Gerard]

Wondering if the Restart Antigravity batterys have a amperage limit on their charging . On my Cx and Gl if you discharge your battery with a healthy lead acid battery (like first time left my heated grips on before relaying them)I got a push start and didn't know that if you operate the engine above 5000 rpm it burns out the Stator as it will put out 100amps.

 

[jdmccright]

I've had a Li battery in my 1100 for almost 4 years now. I do not get to ride very often, so I try to remember to trickle charge it every month or so. I've found that over the years, it hasn't been able to keep charge as easily and in some cases has triggered the internal "circuit breaker", requiring a jump so to speak to reset it and allow a recharge. NTM it takes a different type of charger that can handle Li-ion...read the charger's label to make sure it's compatible.

I guess my advice is if you are going to ride pretty frequently, then Li is a good alternative. But for more occasional (and especially impromptu) riders, it can be a pain and a letdown if not tended to.

 

[ST1100Y]

Some people like to have the latest and greatest, and that is fine. Lithium has some great advantages, long life, lightweight, delivers more amps at a higher rate, etc. But I don't see the advantage on my ST just yet. The only advantage may be long life, but the much higher cost of the lithium arguably offsets this.

In the past decades (since the change of the millennium) quality/lifespan of regular batteries has definitely shortened... designed obsolesce and such...
Back in the 90ies they lasted like 5~6 years, now I had to buy new ones like every two years... and their prices didn't go down either...
The lithium should pretty much last forever...

When a machine is designed around the advantage the lithium has to offer, well then it makes more sense.

The onboard BMS takes care of that...
Once installed you'll notice by far improved starting/firing behavior...
The starter GF's 2-cyl NT700 always struggled with an AGM or GEL, sometimes requiring pressing the button 2~3 times (yes, switches are cleaned and serviced!), barely making it over TDC...
Since the lithium is installed it "giggles" instantly on the first push, no hesitation, always fully reliable, two revolutions of the starter, yup-yup-vrooom...

Ditto on the ST1100, starter spins quicker, stable voltage (low internal resistance) providing clean spark, the thing comes alive like pressing ON on a BD player...

 

[rwthomas1]

In the past decades (since the change of the millennium) quality/lifespan of regular batteries has definitely shortened... designed obsolesce and such...
Back in the 90ies they lasted like 5~6 years, now I had to buy new ones like every two years... and their prices didn't go down either...
The lithium should pretty much last forever...

The onboard BMS takes care of that...
Once installed you'll notice by far improved starting/firing behavior...
The starter GF's 2-cyl NT700 always struggled with an AGM or GEL, sometimes requiring pressing the button 2~3 times (yes, switches are cleaned and serviced!), barely making it over TDC...
Since the lithium is installed it "giggles" instantly on the first push, no hesitation, always fully reliable, two revolutions of the starter, yup-yup-vrooom...

Ditto on the ST1100, starter spins quicker, stable voltage (low internal resistance) providing clean spark, the thing comes alive like pressing ON on a BD player...

While I don't doubt that the lithium spins the engine faster, I haven't had any complaints about the standard lead/acid battery that came with my ST1100 when I purchased it 3 yrs ago. Starts within a second or two, seems to work just fine. Lives on a smart charger through the winter, no charger during the season but the bike is ridden frequently.

I work for a utility and part of my job is managing the fleet of vehicles and machines. From what I have seen, there has been no change in battery quality. We are not replacing them particularly frequently and our use would be considered borderline abuse.

With regard to the BMS, it is a kluge to allow lithium technology to be backwards compatible. It is imperfect. I'm trying to find a lithium battery to replace the lead/acid on my boat. So far its been tough to find one that is rated to start engines, work as a house bank, and that will charge fully from the engines, and also charge from the solar panels. The problem as far has I can tell is the BMS systems that are not able to effectively deal with all the conditions, they do a half-assed job.

I'm quite familiar with lithium batteries in hobby RC stuff. The onboard BMS that is in electronic speed controls and the battery chargers are adjustable and far more flexible than the battery mounted BMS on commercially available lithium batteries, at least as far as I can tell. Im sure this will change in the future, but its just not there yet for some applications that could really benefit.

 

[Upt' North]

Be careful where and how you charge it......don't know more than it states. But it was off a motorcycle.

Horrifying video shows danger of lithium batteries | West Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service

Rare footage has been captured by hom

www.westyorksfire.gov.uk

 

[ASPC]

I think I prefer a 11.2 Amp AGM battery.

AGM battery Depth of Discharge myth busted

I have been wondering for some time if the "don't discharge your batteries beyond 50%" rule really applies to AGM batteries. AGM batteries claim to be deep discharge, and 50% discharge doesn't seem very deep to me! So I did a little research...

tab-rv.vanillacommunity.com

 

[ASPC]

I’m not looking for any flack but if this is what it claims to be it is a very good deal. With good usable power. Good for camping. At the end of the day what matters is total stored capacity and many lithium batteries are only 5 Amps capacity. This SLA/AGM battery claims to be 11.2 Amps, and that is a reasonable claim for this type of battery. 80% discharge would give almost 9 Amps of useable power.

https://www.amazon.com/Mighty-Max-Battery-YTZ14S-Product/dp/B00YNOCRPU/ref=sr_1_4?crid=9ZZBNAUKSMFP&keywords=Ytz14s&qid=1678551951&sprefix=ytz14s%2Caps%2C177&sr=8-4&th=1

 

[Eagle59]

I pulled the trigger on two NOCO batteries. One for the ST and one for my lawn mower. Autozone has a 20% promotion when using a code. Saved some $ on the buy plus the core return. Gets the price a lot closer to AGM lead-acid batts.

 

[ASPC]

I pulled the trigger on two NOCO batteries. One for the ST and one for my lawn mower. Autozone has a 20% promotion when using a code. Saved some $ on the buy plus the core return. Gets the price a lot closer to AGM lead-acid batts.

The NOCO Lithium NLP14 is only a 4 Amp battery. That is 48 Watts total capacity, the battery in my iPad is 38 watts. For comparison, the useable power in a SLA/AGM battery in group 14 has 108 watts of useable power and they cost $40 bucks.