Catastrophic Battery Failure

[Frank_M]

This past year I installed one of the Vietnam batteries from Gruber in the R65. It's performed well until yesterday. Although earlier in the day it had started the bike easily, come the afternoon and there was absolutely no sign of life when I hit the starter. I thought of Monty's recent dilemma when his machine had simply quit on him. I pushed the bike into the garage and attached the charger. Absolutely no reaction. So I got the other charger. Nothing there either. Then I hooked up the old battery still in my possession. Its problem was that it wouldn't hold a charge. But it would take one, and it did even now. I let it draw some juice just for a few minutes, then installed it in the bike. The engine cranked.

The battery is still under full replacement, but before I contact Gruber, I was wondering if anyone else has incurred this same problem with the battery and what might explain the sudden failure.

[Justin B.]

I have not had this issue with any of my Grubers - or any battery.  But, since it will not charge, or draw any current, it sounds like it "opened" internally.  I hope this is a fluke...

[Frank_M]

The battery that failed was a GPS22-12NE which, at the time I purchased it from Gruber (this past April), was recommended for the R65. It was a 22 amp hour battery.

They no longer carry it, and I noticed too that the battery compatibilities now begin with Buell. In the end, and on your word, Justin, I ordered what you are currently using and mentioned in another post.

[Justin B.]

Frank, make sure you get the r65 forum 5% discount.  If your other one was less than a year old it should be under warranty...  The one you originally bought was their PC-68-0 equiv, I have been told they are looking for a different supplier for that battery and hope to have it back on the list soon.

[tagordon]

Frank
This same thing was posted on Boxerworks not too long ago.
Gruber battery from Viet Nam developed an open and died an untimely death.
Was replaced by Gruber no charge.
The replacement was from China and no problem posted so far.
By the way I purchased a Gruber Battery my self a couple months ago.
Thinking I had killled my Odyssey PC680 by draining it past (read way past) 20 per cent of full charge too many times.
After installing the new Gruber I did some testing and was going to "surge" the battery to see if I could save it for a spare.
Turned out my charger that I bought with the Odyssey was not truly charging it back to full.
Bought a Battery Tender Water Proof 800 and the Odyssey charged up full and holds a charge at 12.80 volts.
My riding is mostly 10 miles to work and 10 miles back.
Battery never has a chance to get a full charge from the bikes system due to traffic stops.
I could go for a couple weeks before it was down so far as to not start the bike.

[Frank_M]

Gruber replaced the failed battery free of charge with another and did so in a timely matter. They're a good outfit and kudos to Justin for arranging a discount deal with them and this forum. The replacement had a stickie on the box indicating it had been tested and what the voltage was. The number was slightly below recommended voltage, and so the instructional sheet recommended a charge before installation.

As for the old failed battery, I popped off the top and removed the rubber "booties" from each cell to see if there was anything to see. Nothing. I also took advantage of the claim the battery could rest on its many sides. I thought maybe something inside was simply loose and so clamped a charger to the terminals and repositioned the battery to each of its faces. But again, nothing.

Regarding the new battery... unfortunately I only got in a single ride since receiving it, as the weather has changed and temps have well below normal for the Bluegrass.

[Justin B.]

Frank, I'm glad to hear how expediently Gruber took care of you, hopefully your new battery will have a considerably longer life.  Very interesting you couldn't find anything "wrong" inside the old battery as the failure mode sounded like the actual fault would be pretty easy to find.  Hey, maybe post a couple pics of the "autopsy"? I've never been inside an AGM battery before and am a bit curious...

[drewboid]

I would be VERY cautious about conducting an autopsy on the battery (In fact I would not do it!)
Although the electrolite is in gel form it is still sulfuric acid and quite potent. Full face mask and rubber suit with lots of sodium bicarb would not be enough for me. The battery failed and you will not be able to repair it by taking it apart. You would probably not even be able to tell the cause of the failure (sulfation, broken internal bond, etc.).

YMMV but if you do decide to take one apart have a friend standing by with a phone to call 911 and hasmat should you run into trouble. (free advice - and worth every penny!)

[Justin B.]

He indicated he popped off the cover and exposed the cells so I figured pix would be interesting...

[Semper Gumby]

I don't think a Deltran Waterproof 800ma charger will get a PC680 to full charge.  I have the 2 amp outdoor Deltran for the PC680 and the R65 that contains it.  

Wish I could get one to fit in the BSA Thunderbolt.  I'm stuck with SLA batteries until Odessy comes up with an alternative.  

Here is what I'm putting in the T-Bolt.

https://www.powerstridebattery.com/productcart/pc/viewPrd.asp?idcategory=0&idproduct=923

[Frank_M]

An inspection with spyglass and bright light would more accurately describe what I did after popping off the top and those little rubber booties. There wasn't much to see in any case. Although a full autopsy might be interesting, it won't happen. I'm still doing a number of things in order to get my wife, critters, and self back in the house after having it jacked up in the air so that a full foundation could be poured underneath.

As an aside here, drewbold's caution brought a funny memory to mind. I once worked a summer in a machine shop and one day was directed to run a chrome-plating machine for small parts. When I got home, I threw my clothes in the wash. When I pulled them from the dryer, the shirt revealed about 30 holes that weren't there before.