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New Odyssey PC680 battery!

jsouth

Member
I finally retired my old Odyssey and bought a new one. The old one was on the bike when I bought it in February 2011, and has worked for 6.5 years and 30,000 miles after I bought the bike. Even after rejuvenating it this spring, it would not start the bike any more by late summer.

Got the new one in and it works like a champ. As I had old and new side by side, I noticed what I think is a date code on the sticker on top of the battery. It appears my new battery was manufactured in 6/17 and the one that came out in 10/04. If true, that's not a bad service life for a motorcycle battery -- even if installed 4 months after manufacture, it worked for 12.5 years.

I'll take those odds!
 
They really are well made batteries. It may have lasted even longer with a higher voltage regulator on the alternator. Stock is around 14 volts but the Odyssey prefers around 14.7 to keep it in top shape and prevent any sulfation which is what eventually kills them. That is still pretty good performance though considering we used to be happy with 2 or 3 years with flooded lead acid cells. Even they can last quite a long time with proper maintenance though.
 
I have the regulator, but have not yet pulled the alternator to install it. I do use a charger (CTEC 4.3) which does the proper charging voltage.

Looking back through the service records, if that date code was right, the battery has seen over 70,000 miles in 12.5 years.
 
I just bought an R1150GS with a PC680, I ran the battery through four full recharge cycles and it now takes 10% more charge than when I bought it. And I've started charging it with a correct battery charger, but I haven't modified the VR yet.

After a 45 minute ride--being charged at 13.7V--when I connect it to my 14.7V charger, it immediately draws 2-3amps and takes about an hour to get to 100% charge. This is a pretty good indication that the stock VR can't do the job.
 
I just bought an R1150GS with a PC680, I ran the battery through four full recharge cycles and it now takes 10% more charge than when I bought it. And I've started charging it with a correct battery charger, but I haven't modified the VR yet.

After a 45 minute ride--being charged at 13.7V--when I connect it to my 14.7V charger, it immediately draws 2-3amps and takes about an hour to get to 100% charge. This is a pretty good indication that the stock VR can't do the job.

I've been too lazy to modify mine but I put the RT with the PC680 on my Centech charger whenever I've been on a long trip or just periodically when I'm riding it locally. It does exactly as Roger described. Tops up and finally goes on maintain mode. The PC680 on my R80G/S fares better as I installed an adjustable regulator and set it to around 4.5VDC. I should just set it to 14.7 but I thought I would start there and see what happens. It takes significantly less time to top up than the RT one does.
 
I will agree about getting the recommended charger for the PC-680! I have one in my 81 R100RT and 03 R1150RT and keep them topped off. The 81 has a higher charging rate then the 03 oddly enough.
 
A PC-680 is still going strong after 9 yrs my stock R1100S with occasional use of a Battery Tender Jr. Not sure what the hubbub is about...
 
Dead battery symptoms must be going around lately; mine just gave up the ghost also. I just ordered a new BMW gel battery for my RT and it should be here tomorrow. I keep my RT plugged in to my Deltron Battery Tender Plus while the bike is parked in the garage, so hopefully I'll get many years of service life from this new battery.
 
A PC-680 is still going strong after 9 yrs my stock R1100S with occasional use of a Battery Tender Jr. Not sure what the hubbub is about...

Have you read the documentation on your PC680? The hubbub is about the manufacturer's specifications which are different to the battery our bikes came with. Early death of an Odyssey battery is not likely to happen due to under charging however what you do get is reduced capacity and more sulfation which will inevitably lead to reduced life. Now that said, of course nine years is great when compared to other chemistries out there but if you were in a situation where you needed to crank the bike for a long time or repeatedly over a long time due to starting problems or whatever you would not have all the capacity that battery is capable of.
 
Panasonic battery. 7 years and counting. $99.00 Cdn. On a Tender Jr. unless its being ridden or I'm on a trip. I feel like the odd man out here. :)
 
Panasonic battery. 7 years and counting. $99.00 Cdn. On a Tender Jr. unless its being ridden or I'm on a trip. I feel like the odd man out here. :)

+1 - not at all. I have great results with the Panasonic AGM batteries. 28AH models in my Airheads, they go 6 years or more, still showing 12.8 resting volts when I change them out just to be safe. 20AH version in my Oilhead. I was getting 2-3 years, but now I've been using the BatteryMinder charger which has the desulfation mode and I'm coming up on 3 years with no sign of weakness.
 
Another Odyssey battery fan

Okay then... enjoy your hubbub. I'll apply the 9 plus years of real world experience with the battery and remain hubbub free....

My Odyssey has been in my 2002 R1150RT for about 8 years with no problems. The battery has withstood maybe 3 full (accidental) discharges with a full recovery after recharging with a stock BMW charger (circa 2002).
BTW, I recently sent my Sargent seats back to Sargent for "Refurbish". I instructed Sargent to install the heating elements in the Rider and Pillion seats while they were putting new covers on the seats. Reading this battery/charging system info has me thinking about upgrading to a higher voltage charger and VR. A Gerbing jacket, heated grips, and two heated seats may justify the added V x I = W.
 
As a postscript to this thread, I have now updated the voltage regulator to the 14.5V one. I had to have the tank off to rewire my Hall Effect Sensor, so I went further, removed the ECU and ABS modular unit and pulled the alternator in order to change the VR. So the PC680 will be getting the proper charging voltage while riding!
 
I instructed Sargent to install the heating elements in the Rider and Pillion seats while they were putting new covers on the seats. Reading this battery/charging system info has me thinking about upgrading to a higher voltage charger and VR. A Gerbing jacket, heated grips, and two heated seats may justify the added V x I = W.

The juice for all equipment needs to come from alternator amps, not battery charger volts.
 
The juice for all equipment needs to come from alternator amps, not battery charger volts.

Although you’re correct that the power comes from the alternator while the engine is running, if Jsouth increases the voltage regulator’s setpoint to 14.7V from 14.0V, the power delivered to a resistively heated jacket or pair of gloves will increase by 10% (P=V*V/R).
 
Although you’re correct that the power comes from the alternator while the engine is running, if Jsouth increases the voltage regulator’s setpoint to 14.7V from 14.0V, the power delivered to a resistively heated jacket or pair of gloves will increase by 10% (P=V*V/R).

Just want to point out that the Pathblazer headlight modulator from Kisan Electronics has a maximum voltage in their product manual - 14.5 volts. I recently had a problem with a faulty battery in my Airhead. Part of the problem also showed as voltage spikes getting past the regulator. They showed on a digital volt meter as 14.8 - 14.9 volts. When I was done replacing the battery and voltage regulator, the installed Pathblazer modulator had failed. Kisan was great and offered a discount to me on a replacement modulator. It is possible that other electrical accessories might have problems running with high voltage or reduced lifespan.
 
That means that the Kisan won’t work with motorcycles that have a regulator designed for an agm battery which is most of the r1200 bikes. IMO parts that go into vehicles should be able to withstand the voltage spike produced by disconnecting the battery cable (>>20V) on a running engine. Sadly that isn’t always the case.
 
Although you’re correct that the power comes from the alternator while the engine is running, if Jsouth increases the voltage regulator’s setpoint to 14.7V from 14.0V, the power delivered to a resistively heated jacket or pair of gloves will increase by 10% (P=V*V/R).

Roger, I would never pretend to know this stuff as well as you do, but I took his comment to mean "in order to have the power to run additional loads", and not "to run them with higher heat output". Increasing the voltage regulator setpoint will take the battery to a higher state of charge, make lights brighter and make heaters hotter - but only so long as there is sufficient alternator capacity to produce the resultant watts. If he outruns the alternator's capacity, the voltage will not build even with the voltage regulator fully "on".
 
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