Battery going south?

Ok.
I'm not sure what the problem is exactly.
Maybe the battery is going south????

I've recently swapped out ALL wiring for the charging portion of the Harness
New stator and R/R as well.
(though I DID NOT replace battery- only recharged it after R/R failed)

The bike ran really strong for about two weeks (steady 14.8v)
Though over the last 2 weeks the voltage seems to be dropping slowly????

Week 3 - Running 14.5v at speed (at 5k+ rpm)
week 4 - Running 14.3v at speed

today when riding to work it was 13.8v - 14.1v, though after running down the highway for a while it peaked at 14.3v steady for the remainder of the ride.

I have tendered the battery on a trickler as well over the course of this time every couple of days.
Is the battery just not holding a charge correctly?

Seems like even if I charge it, its just slowly getting worse as in not holding the charge anymore...

Suggestions? Thanks.

 

I was gonna say something smart like it looks like you have a leak, and should pump it up, but I wont.

 

You might have a bad cell in the battery. I'd say take it and have it tested. If it tests ok, then make sure all the connections are good and clean and that there are no signs of wires turning crispy even though the wiring in the charging system has been replaced.

 

Thanks Vinny,

I think I've ruled that one out. i took the plastics off last night and inspected all the connections (Right after I came home on the bike...bike still warm)
The stator coonection & wires weren't even warm, let alone burnt.
Same with the R/R plug and wires (tight connections and good wiring)

I'm leaning toward the idea that it must be the battery, or maybe I have a slight leak to ground somewhere?
but all Neg (-) connections seem to be in order and clean....

Salvo Auto Parts said they cant do a load test on batteries.
I will have to try a different auto store this evening....maybe NTB since the specialize in bateries and such.

Thanks.

 

If it starts good when cold and when hot, I wouldn't worry about it. A motorcycle battery is 12v, so why are you worried about a 13.8v reading? At rest, a 12v motorcycle battery should read 12.5-12.7v.

 

Thanks for all the opinions and info.

I guess I'm just anal when it comes to the charging system.
I have had many problems with this bike over the last 2 seasons, and been stranded on more than one occassion (once this year already)

So, I had the vattery load tested, came back just ok. Said it could possibly have one cell starting to go bad but no way to tell yet.
Second, I added a second wire from the neg(-) battery post to ground.
This should help with some of the load. I dont know whay I haven't done this yet, as I know I've read this in a couple of places.

Guess what, add second ground- voltage back up to 14.8 steady at speed both last night and this morning 40 miles to work.
looks like all is well with the VFR now.

-S