Battery Tender

[wlselph]

I did a search on the site about battery tenders. Where do most people run the connector? Just let it hang out from behind the plastic panel or is there some nifty way I haven't heard about? Thanks.

 

[elektradw]

I have a female plug for my electric jacket that taps directly off the battery. The wire follows the channel to the edge of and sticks out past the side cover. I adapted my battery tender to conveniently fit this plug. Works great for both.

 

[rcannon409]

If you look at the battery box there is a perfect channel running out of it.  Call it the top edge, towards the front of the bike.  From there, its very easy to tuck it under the foam pieces when not in use. No damaged or pinched wires this way.  Mine will also run my slime air compressor, so keeping it accessible is not a bad idea.

 

[Cap'n Bob]

I brought mine out the bottom of the battery box. It hangs near the right side swing arm. Never got in the way and was easy to plug the BT in.

 

[mcgyver74]

Comes out the right side of the bike next to the battery box...

 

[thedugger]

Here's a nifty way.  Scroll down to the Power Socket install.

http://forum.cog-online.org/index.php/topic,28322.0.html

Maybe it's more work than you were after, but it's clean, serves two purposes and looks stock.
Hope it helps you.

 

[JJPSUPERDAD]

We have ours also coming right out by the battery box works well.

 

[wlselph]

Thanks for all the suggestions.

 

[wally_games]

Kawi dealer installed the pigtail from my old bike, but hated how he had it running between all the panels. I moved it so that only the plug is visible.

 

[Mininsx]

I put the hook part of Velcro on the inside of the body panel and the fuzzy part on the BT pigtail. It's out of sight and won't move that way.

 

[fartymarty]

I put mine out of sight under the seat, seems like an obvious location to me. I mean if you need it on a tender it's because it's going to be sitting awhile right?
The seat comes off easily so why have the cord hanging out all the time? Even if you need it for the air compressor, is taking the seat off too much work?
I know I sort of worded that like a know-it-all, didn't mean to sound that way :-[, but is there a reason
to keep it on a tender on a daily basis if you are going to be using it in less than a week or two?

 

[zg]

Tucks nicely into the plastic and out of site when not in use...

 

[kawimick]

is there a reason
to keep it on a tender on a daily basis if you are going to be using it in less than a week or two?

Yes, the battery will be healthier if it lives on the Tender full time.  I've been getting 6-7 years out of my car batteries (in AZ, that is unheard of) and 4-5 years for my bike batteries.

I installed a pair of Powerlet sockets on a homemade bracket, fused at 15A each:

Mick

 

[thedugger]

I have always understood that keeping your battery on trickle charger is a good thing.  It was confirmed today while reading the October issue of Motorcyclist Magazine.  It explained that parts on your bike wear out, usually in a direct correlation to use, like tires, brakes and such.  Batteries are the opposite.  It's the lack of use or long periods between use that hurts the battery.  Something about an idle battery will sulfate and reduce life.  It was clear from the article to use a trickle charger whenever possible.  I plug my bike in while it sits in the garage and have done this over the years with all of my bikes, it's not uncommon for me to get 4-5 years from a battery.  It's important to note that you need a smart trickle charge, that is to say something that will regulate power going to the battery. 

 

[rcannon409]

I put the battery tenser jr's on everythign nowadays.  Granted, its not like I have 50 batteries, but the original batter on my 2003 sv 650 is as good as new.  Another advantage is you no longer need to remove the battery for the winter.  I have not had oen freeze whne its charged. This makes it really easy to go for  amid January ride.