Battery life project update

[qqbs]

In September of '99 I purchased a $32.00usd Walmart battery for my '83 immediatly prior to a 5000 mile/15 day camping trip to Southern California.  The battery was properly serviced and charged before being placed in the bike.  Very soon after my return from SoCal I purchased $24.00usd Battery Tender Jr. and permenently installed a quick connect for it on the bike.  Since then I have carefully monitored the batterys' water level and always kept the Battery Tender hooked up to the bike.  Standard procedure has been (and remains) that as soon as the bike hits center stand in the garage, the Tender is connected.  Using this protocol, the bike has never failed to crank or start even after sitting unused for three weeks and then being started in the 31 degree F. garage.

Weekend before last I was on a Friday afternoon tight schedual to get out of town for a rally in the Texas Hill Country.  The bike started as usual in the garage and I headed for a gas station.  After fueling the bike started as usual and then quit as soon as I put it in gear.  After putting up the side stand, I started it again, once again it quit when placed in gear.  Thinking that I was experiancing a replay of my recently resolved corroded off / on rocker switch, I worked the switch back and forth and continued to attempt cranking.  The bike was acting very strange.  Then all electrical responses ceased.  Nothing worked at all.  No lights.  No horn. Nada period.

A check of the main fuse showed it to be intact.  A direct short across the battery poles produced no sparks at all.  The battery was stone cold dead.

This is the second time on this bike that a battery has suddenly and without warning totally failed.  The first one was about seven years ago.  It was a one year old high dollar yuasa.

A call to the local Yamaha shop and my riding buddy got me another yuasa ($58.95 usd), that due to the shops' incompetance and my tight schedual was placed into service with no proper initilization charging.  We'll see how long this one lasts.  Cheers.

[qqbs]

Post Script:  Sorry I forgot to include this in the above post.  The bike ran flawlessly for the rest of the 739 mile weekend. Never missing a beat or showing any sign of other than perfect performance.

[Lucky]

QBS, I think the obvious question is when was the last time you did a Stator on the bike? are your connectors still intact? did you add a second ground to the regulator?  since it was ok the rest of the trip, it's probably nor charging system related, but i'm thinking.. Texas...Heat...poss something that shows itself only when the bike is REALLY hot.  like a solder trace in the reg/rec opening up under extreeme heat conditions... or the battery plates buckling from the heat...
(might be a good argument to use with the Mrs for an air conditioner in the garage, lol)
Do you have a volt meter installed in the fairing? (I have a 2" Suntune voltmeter, and an oil pressure guage)
--Lucky