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Hi all, and I`m sorry if this has been covered before, but any recommendations for a replacement battery for my 2000 SP1?
I gather the stock item is a YTX12BS or equivalent. I am looking at a Motobatt sealed AGM battery from Busters but it is equivalent to a CTX9BS.
Any thoughts would be appreciated. Cheers
Tim

It always pays to get the better battery, i boght a cheap one and replaced it within a year, then payed £70 for a Yuasa and still ok 2 years on but it does lose umph after a time. Sorry i cant be more specific about which one as im not with the bike ATM but i am looking at these.

http://www.carrotcycles.co.uk/SHORAI-PO ... _1551.html

Pricey i know but reviews are excellent and give better starting current life. Im actually looking at the next one up which is 18ah for £156 and for engines with HC pistons in but the one above is advertised for the standard SP. They are also a lot lighter than standard.

Worth a look

This is the Shorai 18Ah battery compared to the Yuasa 12Ah.
The width and height are practically the same, only the Shorai is about 20mm thinner.
The box contains the battery, bolts and nuts for the posts, and adhesive backed foam pieces to adapt the batter to the battery box.
Weight of the Shorai 18Ah is 2.19 lbs (.997 Kg) over 9 lbs (4 kg) for the Yuasa.
For everyday use, I heartily suggest the 18 Ah over the 12 Ah Shorai for additional start current in colder weather.

comprehensive answer as ever SubSailor I take it you have fitted one and if so are they as good as they say and have you found it necessary buy a specific charger for it as well being as you cant use conventional trickle chargers on these?

Thanks both for your replies. Have looked into Shorai before and talked to the distributor at one of the bike shows. Lots of good things to say about them but a few things still put me off. Obviously the price is a major factor but also the fact that a standard trickle charger cannot be used ( and they obviously try to sell you the specific Shorai charger to go with it) but most of all I was told if you let the battery fully discharge charge then it was no longer recoverable and would need to be replaced.
I have gone for the Motobatt as a short term fix as it was a cheap option (if it gets me through the summer all well and good) but would still appreciate any more input on what others are using and happy with for a long term replacement.
Cheers
Tim

Actually, depending on the model (and that is important) you can use a battery tender/charger on the Shorai.
Here in the States, the Battery Tender is a popular smart trickle charger brand (I use one to maintain a charge on my old Yuasa).

According to Shorai, these chargers are safe to use with the Shorai battery as they don't have a desulphation mode.
Here's the link to Shorai's FAQ for other info.
http://www.shoraipower.com/t-faq.aspx

The Shorai isn't cheap, but I was buying it for weight loss, not for price.

turbo_billy wrote:Hi all, and I`m sorry if this has been covered before, but any recommendations for a replacement battery for my 2000 SP1?
I gather the stock item is a YTX12BS or equivalent. I am looking at a Motobatt sealed AGM battery from Busters but it is equivalent to a CTX9BS.
Any thoughts would be appreciated. Cheers
Tim

If you pay loads for a battery then you would want to keep it for years, but would you risk being somewhere and it dies coz you cant bump start an SP. Get a decent battery and change it every two years, they take a hammering in a bike especially an SP.

I'm still on my original battery. It's about seven years old now and still going strong.
I'd get another one the same instead of a little cheapy which probably wont get you through your first winter

The motobatt are a savage battery. Well worth the money.