heavy handed rac chap..

[He11cat]

Just went to fit my connectors for my heated gloves as need the monster this week , I had to use the RAC a little while ago.. (yup I am useless) and he was quite a big guy.
He has tightened my battery terminal screws so tight I can't budge them... Ive had everything on them but admit I am not very strong in my hands and they are sore from decorating.
Screws won't budge and bike now can't start!
Battery now flat... can't get it off.:nash:

I really get fed up with people who stupidly tighten stuff is a pet hate of mine.
Jars and wine bottles are frustrating enough when you have tiny hands like mine..
Some one airgunned my tank on the other bike and I can't budge that!

Went to charge the Suzi up and only went and dropped the little square thing in terminal in the garden and lost it. so that won't screw down either.
Asked the garage if they had some spare no... but you can buy another battery .. er I just got this one 6 months ago!

I think I may have to get an optimate thigmy then I have the problem that I would have to run cable from the house to the bike which is a fair few feet away..

Also I need to run my nav and my heated gloves off my battery terminals I can't see how I can run all that off a battery.. this is going to mean everytime I go out I am going to have to take stuff off the terminals isnt it??? ie the optimate stuff to get the nav stuff on??:mad:

I am very sad and monsterless and the prospect of a 30 mile trip in the dark on my 125 with the headlight thats like a candle down the country lanes not good lol.. and no heated gloves!!!

[MrsC_772]

If you get the Optimate connectors put on your battery terminals, then if you put the right sort of plug on the cables for other kit (e.g. satnav) you can run it off the battery through the Optimate connector. Should be possible to plug a Y shaped cable into the Optimate connector, and then have both a satnav and heated grips off it at the same time.

The other half has got a rather convoluted set-up on his Fazer, with attachments for optimate, satnav, heated grips and Autocom, various bits of wire tidily tucked away under the tank and seat - but he's an electronic engineer and therefore happy with all the soldering and wiring business.

If by some misfortune you find yourself in the Farnborough area, Andy might be wiling to do wiring in exchange for cookies.

[big pete]

HC if you can pour some hot water over your terminals and then try slackening them. Its probably a 6mm bolt as well so the head will be 10mm , get a socket nd ratchet on it and try that (just go easy!)

[Capo]

Are you using a screwdriver or a spanner?
The square thing is the nut, it is somewhat captive in the terminal and requires a bit of fiddling for it to fall out. They are a special item and come with the battery, perhaps someone here has one on an old battery???

As suggested the optimate connector can be used as a power source it is even fused. I havn't been able to identify the plug so I don't know where you could get one.

I take it you don't have a shed.

[Stafford]

I've a spare nut somewhere if you need one HC.

[He11cat]

Ive had a ratchet , a spanner and screwdriver on the screws ... no joy...
Not happy!!!

Can you buy the wiring y shaped bit for the bike???
I am a bit reluctant to having stuff properly wired into the bike after its alarm fiasco.. (previous to when I had it.. but looked through its history and it kept cropping up again and again and seeing as he is happy I don't want to upset the electrics again as a long way up to norfolk and van hire isn't cheap!!

The nut is from my other bike... yup I cocked up to battery's in one day... lost the nut looked everywhere ..nope... and the monster stuck terminals fiasco..

If I chuck a towel around the battery you reckon a bit of hot water on the screws??? I see the principle as I do the same with jars under a hot tap! lol...im not going fry anything am I Pete??? This is me we are talking about!!.. I don't want a pile of moulton gloop that was my bike lol!! :dizzy:

[He11cat]

yes please to the nut Stafford .. happy to cover cost of nut and postage .. thats would be one problem solved!

Capo yup usually captive but for some reason this bike and my yam nuts are not.. one battery I have holds the nuts in with bits on the side so they can't fall out this one no.

The kat battery which is 6 months old nothing holding the nuts in at all.. basically they just fall out nothing at all to hold them in except when you screw them down. I walked down the garden in semi darkness and it just fell out.

Oh fantastic I also need a battery screw now... I don't believe this.. I think its 8mm 9mm head if anyone has one kicking about longer then a 12mm long thread under the head to bottom of the bolt I would be most thankful..
I lost a nut and a screw .. someone please hit me round the head with a wrench and this is why I should never be allowed to do DIY or anything mechanical.. hopeless..

But I can cook mean cupcakes!!

[Capo]

http://www.accumate.co.uk/it020006.htm

[MrsC_772]

Not sure about buying Y-shaped bits of wire.

If nobody on the forum has a spare battery bolt/screw, www.stagonset.co.uk sells individual nuts and bolts and screws.

I used to keep dropping the square nut things from the battery on my old Bandit when I used to take it out to charge it. They'd always fall into inaccessible crevices on the bike.

[gary tompkins]

As others have mentioned - you can fit an optimate connecter lead to the battery. The charger kit's come with on included but you can also buy spare's when needed. Maplins also sell a male connector which matched the female optimate plug. I bought one a few months ago to replace the trashed one on my old charger. It comes with short flying leads, so it just needs soldering and heat shrinking. Would be a handy way of connecting & powering accessories like sat nav too.

http://www.accumate.co.uk/it010003.html

http://www.maplin.co.uk/Module.aspx?ModuleNo=1397

[gremlin]

optimate connectors are available from maplins, they are a standard radio-controlled model battery connector. the only difference is that the wires are back to front for an optimate, so red goes to - and black to +

[hhmunro]

When you get all the bits together again, why not wrap some insulating tape around the terminal,that will stop the captive nut from falling out?

[gary tompkins]

optimate connectors are available from maplins, they are a standard radio-controlled model battery connector. the only difference is that the wires are back to front for an optimate, so red goes to - and black to +


Err.. that would be the one's I linked to in post #10 then?

Pretty sure +/- colours worked out ok for my optimate - but I can double check

[Albie]

Once removed and you put it back together smear vaseline over the bolts to stop any corossion too. May help next time

[Stuart42]

I know this'll sound daft, but try tigtening it just a bit then have another go.

If not put a screwie in the slot and tap with a hammer, this sometimes helps with corroded bolts but may help here too?

Cheers
Stuart

[big pete]

lol, no youll not melt anyting HC. In fact boiling water is what you use to get rid of battery verdigris on the terminals.

[He11cat]

Ok after much cursing and wrenching I got battery off.

Noticed my one is starting to leak from the cells so thought not worth charging and having acid get on the bike.
Went and got a new one and was recommended this..
Motobatt Quadflex 20% more cranking power then standard sealed unit no acid to spill.
low discharge rate , no initail charge required , install and go (well thats what I want!!)

I am a bit of a dimmy when it comes to stuff but I can fit a battery ...or so I thought.

Looked at the terminals and went to screw my bike connecters on and ?????

the bit you screw your bike connection in to is at the side with no nut.. this l shaped bit of metal is then screwed into the battery..I can't twist my leads round to reach to screw it in at all.

I am not the sharpest tool in the box .. but even taking off the l shaped brass gold bracket and turning it round and taking the side screw out I can't get it to fit!!

I am trying.. and would rather ask a stupid question and get a decent answer then sit and look stupid all by myself.:cry:

I showed someone on here as well and he says he has not seen this either.. what the hell have I been sold.. (a food mixer ???)..lol

Ok maybe if I unscrew the L shaped bracket take out the side screw then screw the bike connector down on to the battery.. no that does not work.
Again took out the side screw and then butted up the L shape metal bit side on to the battery so it should slide over the top so the two holes match up as it does in a normal battery then screw down.
No the bracket touches the side way before it can even sit over the screw hole to be screwed down .

Il pop some pictures on so you can see.. £61 battery .. and I can't see how it fits! I have a bad feeling I won't have a leg to sand on taking it back.. and thats a lot of money for me to loose and then have no bike and no battery!!

[He11cat]

I wasn't going mad ... they forgot to put the proper brackets in the box !!! lol