Starting Issue

[dungbug]

Evening gents, I had some trouble starting the bike this morning. I gave it just over half choke (as normal), fired her up and she stalled...This was my fault as I didn't give it some throttle when it fired, for some reason it prefers this (?). So I tried to start it and she wouldn't fire, starter was turning over like it should but wouldn't fire up. After less than a minute of trying the starter wen very slow and then to a stop, I guessed the battery had run out of juice. So the missus gave me a lift to work, came home tonight to remove the battery and give it a charge to see if a flat/going flat battery was the problem. I thought I'd try and start her up and she fired first time Switched her off and tried again and she fired up straight away without any hesitation.

I've taken the battery off to give it a charge overnight but I'm not wondering if something else was the cause. It was quite cold and damp here last night so I'm not sure if that could be the cause, if anyone has any suggestions/things to check I'd be very grateful. The bike in question is a 1998 Yamaha 600 Thundercat, thanks in advance.
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CBT: Pass 25/06/2011 Theory Test: Pass12/06/2012 Mod 1: Fail 08/07/2012
Mod 1 Retest: Pass 15/0702012 Mod 2: Pass 03/08/2012
Suzuki GN125 (Sold) ~ Current bike: Yamaha YZF 600R Thundercat

[ZaphodBeeble]

Sounds like it was a cold battery on a cold morning. It recovered during the day. Get a multimeter and test the voltage.
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Current bike: VTR1000F Firestorm. Previous: Firestorm (written off) - XJ600 Divvy - NSR125 - DT125 and a load of offroaders.

[dungbug]

Cheers fella, I've heard that a good battery can recover but didn't really believe it until tonight when she fired up. I've got the battery on charge and will leave it on a trickle charge overnight, what sort of voltage should I see when the bike is running (at the battery connections)? Also anyway of preventing this from happening again? The bike lives outside under a cover at night.
____________________
CBT: Pass 25/06/2011 Theory Test: Pass12/06/2012 Mod 1: Fail 08/07/2012
Mod 1 Retest: Pass 15/0702012 Mod 2: Pass 03/08/2012
Suzuki GN125 (Sold) ~ Current bike: Yamaha YZF 600R Thundercat

[ZaphodBeeble]

You should be seeing about 13V when idling, up to 14.5V when revving the engine. I don't think there's much you can do about it if the bike is kept outside. It could be a weak/old battery so perhaps replacing the battery might help. It's worth checking the voltages first before jumping to any conclusions though.
____________________
Current bike: VTR1000F Firestorm. Previous: Firestorm (written off) - XJ600 Divvy - NSR125 - DT125 and a load of offroaders.

[dungbug]

Cheers fella, I'll check he voltages & connections over the weekend & report back. Cheers.
____________________
CBT: Pass 25/06/2011 Theory Test: Pass12/06/2012 Mod 1: Fail 08/07/2012
Mod 1 Retest: Pass 15/0702012 Mod 2: Pass 03/08/2012
Suzuki GN125 (Sold) ~ Current bike: Yamaha YZF 600R Thundercat

[dungbug]

Gave the battery a charge (it said it was fully charged after 20 minutes or so of charging), so re-fitted the battery today. She fired up lovely, stuck a voltmeter on the battery terminals and Im getting a consistant ready of 14.25v.......I'd say it's charging fine (?)
____________________
CBT: Pass 25/06/2011 Theory Test: Pass12/06/2012 Mod 1: Fail 08/07/2012
Mod 1 Retest: Pass 15/0702012 Mod 2: Pass 03/08/2012
Suzuki GN125 (Sold) ~ Current bike: Yamaha YZF 600R Thundercat

[ZaphodBeeble]

Sounds about right. If I was you I'd check it again in a few days and then once a week until you're sure it's sorted.
____________________
Current bike: VTR1000F Firestorm. Previous: Firestorm (written off) - XJ600 Divvy - NSR125 - DT125 and a load of offroaders.

[dungbug]