Life of the Party

I took up the popular "battery conversion" for my R.  I hadn't yet experienced Sudden Battery Death but my battery was approaching three years in age and was audibly weaker and cranking slower. This issue has been on my mind for awhile and I had requested Mr. Oilburner make jumper cables for my bike that are permanently mounted under the seat.  But I finally decided I would rather lose a few months of life and money from the battery then to be stranded.  So armed with battery replacement opinions from the forums, and conversion instructions, I ordered the Odyssey PC535 and went about installing it.

Removing original battery tie down.

Removing the plastic rivets, making it possible to remove/bend/replace mounting bracket.

Cutting notches into the fins making it possible to squeeze the battery between the seat posts.

After the tie down bracket was hammered out and refit, still need a washer of sorts to make up its shortcoming.

In all, the conversion was extremely easy thanks to a couple hardy souls that documented it for the rest of us. The battery sounds strong and turns the bike over quickly and easily.  I only had one confused moment on the Alabama ride when the bike repeatedly stalled.  The problem existed more between handlebar and seat when the operator continued shifting into first with the kickstand down...