[MarcS]

Out today and for the 1st time ever, the bike wouldn't start..... 11.4 volts .... Grabbed my pocket booster and hooked up to the terminals and TaDa!!! Vroom vroom restored... No idea why it happened, but glad I had the stuff to fix it👍 I HIGHLY recommend carrying one of these things!!!!!

 

[Terronaut]

Marc, good for you! I was just thinking about your boost point thread yesterday - hopped on my bike, rode a short distance to the store, parked it, and it took about 6-7 clicks of the starter button to get it to fire back up. I have NO DOUBT this bike is going to strand me somewhere soon, and am thinking of putting boost points on somewhere. My dealer recommended that I "plug the bike into a battery tender every day" which only pisses me off - it's not a Tesla for crying out loud . For an "adventure bike" this is ridiculous - but glad to see your workaround - I can't imagine being way out in the sticks somewhere and not being able to start a bike that has a "dead" 7 month old battery.

 

[Terronaut]

Out today and for the 1st time ever, the bike wouldn't start..... 11.4 volts .... Grabbed my pocket booster and hooked up to the terminals and TaDa!!! Vroom vroom restored... No idea why it happened, but glad I had the stuff to fix it👍 I HIGHLY recommend carrying one of these things!!!!!

Hey Marc - I have built a bracket and am going to install boost points on my bike when I get some garage time. From what I understand, it's not advisable to use a car/truck to jump start a motorcycle with an automobile/truck it could possibly fry the ECM (I presume too many amps?). If that's the case, I wonder what is the max amperage of these portable starters that can be used on a motorcycle (or more specifically in this case "on the Pan America")? I am looking at some that are around 700 peak amps, and I see others that are up to a whopping 3000 amps (and of course these are way too large to tote around on a bike anyway). I think the Rockford Pocket Power in your pics is a 400A unit... question is, is there any spec out there for maximum amperage on the Pan America? Thanks -

 

[MarcS]

The amp rating is just how much it can supply. The bike will only draw what it needs👍

 

[Terronaut]

Thanks- and yeah I kind of wondered about that. I mentioned adding the boost points to my dealership the other day (after getting it serviced and discussing battery drain) and the service advisor specifically said "DON'T jump it with a car, you could fry the ECM". That didn't make much sense since they're both 12V systems, and as you said, the system will only take what it needs. Anyway - thanks again, I'll post some pics of my bracket and boost points after I install them. Cheers -

 

[MarcS]

🤣🤣 Yaaaaaaaa...... That's not how electricity works.....

 

[Bushman]

When they say don't jump a bike off a car or truck etc.,they mean don't do it with the "donor" vehicle's engine running or indeed you can fry the bike's electrics due to the much higher output of a car or trucks charging system which, if connected to your bike will be trying to charge that as well. It's much better practice to jump start off of just a battery by connecting it and letting it equalise for a few minutes and then trying the bike's starter

 

[Terronaut]

Excellent point, thanks Bushman.

 

[MarcS]

I'm sorry but that's not accurate either. There's voltage, and amperage. The 12 volt system on your bike is designed to run the same voltage ranges as your 12 volt car or truck. Amperage is regulated by the alternator and will only produce what's needed. If the donor car is idling and producing 14.5 volts, your bike battery can take it because your bike produces that as well. There are also fuses and relays involved to isolate and protect circuits from excessive amperage. You can use a 12V dual battery diesel truck with 2000 cca of batteries to boost a Honda with 400. Same principle...

 

[Terronaut]

Interesting Marc, thanks. Just to err on the side of caution, I'd probably still leave the igntion on my F-350 in the OFF position if attempting to jump my bike! 😁

 

[MarcS]

Hahahahahaha, yeah if your truck has to be running to boost your bike, you have bigger problems 🤣

 

[Terronaut]

Indeed! 😝