Devilrey

This is more of a product review/installation procedure:

Lately, I've been fine tuning my carbs a lot in pursuit of extracting as many horsepower as I can out of this little 250 Kawi engine. However, every time I pressed the starter button after swapping several mainjets, needle height position, etc. it drained the battery a lot--you can just hear it suck the life out of the OEM battery and see the gauge dashlight dim with every restart.

I then remembered there was a vendor who made aftermarket batteries that not only was stronger in terms of amp output and longevity but it also weighed 6-7 lbs less compared to the OEM battery--for those who are looking for more power in terms of speed, shaving off weight is key.

I have one installed in my 2009 CBR600RR but I wasn't sure if the vendor made one for the Kawasaki Ninja250R. I asked the vendor and he said the batteries are compatible with all bikes and makes.

So, I ordered one and here is my review/installation procedure.

This is what comes in the package: a 4 cell battery, 1 connector, and 2 heat shrinking sleeve.







According to the vendor

Quote:

what you get is a 4 cell pack putting out 120amps. with a weight of about 13.5 ounces with the connector.

However my weight scale displayed 14.9 ounces but mine could be slightly off or his could be. Still it's VERY minimal and not worth arguing over.




Our OEM battery weighs in at 6 lbs and 1.5 ounces. Compared to the Moty Design Battery's at 14.9 ounces, our battery is FAT & HEAVY! I basically just shaved off 5-6 lbs.


Instead of trying to explain to you guys how these batteries are better I'm just going to quote the questions ask and the vendor responses:

Q: Can you use battery tenders/chargers on these?

A: Yes, battery tenders are JUST fine!! BUT your battery tender is now obsolete, they require truly NO maintenance. Pull them off the bike in the fall, plug them in in the spring...thats it!


Q: Are these batteries meant as a race battery or are these being used as replacements for the original battery as well?

A: Yes use them as original replacements or race. The cells are designed to last longer. The 4 cell will push a 55w head light for like 35 min, LEDs only you could do a few hours and it would still crank over. <---I believe he's talking about the ignition set at the "ON" position with the bike's engine completely turned off.


On with the installation!

It's pretty straight forward.

Just unscrew the 3 screws here:



Disconnet the battery terminals:


Take out the nut from the battery:


Slip the heat shrinking wrap over the wires on the connector:


Then screw the connector to the battery terminal that's on the bike: Personally I like to place a towel over the battery tray just in case I drop a screw/nut. If you dropped a nut/screw around the engine bay you know exactly what I mean by what a PITA it is to get it out.



Grab your hair dryer and heat the heat shrinking sleeve over the two leads. Your home hair dryer is probably not strong enough to shrink the sleeves. You may have to get an industrial heat dryer from Home Depot or any home improvement stores.




If you don't want to spend the money you can just zip-tie the ends like I did.



Now connect the connector to the battery.


Place the battery anywhere, any position you like. You're done!



The battery cost me $150. Though that may sound a bit high our OEM batteries cost close to $100 but I believe you can find aftermarket ones for less. But problems with those is you're back to square one--it drains just fast as the stock ones even when you charge it. At least from my experience they have.

Maybe he'll lower the price for a group buy...I don't know.

This is just an alternative for those in the same situation as I am and/or for those who are preoccupied with other stuff and the bike's just sitting.

Any questions feel free to ask. I'll try my best to answer them but again I don't know the science behind these batteries.

If you want you can contact the seller here: bharris@motydesign.com

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boredazhell20

whoa that thing is tiny!.. any negative consequences with using this type of battery?

tkno

Nice job, 5 lbs less is definitely a start.

Those heat shrink tubes seem to be a little too large for the job???

Being that it is quite a bit smaller, I wonder if there would be a better way to mount the battery, as opposed to just flopping around in the Original Battery box. Maybe a couple pieces of Styrofoam on either side of it to secure it a little better?

williamr

The battery has a very small capacity. The quoted 120A is a measure of how much current it can feed to the starter at its maximum. The capacity is a measure of how much, and for how long. Typically these batteries can only supply their maximum output for a few seconds at a time, and are drained after a total of 90 seconds cranking - I think they're about 4AH, while the stock battery is 10AH?.

Weight saving is just about 5 lbs, but weight has no effect on speed, and 5 lbs will have only a little effect on acceleration. For that, you're running with a dangerously low battery capacity. Do lots of short trips and you might not have enough reserve to start the engine. If it fails to start first time on a cold morning you might not have enough for a second attempt. Manufacturers have good reason not to fit <4AH as stock on a road bike, although they're fine for the track. 4AH batteries are fitted as stock usually on 'peds, where the main lighting is ac and puts no draw on the battery.

The OEM battery is much better, although bigger and heavier. If your's isn't, that's because it's fucked. No reason why you couldn't wire a pair of these in parallel though, to restore the capacity. That might be worth doing.

Rob

Devilrey

I don't know...you could be right. However, from my experience (dozens of batteries and not just the batteries used in Kawasaki) trying to start the bike after a mainjet/needle height adjustment it does drain the battery with every start. Perhaps "drain" is the wrong choice of word to use. But you get the idea.

The weight saving is 5lbs but add to the fact that I'm running race bodywork, parts here & there removed for racing, and it all adds up and in the end it is effective.

You do bring up some good points I'm curious to know myself. Let me invite the seller and let's ask him all the questions.

But from my experience (on a bigger bike--600cc) and others on a similar size engine riding streets/track it has not been an issue. Not that I know of...yet.

Food for thought?

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Devilrey

It does look like it may flop around but trust me when I say it's not. It's really secure inside the battery tray because the connectors want to straighten out but can't because of how I placed the battery. Hope that makes sense. Also, the seat will cover it.

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barmaley

I think the stock battery is actually 6ah, *i think*.
The weight saving of 5lbs is phenomenal! Combined with a a lighter exhaust, fender and air-box removed that will be close to 20lbs which def matters on such a little engine. Besides making it a little richer down low, reducing the weight would be the second most effective improvement an average 250 rider can do to the bike.
Even with a light 120lb person in the back, the bike needs extra 2-3k rpm to try to match up to the acceleration it would have without the extra rider. I can feel a difference between a full tank of gas and an empty one (doesn't even movejk) it accelerates tad better and feels even more nimble and just overall easier to handle. That's ~25lbs of gas - (6lb/gal*4)

But good god, couldn't they just add extra 2 cells to that thing or something? it would fit snug in the compartment and leave you feeling less worried about being stuck 50mi away from house or...
Also 150$ for 5lb less weight is ouch. Wonder if there is one for a little cheaper, eventually one would need a new battery someday, just get a lighter one!

dbhughes1981

How do you charge this battery? With a standard 12V battery charger, or do you have to use a special charger?

Devilrey

That's the thing, no charger necessary.

I believe what he means (and I'm not 100% sure) is that these batteries are not likely to lose it's charge like the standard OEM batteries do when you winterize or don't ride your bike for a long period. Though I could be wrong and he does literally mean they're obsolete. IDK.

But what I do know is our bike charges the battery while riding so maybe in that sense he meant a battery tender/charger isn't really necessary.

For example, I stored my 600cc bike for 2 & 1/2 months without a battery charger/tender. On 2/14/10, the bike started right up on it's first crank using his battery. Granted 2 & 1/2 isn't all that long but for a Ninja250R it is.

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randomwalk101

the seller name I think is Brian Harris (brownbuck) from 600rr.net. Good guy.
He's in Utah I think. He does crazy work on gear indicator integration.

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