The Optimate has an output of 0.6A and should keep your battery in good shape indefinitely. If the battery has become discharged then either the battery is faulty and needs replacing or there is a current drain on the battery.
Some of the more sophisticated high-current chargers can be used with the battery in-circuit becaue they are electronically limited to output no more than 14.5V. Cheaper ones basically consist of a transformer and bridge rectifier circuit and so the output can rise to 40V plus - in which case its possible to do damage to ECU's etc.
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I think I'll give it a miss then for now, my dad thinks that the charger he has is a basic 8A one with no scope for adjustment, and I really don't want to fry my ECU!
The Optimate is originally from my dad's old VFR which has now stood for about 7 years so we're fairly confident that it's battery is beyond saving plus a mouse has eaten the fuel lines so it won't be getting started again this decade most likely. I figured that the bike battery wouldn't be so different from my car's that it wouldn't work.
The battery itself is in very good condition (even starting the car after leaving it parked with the interior light on for 4 days) however before attaching the Optimate it had already been left standing for almost a month with the small draw from the clock, immobiliser etc. and so it had a chance to drain a little.
If I leave the Optimate on for long enough I think it will bring it back up to scratch, it has until April to do it. ;-)
Blue
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If you are really unsure then use jump leads across to a well charged battery and leave them connected for 30 minutes or so then disconnect the jump leads and connect your optimate which will kick in and slowly bring the battery upto full charge in a few days. Regards Peter
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Blue
If you have a voltmeter; you can use your dad's battery charger - just monitor it regularly and ensure that the voltage doesn't get above about 14.4v.
If you have access to suitable old parts, a headlamp bulb fitted in the return line to the charger will slow the charge rate considerably and make the need for monitoring less frequent.
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