Just a quickie to let you know about a handy little gizmo, that could help you from being stuck with a low/flat battery. The Sakura SS5300 Jump Starter Power Bank is a neat little battery starter that's small enough to take with you.......(as long as you have your compulsory Ducati rucksack on) !!!! It's about the size of an old "cassette personal stereo" (remember those before CD's etc)!!!!! At about £45+ depending on where you buy it from Amazon, eBay etc, it could get you out of the S**T and on your way again. Worth a look.... we've tried it on the 1098s and it spins the motor over no problem, so much so I've ordered another one to keep in my T5 as a back up. one for the rucksack & one for the VW. I saw a similar Jump Starter Power Bank at Thruxton BSB last year costing nearly 4 times as much, glad I waited now.
Saw something similar demonstrated at a bike show a couple years ago and it did seem incredible (It was £90 though) would be good to know how good it is regarding longevity so if you don't mind I will try and remember and ask you in a year or two.
I've got one sat on a shelf in the garage, wasn't to sure if it would have enough power for the T5 though and the instructions don't make it that clear if it will have the UMPH.
Just researched a 300a dbpower equivalent for £29 from Amazon and after reading a few dozen of the 189 buyer reviews (gets around 4.5 stars out of 5) I am hooked.
This is the one I bought recently: DBPOWER 300A Peak 8000mAh Portable Car Jump Starter: Amazon.co.uk: Electronics Had to use it twice over the winter, as I've not given the bike the TLC it deserves. Worked perfectly on both occasions, and still plenty of charge left.
I have the "Noco" version used it last week on a Proton 1.6 on 2 consecutive days did what it said it would. I decided to get mine after the 1098 failed in Belgium. 5 miles from Zeebrugge
I bought one for £30 from ebay a while ago. I keep it in the car for starting the ride on mower or just to help out if needed. I have used it a couple of times on cars with no problem. I was so impressed that I made a video at the time:
Nice Video. Not totally sure what the heck it has to do with powerpacks? <edit> Much better with the correct video Bob
Received the DBPower jump starter yesterday, with allegedly 8000 mAH. Charged it up by USB for a few hours as per the instructions. Disconnected the battery on the wife's car*, and connected the car solely to the DBPower device. Car started immediately from stone cold, no problem. Turned off, car started a second time just as easily. So despite how unfeasibly small, light, and cheap this device is, it evidently works as advertised. And it would be easy to carry in a tank bag, under the seat, in a top box, or even in my pocket. The one I bought is considerably smaller then the one in BobT's video. Now I'll leave it for a month, then try the same test again to see if it still works. I am becoming confident that it will. * Which has a 1000 cc three cylinder Toyota engine.
C can't help wondering how it might fare with something like a 2 litre diesel... Any chance of trying it?
If I happen to come across someone with a 2 litre diesel engine and a flat battery, I'll let you know.
I have a 2 litre diesel, but I can assure you that I am not going out and getting my hands dirty for the fun of it! Now if one of the bikes in the garage need something doing that is different. I have used it on the wifes BMW F800ST and on the neighbours 1600cc petrol and it does work on those.
I bought one of the anti gravity pp5 kits for 134 dollars last year . I tried it exactly the same as pete but on my toyota hi lux 3.0 liter diesel . Started straight up a few times. I left it on the shelf in the garage over winter for about 5 months it was still over 95% . Im amazed that the leads dont fry as they are only about 6 mill. I have a plug in kit on my 999R just in case .
Jumping Jack Superlite – Portable Jump Starter (petrol) & USB Charger, 7500mAh | eBay I asked the manufacturer if it was possible to use it in place of a battery for 3 20 minute track sessions, they didn't think so, not too sure why as it would only be feeding points ignition ... anyone hazard an explanation?