Someone mentioned to me the Ducati app that I can Bluetooth to my bike! Madness! So much has changed in 15 years since I last owned a bike. So looks like I need to look up Biketrac too cheers
This is the Tamiya Connector, I've just pulled the Optimate out of the cupboard, I now recall that the bike side got left on my VFR when I traded it (dumb move). However, this connector type is easy to find on eBay etc so making up your own shouldn't be a problem. You can, as I understand it, connect direct to the battery terminals. What I do have is the croc clip lead that came with it, this has the corresponding Tamiya connector. You could snip off those croc connectors, add some eyelets, attach to battery terminals being mindful of polarity (though the charger does have reverse polarity protection), and you should be good. IIRC the croc clips were off another charger and the polarity (according to the sleeves on the clips) is the wrong way around for the Optimate. Alternatively, one of these and one of these and you can plug straight into the Ducati diagnostics plug if you bike supports charging that way. If your bike already has an SAE connector then just buy the £7.99 adapter (check prices elsewhere, might be cheaper). If it already has a Tamiaya Connector then you don't need anything.
Do bear in mind that the one I'm offering here is an Optimate III, like the one below: This maybe the same as the one you already have. Have been using this up until a few months ago to keep the original regular battery from the MV topped up, so it does work.
My monster was hooked up to a ctek for 8 months after I smashed my wrist at work . The day came when I finally had enough strength in my arm to ride the beast again and it started first push of the button.
Do you need a special adapter to connect the ctek with the Ducati plug under the seat or can you simply connect it to the battery?
I got the dealer to connect the ctek lead directly to the battery before I picked the bike up. I’ve no idea if there’s a lead that fits the Ducati plug under the seat , but it would make it easier if there’s one available. Perhaps someone on here would know?
I found this cable under my seat. It’s got a nice rubber strap and when you remove he cover the yellow connector is revealed.
Amazon have the mxs 5.0 on offer, over £20 off, only £58 CTEK MXS 5.0 Fully Automatic Battery Charger (Charges, Maintains and Reconditions Car and Motorcycle Batteries) 12V, 5 Amp - UK Plug https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B00FC42HAA/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_avP8BbSPZ96JW
Last few Aldi chargers have been reduced to £8.99 at my local store today - waste no time if you want one!
BOING! £8.99!!!!!! Jumping on the bike now to pay a visit!! Are th we as good as the Optimate charges that ‘conditions’ and al that nonsense? And will I be able to get an adapter for them to fit my Ducati port or will I need to do an entire wire-up? It got me to thinking actually, there are some cool mini jump start kits out there, and I thought that’s a great little addition when I go traveling. From the research I have done so far there is no real way to use the existing (or a new) charge cable/port for a jump start (wires are to thin etc) and because the Nonster battery is so difficult to access (by that I mean it needs undoing etc) is the only solution to run some thicker cables from the battery to under the seat that then would accept a jump start? They would of course need some way of being capped and insulated (hoping some company out there has already thought of this!).
Thanks again Bumpkin. I tried to message you but for some reason that feature wasn’t there. I will have a proper look in the garage for my old one, see if I still have it and what version/state it is in. I am also investigating how to have jump cables permanent available - in another reply I mentioned that I’d researched whether you can jump start from the port but it seems the cables are too thin for this. Wondered what others do. It’s a bit belt and braces, but I am a bit psycho like that. Plan is to take one of those tiny jump starter kits when I do some traveling.
Imagine my surprise, nestled in a box in the garage straight out of 1999! It’s missing the cable that connects to the battery, and I will need a converter to convert the Ducati data port thing. It even switches on! What am a losing out on comparing this to the most recent version?
Good to know, cheers Andy. It’ll be quite nice to make use of something linked back to when I first used to ride. Cheers Any clues on the cheapest Ducati -to- Optimate connector? Everything I seem to find is around £25 or £30 depending on eBay/Amazon. Seems expensive when a charger itself is only around £50.
Managed to find it here for £22, pretty acceptable. http://chainspeed.co.uk/products/optimate-ducati-2010-onwards-to-sae-adapter.html Also found a concerning thread on this forum, explaining that it could fry the ECU, and I can't figure out if this is only different on the 848? https://www.ducatiforum.co.uk/threads/do-you-bother-using-dda-port-for-charging.45406/
Good to see, same as the one I was offering. If you really want to connect via the diagnostics port then you will need to stump up for the right adapter. Maybe a proprietary connector. Is connecting that way any different, at the end if the day, to connecting directly to the battery terminals (other than convienence and possibly neatness)? I'm lead to believe that there isn't. You have the Croc clip lead, easy to convert this to a direct to battery lead with some eyes, heatshrink and crimp tool. Though ideally an inline fuse should be included.
That is a much cheaper option, perhaps its not a bad thing for me to figure out how to take the battery out to connect that up compared to buying the adapter.
