After having to replace a fairly new Yuasa, I got an Odyssey. This one:

http://www.odysseybatteries.com/battery/pc310.htm

It's very expensive. These guys have a $20 rebate, which helps some.

http://www.portablepower.com/odyssey...238465a9e544f7

And I haven't had it long enough to recommend it wholeheartedly. But Odysseys have a reputation for being very sturdy, and I've used them in other bikes with great success. In my experience, they put up with being fully discharged way better than other batteries, which can die if you let them run down once. They also will accept unusually high charging currents, provided the charger is designed for AGM batteries (most are these days). Ordinary trickle chargers don't work well.

In this case the only one that fits is very small (could be seen as an advantage, I suppose). I think a wood spacer or two would be a good idea to keep it from moving around. It's only rated at 7-8 A-h, but Odysseys can really put out a lot of starting power. You need to watch out for shorting them when installing it, that power means the short circuit current is very high.

Just a thought, because they're hard to kill in many ways. No specific info about high temps, though.

 

I don't even know what is in mine.. When my R/R died out in cottonwood (killing the battery w it) the shop that I had my bike towed to sold me a new one, and it has lasted 3 years here in Phx.

 

Iazn, I'm planning a trip to Denver mid-August and all this talk of RR's going out...and kiling batteries too, makes me a little nervous. Sounds like a weak link in an otherwise very reliable bike. Probably a different thread, but with 4k on the bike do I need to be worried...buy a spare RR to keep with me? Electrical is my weakness.
(Nice bike, if you want to road trip through the mountains to Denver from PHX around August 13th or so....let me know!)

 

What year is your bike? If it is 2001 or newer, it should have the "finned" R/R from Honda. That is a better part and you are likely to be ok for some time. Older than that, I'd replace it at some point as a preventative measure.

Some people (like Hawkrider, the Admin here) have had their old style R/Rs last forever. Mine didn't go out till ~50,000 miles. But it is a weak link in our bikes. (motovoltage.com is the only place that has lifetime warranties on their R/Rs ebay can get you cheap alternatives, including a Yamaha part swap or aftermarket.. I went cheap aftermarket and have been lucky, others got the same one I did DOA)

The other thing to do is either replace the CCTs once with APEs or replace them every 20,000 miles or so with stock ones.

Of the two, the CCTs are the more important issue in my mind. Probably less likely to fail on you, but if they fail, they don't just kill the battery, they kill the engine.

 

I found that Interstate battery at about 1/2 their price at "Apex." Still quite a bit less than the dealer, too, $87 shipping included.

http://www.apexbattery.com/interstat...batteries.html

 

Iazn...I knew the CCT's were an issue, but I'm still relatively low on mileage. It was a NOS on a dealer's floor about two years ago....2003 model. Based on that, it sounds like I may be safe for a while. Thanks again. Maybe we can head out sometime.
I'm off to meet with a plastic welder...

 

Any good quality AGM battery will be the best option, such as those listed above.

Deka make one to suit the VTR, as I have one. If your battery box has small rubber blocks in the bottom you will need to take these out first as the Deka is slightly higher then the factory battery. No other issues.

The Deka is a top quality product, and rated a bit better than Odyssey by my local battery specialist. Odyssey did not have one that fitted properly either.