19-03-13, 03:50 AM
My advice is simply use the bike a little more regularly if it's possible. Optimates are fine, but many people look upon them as some kind of God for batteries, and that a battery on an Optimate will last indefinitely - it won't.
I would use the bike a bit more (preferably a good, fast long-ish run as well) before delving into the charging system (if it ain't broke etc). You say about starting problems; hitting that little button in the morning puts quite a considerable load on a battery (more than many people realise), combined with the natural self-drain of the battery over the 10-20 days that it stands and your battery will be working hard. That hard working battery will take about 10 miles to recover just from the starter button. A good battery should be 12.6 - 12.8V.
The other possibility (rather than stale fuel, which I would say is unlikely) is that as the bike is standing for long periods, corrosion on connections (esp perhaps earth points) is not that unlikely either (the bike won't dry out if it's stood, and damp will linger).
I would use the bike a bit more (preferably a good, fast long-ish run as well) before delving into the charging system (if it ain't broke etc). You say about starting problems; hitting that little button in the morning puts quite a considerable load on a battery (more than many people realise), combined with the natural self-drain of the battery over the 10-20 days that it stands and your battery will be working hard. That hard working battery will take about 10 miles to recover just from the starter button. A good battery should be 12.6 - 12.8V.
The other possibility (rather than stale fuel, which I would say is unlikely) is that as the bike is standing for long periods, corrosion on connections (esp perhaps earth points) is not that unlikely either (the bike won't dry out if it's stood, and damp will linger).