My battery has failed and need a replacement. The one on the car is actually a YTX14 battery and not the YT12B battery that the bike had.
So wondered what anyone else with an R1 was using and thoughts of battery maintenance over the winter. I was recommended to get an Optimate charger as these seem recommended by some bike manufacturers and suit gel batteries, they can also be left on float charge for long periods.

I've got a CTEK3600, see here:

http://www.hamiltonclassic.co.uk/acatalog/Battery_Care.html

Not cheap but works very well. Only put it on when weather is cold or not using the car for a few weeks.

Not lost a motorbike battery since whereas before they won't last the winter and they're not cheap for a decent one.

I have the CTEK3600 too, but I leave mine on charge for weeks/months at a time.
It is inteligent in that it only charges if the battery drops below 95% capacity.
Trickle chargers will ruin batteries but the CTEK allows some discharge to occur. It is also good at recovering very flat batteries.
It is charging a RedTop 25 Gel Battery.
Try an Oddesey 680 battery as it is the same as a Redtop in every dimension/ability, accept that it is slightly cheaper.

[Edited on 14/10/2008 by nitram38]

I have an Optimate. After going thru a couple of batteries due to infrequent use of the car I got fed up of needing to jump start the car everytime. Works brilliantly and is often left for weeks between uses.

can you jump start a BEC?

Its that time of year where I want to get a charger, but never ever needed to use one before. sad i know.

what would people reconmend for an R1?

Thanks for you comments. I've just bought an Optimate charger as recommended by a couple of dealers so feel safe in the knowledge that Honda etc are recommending this unit. Hope it means the battery will have a long life.