I have grown lazy over the years since the smart charger became popular with motorcycle riders. The smart charger is a wonderful device, especially if you own more than one classic or vintage motorcycle like I do. You simply plug it in and forget about it.

The battery smartcharger is designed to check the charge state of the battery is it connected to. It can be 6 or 12 volt if you have the correct battery charger. If it senses the battery is less than fully charged it sends a charge to the battery until it is fully charged. This is wonderful most of the time.

It is not such a great deal when a) the electrolyte in the battery drops below the minimum level and the plates inside the battery go bad, and b) when corrosion grows on and around the battery terminals.

Crusty vintage motorcycle battery

More often than not I have issues with the low levels in the cells – which is easily resolved with the addition of enough distilled water to raise the level to correct heights (be careful NOT to overfill). Occasionally I find a mound of dry white deposit on the terminal and possibly the battery box too. The solution to this is to clean it off with a mix of tap water and some baking soda. An old toothbrush works just fine.

Let the mixture of water and backing soda coat the entire area and let it sit there for a few minutes then wash everything off thoroughly with tap water. Easy as that.

Keep your battery clean, filled and charged and it should last for several years.

There is no denying it, winter has come to North Carolina and much of the United States.  In the last two weeks, we’ve had snow, ice and temperatures in the teens.  I have to admit that as much as I like to ride, this kind of weather lowers my motivation to hit the road more with each degree the temperature falls below freezing.  To keep the cabin fever at a minimum, I spend this time of year scouring the internet for anything motorcycle related and preparing the bikes for next riding season. 

It's not quite this cold in NC, but feels like it...

Since Christmas is right around the corner, I’ve been focusing on searching for the best new products to put on my Christmas list.  The challenge is finding new innovative products targeted to classic motorcycle riding. 

Camping and travel items are my chief interest, as last year’s rally season proved that my equipment is sorely lacking.  I’ve been using the same sleeping bag for 25+ years and although I’ve carefully mended all the holes and burns, I think the time has come to upgrade.  It’s also been a few years since I haven’t had to borrow a tent, so that’s made it onto the list.  To top it all off, or rather hold it all on, a good packing system will be needed too. 

Although there are not a lot of companies specializing in motorcycle camping equipment and even fewer with the classic motorcyclist in mind, I’ve had success with expanding my search to other outdoor pursuits.  The increase in popularity of backpacking and hiking has brought a lot of new items to market that can easily crossover to motorcycling.  By and large, these products are designed to pack up small and ride light, perfect for putting in a saddlebag or strapping to a luggage rack.   

As I begin to gather the essential components of my new motorcycle camping system, I’ll be providing in depth reviews of each piece.  These reviews will be followed up with long term evaluations at the end of the riding season, describing exactly how each product held up to a year of riding on the back of my ’64 Duo-Glide.  I’ll not only be looking for products that perform well, but also for ones that don’t look too out of place strapped to the back of a Panhead.  That means you won’t see any neon orange sleeping bags or purple mattress pads strapped on my bike.  If you have any suggestions, please post a response to this article.  Maybe they’ll make their way onto my “list”.

I kicked myself in the butt for selling my Indian 101 Scout motorcycle and sidecar almost 20 years ago. I didn’t ride it much, was not comfortable with the traditional Indian motocycle left throttle set up, and the sidecar rig took up too much room in my small garage. So I sold it. And then I realized how foolish that was and began looking for another one with a year or so.

Classic Motorcycle - Great Looking 1931 Indian 101 Scout

Last week I mentioned I might be revealing a future motorcycle project here. Well it has since arrived and is an interesting old classic Harley V-twin motorcycle. It appears to mostly be a 1926 Harley J motorcycle that has “evolved” over the years as various owners have made their mark upgrading or getting creative in keeping it on the road.

Classic Harley - 1926 J Model With Some Modifications Over The Years

I know some might look at this classic Harley and dismiss it as a rolling collection of More on Classic Motorcycle Project? 1926 J Harley

I have a pretty busy life between running a motorcycle magazine publishing company (American Iron Magazine, RoadBike, American Iron Motorcycle Bagger), managing this Classic American Iron Magazine web site http://www.caimag.com and forum and raising a family.

But I always find some time to learn about, work on or ride my classic motorcycles – something that’s quite important to me. In my garage I am fortunate enough to own some really wonderful classic motorcycles.

1915 Harley classic V-twin I rode cross country on the first Motorcycle Cannonball in 2010

The oldest American motorcycle is my 1915 Harley twin that I rode cross country this year on the very More on Classic Motorcycle Lust? Harley & Indian Passion