Make a Battery Case out of old indian 6 volt??

[45OZ]

I have an old Indian Battery that is shot but the case is cool has anyone here had any experience in emptying out the "Guts" & be able to use the case for a small 6volt. I know I can buy a repop case but I would like the look of the original since I am putting together a Bobber Rat
Thanks
Oz

[bikerdds]

Oz, depending on which battery you have, it may be possible it could be rebuilt. There are a few cases, if not cracked, that should be saved and not opened up. Send me a picture, and i can tell you if it is more valuable for a restoration. All the correct Indian batteries are availabe as cases for a small 6 volt battery. A picture of the top would help as well. Marty

[45OZ]

Thanks for the response Marty this case is cracked & shot, This build is a rat bobber & I want the cracked case look so it is a perfect Donner if I can figure out how to empty it.
Oz

[Magic]

I had a 46 Chief that I acquired back in the 80's from the Original owner in great condition which I should of kept LOL You heard it before and you'll hear it again. The Battery case I cleaned out the inside and put a new small 6V in it and it worked well for the little I used the Motorcycle only for short rides and shows. It was the real deal Original paint very good condition and the Original seat with only a few tassels missing. The exhaust was the all one piece factory one yet. FireStone tires and leather bags and all the trim. I'm crying yet and only have the pictures. Oh to answer your question ? Depends on how much you're going to ride it I'd be concerned with matching the Amperage to your use better then what I did with the smaller wet battery inside. Just my Opinion.

[PRG]

Howdy Oz,

I've hollowed out rubber case batteries on all my Indians, run an electronic reg concealed in a mech reg box and use PowerSonic PS6200's. These stand on end and need careful clearancing under the original lid. Carefully pick the tar off the top, cut the cell connectors and you can generally wiggle the plates and separators out as a unit. The take a long needle nose pliers and twist the partition in the middle till it breaks and the work out breaking pieces till you reach the wall. Then take a one inch hole saw in a battery powered drill, clean off the sides and ribs on the bottom.

There is little to compare between amp ratings of yester year and today or even between two replica India made batteries today from presumably the same mfr. Lead acid batteries in our app have declined in quality considerably. The bottom line, if you can't get DOD depth of discharge out of battery to a decent degree before it begins sulfating and wounding itself it doesn't matter. In other words that pb eq rating on a Shorai means you can get nearly all it'll deliver at 18 amps as it'll go to 90 DOD when an LA may deliver less than half.

[45OZ]

Thanks for the advice guys, Hollowed it out milled the bottom down slightly & Bingo fits like a glove, One trick I learned by mistake, If you tap the tar with a chisel in 20 degree temperatures. it breaks like glass & was no problem removing, Like you said Peter plates pull right out & not much mess at all.
Hi Magic Thanks for the Advice still reading the Mags & The extra that I already had I gave to my buddy Mike terry who lost his collection of club mags in Sandy floods, If you make oly this year stop by my spot 236 say Hi have a beer
Thanks ALL
OZ