Thanks for all the informative posts guys! Good info Jim. I realize now that I should have put a trickle charger on it, but I didn't think about it then. I will do so in the future.
In the Summit catalog the advertise these batteries as having a two year shelf life, and this one's been sitting for about 16 months. I plan to call Summit on Monday to see if they'll make good on it.
Sharpe, despite the fact the battery turns the engine over with no problems (I did put a little marvel mystery
oil in all the cylinders), there seems to be a definite problem since my battery voltage is measuring between 11.5 and 12.4 V. Isn't 11.5 V low for a load test? My tested indicated the battery was weak or dying (now there's a useful diagnosis
) Your points are well noted. I have fuel and need to check spark (although it was firing and would run for a very short time after I left on charge for about an hour this evening). I am going to trickle charge the battery over night and check it again in the morning. But...I think it's toast. Pete, I'll let you know if the slow charge happens to knock off some of the sulfation, as you noted. I realize it's a long shot...
Thanks again for all of you ideas and opinions. I'll post back when I know more. I wish you all a wonderful weekend!
Mike