Best battery for '96 FLHR????

[andyxlh]

Hello folks
the Odyssey ES 700 battery on my '96 flhr has just died - after exactly 8 years - fitted in april 2001! good, eh? now come the pain of replacing it. here in Australia I can get a Harley genuine gel battery for $200AU and the odyssey for $300AU. How do the genuine batterys last? the Odyssey has been exceptional, but is a lot more cash... thoughts?
cheers
Andy
Sydney

[lengbyroadking]

I bought the Harley gel battery five years ago in Minnesota. The bike gets put away every winter for 6-7 months in an unheated garage (temps as low as -30 F). I never pull or recharge the battery and just last week I fired the bike up for the first time this season and the battery was just like new. By far the best $ I've ever spent on a battery.

[rdkng]

I buy HD Gel batteries for about $100 US, put a trickle charger on it before I put any
load on it,  keep a battery tender on it at all times and replace
every 4 years regardless,  so I dont end up on side of the road (again)
rdkng   

[Nebraskarider1]

I bought  my bike 5 1/2 years ago. It had a new Harley agm battery in it. 2 years ago I had some statter issues and bought a new one. Found out I had starter problems so I wouldn't have need it. This winter when starting the bike the post fried on the new one, for what reason I don't know but it just melted the lead around the insert for the bolt. I still had the 5 1/2 year old battery under the bench and had not charged it or anything for the 2 years it was sitting around and it fired the bike right up. I had already ordered an Ultima agm from Jireh and am now running it. Conclusion of this is I had one Harley battery that went above and beyond and another that didnt. As far as the Ultima goes ask me in a couple years but it was only 58 bucks. I still kept the 5 1/2 year old one for a spare! Just 2 cents worth. Its raining so I am not riding today bummer.