Made a Modification To My Bike Yesterday

[ThomWV]

My bike has been mildly modified many times but yesterday's was probably one of the better ones safety-wise. I thought I'd mention it to you all because I honestly believe it improves the bike's visibility on the road, and that is always a good thing.

My bike, a 2002 HD, has 3 lights on the tail end. The stock tail light is a multifunction unit with a single 1157 (two element) bulb doing duty as a running light (on at all times the ignition is on) and brake light. The turn signals on my bike are housed and in separate modules mounted on each side of the rear fender. The turn signal lights use single element bulbs (1156) and in stock configuration act only as turn signals and do not light up as running light or brake lights. The modification I made converts the turn signal modules so that they function as running lights, brake lights, and turn signals.

The change in lights was accomplished easily because Harley Davidson makes a conversion kit. The kit includes a magic plug-and-play wireing converter, new red turn signal module lenses to replace the stock amber ones, and extended mounting brackets (chromed) to move the signals outboard an additional 1/2" on each side as required by DOT Regulation. A turn signal, if red, must be mounted a minimum of 4.5" from the red tail light - the stock amber light was 4.0" removed from the tail light. Although they were included in the kit I did not install them. To hell with a half inch per side.

Installing the kit was simple. The stock signal lenses can be removed with the aid of a coin, which is used in a slot to pry off the existing lens. I replaced the stock amber bulbs with new clear ones and then snapped the new red lenses into place. The next step required removal of the seat to gain access to the wireing connector for the harness the aft end of the bike. The adapter included in the kit had connectors that mirror the ones on the stock harness so it simply plugs into the line, male to female and female to male. Then you put the seat back on and congratulate yourself for having done a good job.

The result is straight forward. Now instead of just a single red running and stop signal I have 3 of each. That means that when riding at night if a bulb burns out I still have a lit up rear end. It means I now have 3 very bright red lights back there when I hit the brakes rather than just one. It means that maybe, just maybe, that brain-dead fool that is out there trying to kill me will have just one less excuse when he finally accomplishes his mission.

Harley makes this module in several configurations, depending on bike model and year. Cost for the unit varies between about $25 on E-Bay to about $60 from the Dealer. Here's the part number for the model that fits all Softail models, 69465-06.

If you ride a HD bike I would highly recommend that you make this modification to it. There is no wire splicing involved and the bike can easily be returned to stock configuration in minutes by removing the wiring module and reinstalling the stock lens caps. No special tools are required, in fact the only tool required at all is a coin or screwdriver.

[matcom]

1. very interesting and a great idea

I have the same configuration in lighting on the back of my Yamaha. Maybe i'll look into this as well. Just got home from work. Great ride but the b*tch behind me much of the way was right on my ass as she was yapping on her phone

[HamstersFromHell]

2. Never did aux lighting to the back, but...

on Harleys, a very good investment is replacing the factory sealed beam with a Hella or Cibie E-spec (European spec) H4 unit.

The E-spec units are illegal in the US for on road use. (Really stupid, since it's a far superior product to DOT spec lighting.) But unless you have annual inspections where they are Nazis on equipment, it'll pass and you'll love the difference. (Note that the USDOT is now considering a new specification for auto and motorcycle lighting, and most folks in the know are lobbying for our new spec to be the current E-spec.)

E-spec has a much sharper horizontal cutoff on the top of the beam pattern, so you can adjust your headlight a little higher to see farther at night without affecting oncoming traffic. It also features a "pie slice" on the beam going up and to the right at about a 40 degree angle which serves to illuminate roadside signs extremely well without putting any light in oncoming traffic. The sharp cutoff also means all the light normally "wasted" upward is reflected downward, so you get more road illumination from the same bulb.

But the real kicker is since H4 is merely a socketing specification for a bulb, you can buy H4 bulbs in much higher wattages than the "normal" 50/55. (Low beam/high beam wattage.)

I ran my FXRS with a Hella E-spec 5.25" H4 light, and replaced the stock 50/55 with an 80/100 (you can get them up to 100/135.) I wouldn't recommend going beyond 100w high beam due to the current draw, but 100 is fine and well below the 10a (typical) fusing of the headlight circuit.

It's like a whole different world riding at night. Low beam illumination is much improved, while hitting the high beam in the country you can literally see forever. Not to mention if some asshole in an oncoming vehicle refuses to dim his, flick your high on...he'll dim quickly rather than risk having his eyes seared out of his head!

Sorry for the Japanese cruiser guys...most headlights on them are non-standard and can't accept the replacement unit. You can occasionally search and find a slightly higher wattage replacement for your existing bulb, but the real benefit comes more from the design of the headlight housing and lens than the bulb.

Harleys however, are for the most part a direct bolt in replacement.

[ThomWV]

3. Where did you pick up the unit?

I would be pleased to upgrade the headlight on mine but I want to keep the 5 3/4" shell - no necessairly the stock one but I'd like to keep that diameter so as to fit through the cutout of my windshield (quick detach unit that I use most of the time) as well as I like the proportions of the thing. I have no other power drains on my bike, its pretty much a bare bones Deuce, slammed and lean as I have been able to make it while still being 2-up, so heavy power draw would not bother me so much as undersized wire. I wonder if it might just be possible to run a heavy line up to the headlight and then simply use the stock wireing to activate a pair of relays, one for high- and one for low-beam. What about heat when stopped in traffic?

[HamstersFromHell]

4. Here you go...

Rallylights.com has the ecode lights...most places selling Hellas only stock the DOT approved H4 units.

http://www.rallylights.com/hella/5.75_lo.asp

The one you want is down the page a bit... HL71456 5.75" high/low beam unit with 60/55 H4 bulb. The one below it (HL79564) is the same unit w/o a bulb if you want to choose something a bit more intense. :)

If you get it, then choose the nice H4 bulb here:

http://www.rallylights.com/hella/H4.asp (HL78159)

At $8 for the bulb and $43 for the lamp housing, it's still a nice deal for all the improved light you'll get.

This is the same setup I ran for years on my FXRS...simply remove stock headlight and toss it...bolt in replacement and you're done. No need for relays, additional wiring and the increase is dramatic. You'll notice Rallylights is claiming even with stock wattage bulbs, the ecode Hella will give you 400% more light on the road in low beam and 200% more on high beam. I don't think it's *that* much (maybe with the 80/100 bulb?), but you will notice the difference!

I will say it takes a little getting used to...no longer will you try to illuminate the underside of every bridge you go under! :)

Note that I've also used a set of 80/100 H4's in 7" Hella ecodes in my Miata and absolutely loved that as well.

Cibie lights are supposed to be a little better than even the Hellas....but they are around triple the price if you can even find them.

Oh, and I never had a problem with them getting too hot in traffic. Heat is what makes Halogen lights work so well...the lamp has to get hot enough to do the chemical thing to have the halogen protect the filament from burning out. If anything, running them low on voltage will shorten their lifespan quicker than anything. However, heed the warnings...halogen bulbs must be spotlessly clean and absolutely devoid of fingerprints and skin oils. That will burn through the glass quickly! Handle them with lint free cloths by the base only as much as possible, and right before installing, wipe the glass off with alcohol on a clean lint free cloth.

Hope this helps! If you have any other questions, don't hesitate to ask.

[ThomWV]

5. Two last questions

Wow! Thanks a lot. This is the next modification for my bike. Although I do little riding at night any more the little dark time I do spend on the bike has shown me with the clarity of darkness that improved lighting is in my future.

The shell unit seems to be straight forward, just pull my bezel off, remove the existing sealed-beam bulb and replace it with their unit with a suitable bulb installed in it and put it back together. My question is this, is the plug the same configuration for the new H4 bulb as the existing one for the incandescent stock bulb? I ask because on my other vehicles that use separate reflector/bulb units the plug is very much different as I recall. The incandescent bulb's plug has three slots in a plastic housing - much like a female household electrical outlet - whereas if I remember right the separate bulb/reflector lights in my Ford and Audi use a different configuration with some sort of spring-clip retainer. I'm not against cutting the old connector off and attaching a new one if its necessary, I just need to know beforehand so I can have all the parts on the table before I begin.

The second question is about bulbs and money. I notice that I can buy the reflector without a bulb for about $43 and with the 60/55 for $46. So basically I'm getting a bulb for three bucks. However they also sell the other higher wattage bulbs you mention including this "new" (PN. CP64205) 70/65 which seems to be a nice midpoint between the 60/65 and the 80/100's. So my thinking is that I could buy the unit with the standard 60/55 in it along with the brighter 70/65 bulb. Then I'd simply put the bright bulb in the bike and put the standard bulb away as a spare.

Thanks again for the links and the information. I've had improving the headlight in the back of my mind since last year, you've prompted me to do something about it. I can now see a bright future, probably by the middle of next week.

[HamstersFromHell]

6. The plug is exactly the same as your original...

headlight. Gotta remember, H4 is an *old* specification, so compatibility was a concern back then.

The new ones you're referring to are the "new and improved" H4 successors...9004, 9005, 9006 and such, and yes they all have very different connectors. Almost all of those use some kind of ring to lock the bulb in it's reflector, and you cannot interchange bulbs as they are "keyed" differently. There *are* replacements however, you just have to look a little harder and dig a bit deeper in your pocket. :)

Any bulb that is an H4 will fit any H4 compatible reflector, and all have the old standard 3 flat prong arrangement, like this: |_| <---upside down

As for bulbs, I'd get the one with the bulb as well...can't beat a spare for $3, and genuine Hella as well I would suppose.

The only thing to beware of in choosing bulbs is a lot of those "brighter, whiter" bulbs are in fact brighter and whiter, but also drastically reduced lifespan. (1200 hours vs. 300 hours). By merely choosing higher wattage you still get a "normal" bulb with a normal lifespan.

I made the mistake of buying PIAA Ultra White 80/100 bulbs once. Wonderful light output and yes, very white light. However, I blew low beam in one in less than a month...definitely not worth the $75 a pair for the bulbs!