lighting, ect.

[Jeffrey Walker]

Drew,

There are a couple of other options than an HID light.  
1) higher wattage light bulb.  I've done this, and yes, it helps.
2) rewire the OEM wiring harness with higher quality wire.  This provides
greater conductivity, less resistance, and thus less voltage drop to the
bulb for higher light output.  I use the OEM wires to control two relays
(low and high beam), but the actual current draw comes off of the wire loom
I made that draws directly from the battery terminals (fused of course) with
high quality wire.  Its worked perfectly since I put that in like 6 years
ago.
3) add driving lights (not for the faint of heart).  What I did was drill
the mirror stalks through, with a counter sunk hole on the underside since
the top and underside don't have parallel surfaces.  I then bolted Hella
FF50 driving lights to the mirror stalks, powered off of a relay controlled
wire from the battery (of course).  Its wired such that the ignition has to
be on, and controlled with a waterproof toggle switch that I can reach with
my left index finger while my hand is still on the bars.

Here are some pictures:
http://i279.photobucket.com/albums/kk130/gpzguy/Motorcycle/img045.jpg 
http://i279.photobucket.com/albums/kk130/gpzguy/Motorcycle/img048.jpg 

You'll note that the way they are mounted, the lights are on an angle.  I've
found that this works very well at night in the twisties.  I've aimed them
to converge down the road just about right above where my headlight on low
beam peters out.  What I've found is that in a curve, the flat beam put out
by the FF50 flattens parallel to the road and lets me see through the curve
pretty well.  Maybe not everybody's cup of tea, but practical and has worked
very well for me.

You can see in this picture where I've mounted my toggle switches.  One
controls my Datel voltmeter and accessories (GPS, Radar), one controls the
Hella FF50's, and the third controls my (homemade) electric vest.

http://i279.photobucket.com/albums/kk130/gpzguy/Motorcycle/img054.jpg 

If anyone wants to know more about it, just let me know.


Regards, 
J


But I'm also trying to improve forward lighting at night.  Living way out in
the countryside, I have to constantly be aware of the possibilities of
critters darting into the road.  I also ride primarily on secondary roads,
with poorly maintained markers and paint.  A little bit of rain turns them
into flat ribbons of inky blackness.  I don't want to blind oncoming
traffic, but I *do want to see the road more clearly.  If the whiter lighter
of the HID conversion helps, then cool.  As Arthur said, anyone with more
info or reliable links?  Has anyone used those fancy HID mimicking bulbs?*

Drew

On Sun, Jun 20, 2010 at 7:49 AM, Kevin Hollis <kh at bluefx.com> wrote: