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You Light Up My Life - Running Lights

Started by YellowJacket!, May 12, 2009, 09:20:28 AM

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h2olawyer

Looking good, David!  That's where I'd put them if I still had case guards.  The most difficult part will be running the wiring so it is mostly hidden and protected from road debris.

That triangle of lights will make you much more visible from the front.   :o   I've had several people riding ahead of me in large groups tell me that they can really see my bike in their mirrors even with a quick glance.  I don't have near the vertical spacing on mine that you will have.  I still need to drop the bulb wattage on mine, though.  I need to turn mine off in stop & go traffic - with them on, along with the cooling fan and the brake lights, the charging eventually drops to around 12V.  The brake lights drop the voltage more than the cooling fan.

H2O
If you have an accident on a motorcycle, it's always your fault. Tough call, but it has to be that way. You're in the right, and dead -on a bike. The principle is not to have any accident. If you're involved in an an accident, it's because you did not anticipate. Then, by default, you failed.

YellowJacket!

H2O,  What wattage are your lights.  I'm still waiting on the extra brake lights that mount on the saddle bags.  They're LED Lights so they shouldn't draw too much but I'm worried about taxing my charging system too much.

David


Living the dream - I am now a Physician Assistant!!   :-)

h2olawyer

I'm running 55w aux lights (110w total).  Wish there were some between 35w & 55w.  Those extra 40w you are saving will easily run LEDs.  You shouldn't have any power concerns.

Don't worry about 'overtaxing' the charging system - remember, the stator is always putting out full power (at least it is when the revs go up a little from idle).  If you are using the power, there is less to shunt to ground or create heat.  When you start asking for more power, it just won't be available.  The only time I notice the power drop is when the bike spends time at idle and has all the electrics running - headlight, aux lights, brake lights & cooling fan.  So, that's really just in stop & go traffic, around town.  On the road, the aux lamps & cooling fan pull the indicated voltage down to about 13 on my volt gauge.  It seems to stay there as long as the revs are above 2500.  It's the addition of brake lights, turn signal and low revs that pull it down to 12V or less at stoplights.  That 40 watt savings of the 'weaker' bulbs would allow me to run the lights, fan, turn signal & brake lights even around town. 

H2O
If you have an accident on a motorcycle, it's always your fault. Tough call, but it has to be that way. You're in the right, and dead -on a bike. The principle is not to have any accident. If you're involved in an an accident, it's because you did not anticipate. Then, by default, you failed.

YellowJacket!

OK, so after the harley guy told me to go drink a can of beer and the little light came on inside my head as to what he was talking about, I set out to get the lights mounted.

Foregoing all the honeydo things I was supposed to do, the first half of my day was occupied by getting my carbs back in order and installed.  Accomplished that and YJ is back to running like a top.  The second half of my day was reluctantly whittling away at the long honey do list.  Got the dogs bathed, painted both dormers, painted 4 of 13 window frames. (note to self - kick the painter that painted my house 2 years ago.  Must have used water colors).

The third half of my day was spent installing the lights on the engine guards.  Got it done and the can trick worked like a charm.  One of the screws stripped so I'll have to contact Kuryakyn support to see if I can get another one.  I also flipped the P brackets 180 degrees which brings the lights in a bit closer to the engine guards.  They don't stick out as much anymore and it looks a whole lot better. For now, the wire is held to the engine guard by some black zip ties.  I've seen some "chrome" ones so I may pick them up and swap them put eventually. So, of course, more pictures must be presented to show off the project for prosperity.

The fouth half of my day was spent with the wife and dogs enjoying ice cream (except Dexter - he just got the ride in the car which suits him just fine) at our local Sonic Drive-in.

Pictures:









David


Living the dream - I am now a Physician Assistant!!   :-)

kev10104


Tiger

 :) looking real good Dave 8) but four half's to a day make for a loooooong day mate :o ;D :D :D :D... ;)

                8).......TIGER....... 8)
Life should NOT be a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in an attractive and well-preserved body, but rather to skid in sideways, body thoroughly used up, totally worn out and screaming HOOOOYA lets go again baby !!!!!!

'82 Vision, Pearl Orange finish, lots of up-grades!!!

h2olawyer

The beer makes one able to go all out for four half days in a 24 hour period!   :D

Those lights look sweet!   8)

H2O
If you have an accident on a motorcycle, it's always your fault. Tough call, but it has to be that way. You're in the right, and dead -on a bike. The principle is not to have any accident. If you're involved in an an accident, it's because you did not anticipate. Then, by default, you failed.

YellowJacket!

And it shure as heck countered the terrible buzz I got from absorbing all the carb cleaner through my skin.

David


Living the dream - I am now a Physician Assistant!!   :-)

Tanno

Quote from: coilXZcoyle on May 13, 2009, 02:58:47 AM
Dave,

What ever you decide to add to the lighting circuit you should turn it on with a relay that the headlight switch powers. The point is that you don't want to add current through the handle bar switch contacts.

$0.02
;)
Coil

I agree, as I've already done that with my current headlight, driving lights, and the aux circuits. VERY good idea. It moves the load from the switches to the 40A relay. Reduces heat at some of the connectors in the harness, if you wire it in close to the items needing to control.
Industrial Technician by trade -- Curiosity by nature, tinkerer by choice.
"Handle every situation like a dog would. If you can't eat it or screw it; Piss on it and walk away!" -- Unknown

YellowJacket!

Finished the job today in about an hour.  Would ahve taken less time had I known that I had a bad relay.  Drove me crazy until I scavenged one from another project and it worked.

I had "fabbed" a custom wiring harness the other day so it was pretty much a drop in job and connected power, ground and switching current.  The lights are nice and bright and are wired in to the headlight circuit.  I set it up so they are on regardless of the high beam as I'm using them more like marker lights than actual driving lights.  I ride with my high beam on all the time anyway.

Everything looks great now that I have the new riding lights and LED brake lights.  YJ is really coming along.

The final project (yeah right, like there is ever a final project on a Vision) is to replace the factory fuse block with somehting more modern. (yup, I know).

Pictures to come.

David


Living the dream - I am now a Physician Assistant!!   :-)

YellowJacket!



Living the dream - I am now a Physician Assistant!!   :-)

YellowJacket!

Holy cow! They're BRIGHT!  Maybe a bit too bright actually.  Comparatively speaking, in the dark, the driving lights look like searchlights and my headlight looks like a minimag flashlight.  I have a nice wide swath that extends out sideways several feet and a cone that extends about 10 feet from the bike.  But man, they are bright to look at.

David


Living the dream - I am now a Physician Assistant!!   :-)