Another option -- inexpensive riding lights

[lragan]

Charles put me onto the "Burner" series of driving lights for automobiles, available at Wal-Mart.  I bought a set of the round ones, and mounted them through drilled holes in the windshield mounts.  $15 per set or thereabouts. 

They serve the purpose well, for the price.  Definitely increase noticeability on the road.  The chrome on the mounts is rather thin, and rust spots were already in evidence at MOOTMAG7.  Further, since the wires exit at the back of the light and not the bottom (I looked at changing this, but couldn't figure out how -- just not room in that housing to reroute the wires. ) it was difficult to hide the wires.  I put some covering on mine, but still did not like the look.

Since I was redoing a lot of things on my bike, I decided to look at other options from the same low cost series of lights.  I opted for the small rectangular ones, with black paint coating rather than chrome. 

Mounting them from the bottom of the tripple tree was simple.  I had to cut down the mounting plates by about 1/8 inch, which was readily accomplished with a vice and hack saw.  I painted the exposed surfaces with black gloss touch-up paint I bought for the frame of my bike.  Then they mounted rather securely under the headlight mounting nuts.  The wires are easily disguised adjacent the the wiring harness that goes to the headlight.

The kit comes with a heavy duty switch.  I used the relay from an earlier light installation, and the small switch that operates the relay.  The switch is mounted in the left frame cover.  I did not wire the return wires, but tucked them up out of the way in case I need them.  This probably means the return current is coming back on the same wire than carries the headlight return -- or through the front fork bearings, or some combination of the two.  I don't think this will cause a problem, but I will watch it closely. 

[attachment deleted by admin]

[L J VFR]

Nice, Lawrence.   I too went the Wal-mart route and bought the same lights only the round style.  Mounted them to my highway  pegs.

[roboto65]

Very Cool I like the look bet thats alot better than the stock light LOL

[lragan]

This mounting position helps to obscure the bottom of the triple tree -- which, being just cast finish, is not very attractive.  Mine is also beginning to show some rust spots...

While this setup puts 110 watts of additional lights pointed down the road, they will probably just blend with the headlight at distance to make a brighter appearance. 

Mounting as Lance has, on the engine guards or highway pegs, makes the bike appear "bigger" at a distance. 

In any case, I am going to ride with them for a while and see how I like them.

[hootmon]

I have a similar set up on mine, but with only one light..
I also mounted a spare light on a friends Nighthawk and could not get it to work.. It turned out that I needed to run a ground wire back to the frame to get it to work. SO, although it is working, I would think about running the extra ground wire to insure full current flow and not over run another ground wire for something else like the main headlight.. To loose both on a dark road for the price of an extra wire.. I'd install the insurance.. IMHO..

[guywheatley]

They look good, and I'll bet with the additional light, you can also "look good." 

[Damn Yankee]

Just put in a similar set using the windshield frame as a base for a pair of angle brackets to mount the lights on either side of the headlight. I hooked the relay to the wire that feeds the hi-beam indicator light so I can switch it on/off easily. I swapped out the rocker panel switch that came with the lights for a smaller oval shaped button I picked up at Advance Auto Parts and use it as the master on/off. I mounted the switch on the left side panel. Nice to have the additonal lighting for that 4 am ride to work!

[lragan]

Just put in a similar set using the windshield frame as a base for a pair of angle brackets to mount the lights on either side of the headlight. I hooked the relay to the wire that feeds the hi-beam indicator light so I can switch it on/off easily. I swapped out the rocker panel switch that came with the lights for a smaller oval shaped button I picked up at Advance Auto Parts and use it as the master on/off. I mounted the switch on the left side panel. Nice to have the additonal lighting for that 4 am ride to work!

I thought of connecting mine to the high beam power in some manner, so they turn off on low beam.  I haven't turned them on at night yet, but will do so soon, to check where I am spraying the extra light.  Sooo, I presume that the setup as you describe it allows you to turn the lights completely off, or, when they are on, they are only on with high beam?  There is no way to run them on low beam, then?  That seems a "kinder, gentler" way to operate...

[Capt. Howard]

Just put in a similar set using the windshield frame as a base for a pair of angle brackets to mount the lights on either side of the headlight. I hooked the relay to the wire that feeds the hi-beam indicator light so I can switch it on/off easily. I swapped out the rocker panel switch that came with the lights for a smaller oval shaped button I picked up at Advance Auto Parts and use it as the master on/off. I mounted the switch on the left side panel. Nice to have the additonal lighting for that 4 am ride to work!

Where are the...P I C T U R E S? ? ?

[Chad in Michigan]

Just put in a similar set using the windshield frame as a base for a pair of angle brackets to mount the lights on either side of the headlight. I hooked the relay to the wire that feeds the hi-beam indicator light so I can switch it on/off easily. I swapped out the rocker panel switch that came with the lights for a smaller oval shaped button I picked up at Advance Auto Parts and use it as the master on/off. I mounted the switch on the left side panel. Nice to have the additonal lighting for that 4 am ride to work!

I thought of connecting mine to the high beam power in some manner, so they turn off on low beam.  I haven't turned them on at night yet, but will do so soon, to check where I am spraying the extra light.  Sooo, I presume that the setup as you describe it allows you to turn the lights completely off, or, when they are on, they are only on with high beam?  There is no way to run them on low beam, then?  That seems a "kinder, gentler" way to operate...

his way is the best way for tying anything else into the lighting circuit. all the power for the lights runs not only through the run/kill switch, but also the start button and its tiny contacts. there have been cases on the MRF board where without using a relay and drawing a little more power through those switches that the switches will melt from the added stress on them. . the relay takes a small current and takes all the load for the new ciruit and passes it to the accessory tied into it so the switch will not ment or start a small fire.

[lragan]

I have a relay in my setup, too.  So the activation current is only what is required to drive the relay.  My question was the power to the coil on the relay.  As I have it wired, it comes from the battery, through a switch installed in the left frame cover just behind the fork bearings.  The switch controls the lights through the relay.  My reading of his post was that his switch and relay coil are driven from the high beam indicator light, so that the extra riding lights are only on when the high beam is on.  I was just wondering how this works out, and if it is necessary to "be kind" to oncoming drivers/riders at night...

[Chad in Michigan]

oh i see the light, lol. pun intended i guess i didn't read the thing in it's entirety oops..

[Chad in Michigan]

there are two wires in the headlight bucket you could use, one is low beam, the other is high beam. you could run a wire from either to power your relay and eliminate that extra switch you have, or you could run the wire to the switch, and have it switch off if you don't want it on during the day.

[lragan]

I normally run the lights and high beam during daytime -- but, if I get into a situation where I am idling for extended periods (like stuck in slow traffic or in areas where I always seem to miss the lights), I will turn them off to save the battery.  Maybe I don't need the capability to turn them off, but it feels good to have it

[TLRam1]

"be kind" to oncoming drivers/riders at night...

I have mine angled down for this reason, you can still see them just not the blinding fashion some people ignore. I check them every so often myself standing in from of the bike.