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Thread: LED Spotlights

  1. #1
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    23rd December 2005 - 12:28
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    LED Spotlights

    I am considering installing LED spotlights to (a) increase my visibility and (b) provide better illumination when on full beam.

    Any thoughts, and ideas of what to purchase?

    Thank you.

  2. #2
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    25th January 2008 - 17:56
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    Quote Originally Posted by pjpnz View Post
    I am considering installing LED spotlights to (a) increase my visibility and (b) provide better illumination when on full beam.

    Any thoughts, and ideas of what to purchase?

    Thank you.
    You can't get enough LIGHT AT NIGHT, anything is better than standard.LED's are truly amazing and so economical on battery juice.
    Every day above ground is a good day!:

  3. #3
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    25th April 2009 - 17:38
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    Get some wide angle ones, no use having parts in bright light which degrade your night vision so you miss seeing shit which is not in the spotlight.
    "A shark on whiskey is mighty risky, but a shark on beer is a beer engineer" - Tad Ghostal

  4. #4
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    19th January 2006 - 19:13
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    Fwiw a lot of blokes on the TL forum in Europe have replaced there oem lights with ones out of BMW cars and work well.
    Be the person your dog thinks you are...

  5. #5
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    4th April 2011 - 18:44
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    Not a spotlight, but I'm looking at getting one of these to replace my bike's light:

    http://www.cyclopsadventuresports.co...ulb-_p_83.html

  6. #6
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    14th July 2006 - 21:39
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    I spied a Triumph wearing a pair of these recently - very obvious and bright in the daylight. And the magic visibility 'triangle' worked well with the stock headlight.

    A good company to deal with too - I recommend them.

    http://www.fastbikegear.co.nz/index....oducts_id=6835

  7. #7
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    15th January 2011 - 20:51
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    Quote Originally Posted by The End View Post
    Not a spotlight, but I'm looking at getting one of these to replace my bike's light:

    http://www.cyclopsadventuresports.co...ulb-_p_83.html
    I wouldn't rush into buying one of those. There are issues with H4 LED bulbs to do with cutoff and low beam pattern because the light source is a different shape and size to a standard bulb.

    Plus you need space behind the headlight for the fan and heatsink, remembering that it's going to get hot.

    Finally, they may not be legal in NZ - HID retrofits aren't.

    Sent from somewhere using Tapatalk

  8. #8
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    18th July 2008 - 18:44
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    I replaced the halogen headlight bulb in the DR with a LED bulb (ex Jaycar).
    Patterned against the garage wall for low beam showed a flat beam, which I adjusted for height, etc. High beam lights up extra emitters to project light centrally for high beam. Added a couple of 10 watt spot LED's for the dark-time rural commute. I can see...
    Haven't been flashed by oncomers while on low beam.
    I am aware that legality may be an issue, but not one I've had to explore...yet.
    And low beam (constant-on, in the case of the DR) gets observable double-takes of recognition/observation from folks cruising up to intersections/Give Ways/Stops. I think it was worth the conversion just for that.

  9. #9
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    Quote Originally Posted by pjpnz View Post
    I am considering installing LED spotlights to (a) increase my visibility and (b) provide better illumination when on full beam.

    Any thoughts, and ideas of what to purchase?

    Thank you.
    I have tinkered with extra driving lights and a better headlight unit/bulb combo. The headlight unit/bulb combo has been the best use of time and money so far. You need decent LED spotlights with good spread to be any good, and it's mostly low/mid speed usefulness as anything with distance (spot) are only good for whatever they are adjusted to (flat straights, flat cornering, uphill corning, downhill cornering etc etc). A big fuck-off high beam set up with spread and distance covers all the bases

    Quote Originally Posted by Moise View Post
    I wouldn't rush into buying one of those. There are issues with H4 LED bulbs to do with cutoff and low beam pattern because the light source is a different shape and size to a standard bulb.

    Plus you need space behind the headlight for the fan and heatsink, remembering that it's going to get hot.

    Finally, they may not be legal in NZ - HID retrofits aren't.

    Sent from somewhere using Tapatalk
    They are legal. It has been covered on here. HIDs are a completely different kettle of fish. Read up on it all

    Cheap LED bulbs might not dip properly though. If you're worried you can get high intensity halogens that just have a shorter lifespan as a trade off.

  10. #10
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    15th January 2011 - 20:51
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    Yeah, I know about HIDs, just wasn't sure what the situation is for LED bulbs.

    The low beam cutoff is not simple. Some bulbs may be OK in a specific reflector but not in others. I did note that the bulbs in the link came with spacers to set the cutoff.

    I've run heavy duty cables from the battery to the headlight relays. The combination of this with Plus 100 bulbs has made the headlights far brighter.

    Sent from somewhere using Tapatalk

  11. #11
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    2nd August 2008 - 08:57
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    I have two of these: http://stores.advmonster.com/model-55-led-light-kit/
    I'm using this controller http://stores.advmonster.com/wireles...h-beam-bypass/ to run the LEDs at 10% as DRLs, when I activate high beam it overrides the 10% setting and goes to full power.
    One of them is on my ST1300 mounted to the forks, the other is on my DR650 on a JNS bracket mounted above the mudguard.

    A couple of shots of the ST1300: Dipped and Full
    ----------------------------------------------------
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    "If the cops didn't see it, I didn't do it!"
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