kwthom
The Parking Lot
Status? I have no status - here or anywhere else, don'tcha know.
Posts: 242
Bike Year / Level: 2016 GL1800
|
Post by kwthom on Jun 22, 2016 13:03:32 GMT
Okay...reading with interest Bartman's review of the EC LED bulb replacements...thanks, Bart, nicely done.
Now, been also toying with the aux lights situation. I've seen a couple of setups that I thought were rather ingenious until I just looked at the bike.
I presently have a spacer and a longer-than-normal screw from a cheap set of mirror 'wings' that I've broke twice, so I'm done with them.
What I don't know is it can't be that much heft inside that mirror adjustor, but has anyone had success in mounting a small (e.g. 2" or less) LED light and bracket off that screw?
I've seen some of the late Ron Smith-styled GL light brackets that are on the market now. Think these were designed for 20-year-old lighting (think thick glass, heavy bodies, heat skinks...)
With LED lighting being so much better...is there a better way for a small light to fit there without inducing damage?
|
|
|
Post by Bartman on Jun 23, 2016 13:20:26 GMT
I'm not sure I would trust that "hole" to support any more weight that those "mirror wings" you're referring to. That screw goes into a threaded "nut," if you will that's mounted in some plastic. Not very much support at all. While the actual weight of an LED housing might not be much more than one of those mirror wings, you also have to consider the about of force, imparted onto the housing, by wind when traveling at speed. I sure wouldn't trust it. A better idea would be to get a bracket that went up under the rubber and attach the bracket to the screws that hold the mirror. At least that way you're attached to something much more substantial.
|
|
steveu
Don't Haze The Newbie
Posts: 5
|
Post by steveu on Jun 27, 2016 2:24:59 GMT
I agree with Bartman, when i had the shelter off to do the LED high beams I added under mirror brackets and 3" LED pods that are rated 1600 lumen each and between everything can light up reflective road signs a mile away at night. extremeledlightbars.com/3-led-light-pod-1600-lumens These are aimed about halfway between the high & low beams and off to the right a bit to keep them out of the eyes of oncoming traffic. They really make a difference including lighting up the sides of the road a lot better. Between these and the LED HI & Low beams I have probably 4x the light I did and save enough juice to run the Gerbing jacket liner from what the stock halogens took.
|
|
kwthom
The Parking Lot
Status? I have no status - here or anywhere else, don'tcha know.
Posts: 242
Bike Year / Level: 2016 GL1800
|
Post by kwthom on Jul 5, 2016 15:59:01 GMT
Agree, and did find a picture of the inside elsewhere. There isn't much in there, so there's no viable means of adequate support...which was the impetus for the current design. Got it.
The 3" LED lights are huge...and I guess that's my dilemma. Do I really want to go all-in on a set of "can you see me now?" lights or would just a small increase if illumination be adequate?
Of course, getting more into LD riding, I'm just exploring the options.
Thanks for the sanity check, fellas!
|
|
kwthom
The Parking Lot
Status? I have no status - here or anywhere else, don'tcha know.
Posts: 242
Bike Year / Level: 2016 GL1800
|
Post by kwthom on Mar 7, 2019 22:10:37 GMT
Updating this thread...Problem solved: Light - a LOT of light!
|
|
Wheels
The Parking Lot
Posts: 573
Bike Year / Level: '14" Candy Red with Hannigan Trike Kit
|
Post by Wheels on Mar 8, 2019 1:34:33 GMT
I should have taken a closer look at these when I had the chance.
|
|
kwthom
The Parking Lot
Status? I have no status - here or anywhere else, don'tcha know.
Posts: 242
Bike Year / Level: 2016 GL1800
|
Post by kwthom on Mar 8, 2019 15:01:37 GMT
Lights: ledrider.com/shop/?model_number=LX5Brackets: Mine are original PIAA Goldwing drop-down brackets. Found these new old stock from eBay right about the time I was looking to do this on my '06. A similar bracket variant without the drop-down can be purchased here: www.firecreekacc.com/acc-lightbrackets-Gen5.htm#topDrop-down brackets: www.socalmotogear.com/GL1800-F6B-MIRROR-MOUNT-LIGHTING-BRACKETS-p/gl18br.htmHarness: This is where the tricky stuff came into play... I had also purchased the lighting controller: ledrider.com/shop/?model_number=IQ-275You can read the description of what this accessory does on that web page. I wrote this for another forum...There are two methods to hook up the Skene controller and any aux light onto a GL1800. I'll briefly explain why I did what I did. Method 1: Exactly as described in the literature provided with the controller. In this manner, you'll always have aux lights as well as hi-beam lights with a single flick of the switch. Living in the great southwest, there's times that in certain locations (oh, let's say your neighborhood...) you'd want a bit of extra light (hi-beams), but NOT all of the light you have on the bike. I'll leave it up to the reader to ascertain if this situation, or others that you may experience, be the reason you're doing this. If you need a bit more choice, you should use Method 2 below. Method 2: Simply add an appropriate-sized relay to the output of the Skene controller, and have the switch that controls the relay an independent switch. In my case, I can do low-beams and high-beams, just like OEM. The way mine is wired, with the low-beam active, hitting the aux light switch, the aux lights will illuminate at the 'low' setting (20%), thus they can be used as a kind of driving light. When I hit the high-beam switch, and the aux lights are off, again, normal high-beam illumination. With high beams active, the aux light switch energizes the Skene, which provides 100% illumination. The Skene controller needs a signal from the OEM wiring on the status of the lo/hi beam switch. This is tapped off the OEM control line that would operate the OEM driving lights. This is the 20%/100% function of the Skene without having to mess about with any other switches. Wiring of method 2 is a bit more complex, but if you're taking the time to do this, might as well have as much flexibility in how the lights function. For me, this is the best compromise out there. My 'independent' switch is a small switch that I have double-stick taped to the outside edge of the cluster on the left side. It's a simple push-on, push-off switch that controls the relay that applies power to the aux lights on the output of the controller.
|
|