I have a pair of relays coming for the headlights. Are they ever on together, like when you flash hi beam? Or does that just switch between lo and hi? Just looking for which wires to buy. 10 amp just covers both low and hi being on together yet I see most circuits quoting 7.5 amp fuses so I guess it's either one or the other.

Most car an bike manufacturers, that still use them, have a Halogen H4 bulb burning EITHER the dip or main beam. I have in the past run cars with the wiring changed so that the dip stays on when the main beam comes on. It does no harm to the bulb but does then use 115 watts, nearly 10 amps. All you will achieve is more light lower down when you switch main beam on, which is not much use at all.
Far better to look into a HID xenon conversion if you want more light, but the legality of these is suspect in some places aropund the world.

robin 55 watt draws 55/12 = around 4.5 amps at 12 volts (altenator runs at 13.6 ish volts so actual wattage - current increases ) now that's well and good but if you use 5 or 6 amp cable there is some amount of voltage drop by the time it gets to the headlamp globe (heating effect etc ).
note the standard high beam is 60 watt .

this in itself is not bad ....but ....most globes these days are halogen types and have a critical "halogise " voltage ...
below this critical voltage the effective light output is significantly reduced.
my rule of thumb is double the cable size.
I figure it this way .1 mm for every amp of ac current ...but we are talking about dc current not an alternating one, so double it ,,cant hurt and the setup costs differences are very small . I would recommend 1.5mm cable as a minimum

and on the occasion of using the flash button you are well and truly covered .
some folks use higher wattage types any how ...like me ...my eyes at night aren't as good as they once were and every little bit helps.

I saw some 10amp cable at supercheap today. ie: red/black inside a cover. I don't believe it would carry that current without getting really hot.

I'll look around for something heavier I think.

I got an xenon bulb in the mail.

RobinW wrote:I got an xenon bulb in the mail.

I doubt if you have a xenon bulb in the mail, it will be a blue tinged halogen (Eaby sellers call them xenon). A xenon is a HID (High Intensity Discharge) and needs an electonic unit wiht it. It will run at 35 watts producing about 3 times as much light as a 55 watt halogen, but at 22,000 volts.

Headlight Xenon Max H4 bulb 12v 60/55 watt ( K75 / K100 / K1100 ) | LIA01072

http://www.motorworks.co.uk/vlive/Shop/Parts.php?T=5&NU=15&M=40&Ct=RA&SbCt=BA_15_40_RA_80


from motor works. Have they ripped me off ?

That's like $10 here, 2 beers .... I checked out bulbs locally today and they wanted tripple that price for a normal bulb.

No they have just sold you a bulb that is called a xenon max. See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Xenon_arc_lamp for what a proper xenon is. What you have bought is a halogen bulb, halogen being the type of gas that is within the quartz glass. Someone may have added a few % of xenon gas too it, but it will only make it burn slightly blue/white giving the impression that it is brighter.
If you look at https://www.google.fr/search?q=xenon+bulb&client=ubuntu&hs=i3e&channel=fs&gl=uk&tbm=isch&tbo=u&source=univ&sa=X&ei=qg7PUZH7J9HcsgaNuYHYAw&ved=0CFEQsAQ&biw=2144&bih=936 you will see pictures of proper xenon bulbs, but note that there are also loads of pictures of blue tinted Halogen H4 bulbs which are Quartz Halogen technology but described as xenon.

Ahh, if it burns blue I will complain.  I don't like blue bulbs

Also I think my problem with lack of lo beam might be in the switch not the bulb ?

I never really checked it .... and lights are the least of my problems just now

I used a 5mm cable to the relays which are mounted just behind the headlight on the fairing frame and a ceramic 3 pin connector with a 100W bulb and the light from that alone is really good but then I have 2 x 55W pencil spot lights as well. But all that is a bit marginal for a 32 amp alternator.

most of the globes with the blue around them are a uv cut filter ....the high amounts of the blue certainly give a blueish appearance ....but primarily a filter to cut the damaging effects of the high uv content deteriorating the reflector

There is no question fitting a relay kit like the particularly good kit from Eastern Beaver will help both the light output and the longevity of the handlebar switch, which when you see it opened up looks way under sized to handle the duty, but lasts a good long while.

It is often worth measuring the voltage at the lamp terminals it can be surprisingly low compared to the voltage at the battery often as much as 2 volts down which means very much less lumens on the road. In a nutshell the Eastern Beaver kit reduces the cable resistance so that the voltage at the bulb is higher.
Regards,
K-BIKE

What is the blue good for me seeing you or you seeing me. I'm with Charlie my eyes dont like night riding these days. Mind you that may be due to the better stronger brighter headlights these days. i can atest to the fact that when passed by a 6volt vw the other evening it didnt affect my driving at all, but the bloody mazda behind it spoilt the pleasure of seeing the dub a brezel model. maybe that is the issue with us charlie modern lighting shuts the eyes down they're just too bright for the eyes. Wasn't there a thread earlier about marine cable of 2,6 or 3mm being well worth using????? Was it albies mate on a trawler or something?

With regard to driving at night I was always complaining about the signs being too reflactive and bright lights till I started wearing glasses with a slight correction but it made the world of difference, just no more problems.

yes that's true rick the orbit of the eye changes - hardens over the years ...so the focal length changes in us older geezers ......the iris doesn't close as fast leaving us ....erm out of focus in the dark  and easily semi blinded by strong light against a dark background  ....without correction in place  .
true indeed keith the lights are far better these days and whiter .....rather than the more yellowish globes of bygone times .

+1. It seems once Mercedes started with the high intensity lamps, then every backyard mechanic had to have them too.

The old K bike has a glorious headlight, nothing wrong with it, just that everyone else driving with high intensity lights makes seeing the road that much more difficult. So, I installed a pair of 55W Bosch road lights, and when these are on I have no troubles at all.

IMO, it's not how bright your light is, rather how many lights you have. The more lights, the more places they can concentrate on.