Headlight upgrade experiences

td5 · 51 Headlight upgrade Sat May 02, 2015 11:19 am

td5

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HI Folks,
Just wondering what headlight upgrades you guys have experience here in OZ, I have heard Osram Nightbreakers are good, but does anyone have any recommendations.
I run the EB relay kit, so just looking to boost the low beam and I don't want to go the Aux lights or HID for my bike.
Cheers
Mike

charlie99 · 52 Re: Headlight upgrade experiences Sat May 02, 2015 1:05 pm

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true indeed mike the low beam (most used ) is not as good as it could be ...but then again we aren't as young as we used to be ... more to the point our eyes on us older folks are the restriction .

I guess some of the jap bikes have thought of this and produced that double beam solution that we see sometimes

even 2 x 35 watt globes focused well gives more punch for the low beam solution

its a conundrum ...

hoping to hear also of another product that works well in a single beam situation.

Dai · 53 Re: Headlight upgrade experiences Sat May 02, 2015 4:32 pm

Dai

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I use Nighbreakers but Phillips' equivalent (xTreme?) is just as good. Apart from the rather low-current wiring, the other problem we are all suffering from is deterioration of the headlamp silvering. Headlights of that age lost 60% (no misprint) of their reflectivity in four years from manufacture. Replacing the reflector with NoS is no use because of that problem. I finally lost my head with mine and evicted it in favour of a seven inch round Cibie.

Crazy Frog · 54 Re: Headlight upgrade experiences Sat May 02, 2015 5:24 pm

Crazy Frog

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Just a word of caution when upgrading the headlight with a higher wattage bulb.
A higher wattage bulb will generate more heat, and in many cases, the socket will melt over time.
For the cost of it, it's worth updating the headlight socket to a ceramic one.
Here are some cheap one on Fleebay

My K75 has an incredible dual headlights. The wiring had been modified and when on high beams, the low beams stayed on too. The result: double power, but also double heat and the plastic sockets were not design for this. They melted. The ceramic sockets seem to solve the problem.

92KK 84WW Olaf · 55 Re: Headlight upgrade experiences Sat May 02, 2015 7:20 pm

92KK 84WW Olaf

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I bought a wad of ceramic holders some years back, excellent kit and very small money.

I had the same issue with reflectors in the car headlights and replaced them with new unused units. Very effective when mixed with high wattage H4 and H1 bulbs.

Don't even think of an upgrade without the relay and the ceramic holders, but with them you have searchlights. To avoid dazzle the H4 bulbs are aimed lower and have passed MOT test with the high output bulbs in place.

Rick G · 56 Re: Headlight upgrade experiences Sat May 02, 2015 8:32 pm

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I have been using a Narva Plus 120 and it is good, much better than anything else I have tried.

Ed · 57 Re: Headlight upgrade experiences Sun May 03, 2015 1:26 am

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RicK G wrote:I have been using a Narva Plus 120 and it is good, much better than anything else I have tried.

same here Rick .
My father in law was generous enough to let me fit one of his spare 120's in , ready for the Tassie trip .
A remarkable difference . even better than the 50 plus my wife has in her bike.
this is what you can expect.

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good luck with the swap.

Last edited by groverK on Sun May 03, 2015 3:05 am; edited 1 time in total

Rick G · 58 Re: Headlight upgrade experiences Sun May 03, 2015 1:39 am

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I went from a 50 plus to the 120 and thought the 50 plus was good till I saw the light from the 120.
I see it as a reaction of the manufacturers to the LED stuff that is coming out now. They figured they had best do something if they wanted to stay in business.

Ed · 59 Re: Headlight upgrade experiences Sun May 03, 2015 3:00 am

Ed

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at least they have endeavoured to keep in the market Rick.
I felt a lot more confident when navigating those pitch black highways around the South Coast region.
td5, when you find a suitable upgrade, buy the twin pack , and keep one spare in your bike. you just never know when.........

GerryP · 60 Re: Headlight upgrade experiences Sun May 03, 2015 5:01 am

GerryP

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This is a very interesting thread but I'm not sure whether to put the cat back among the pigeons here... Wink

Here are my experiences:

I've been running an 80/100 bulb in my K1100LT for the last ten years or so and in most circumstances it's been perfectly adequate.

I have an Exide gel battery and a 50 Amp Bosche alternator fitted. No relays and no ímproved circuitry. When I upgraded to a 35 Watt HID recently I ran round the lighting circuit with a DMM and checked the switches. The switches were perfect, shiny contacts and a resistance of less than 1 Ohm. The voltage at the bulb socket was 12.5 Volts with the engine off (the battery gives 12.8 Volts normally). There was no evidence of discoloration of the reflector or damage to the bulbholder. I once wrecked an expensive set of Cibie headlights on a car running 100 Watt bulbs. I always meant to check the temperature of the supply wire but forgot.

Like TheMason I always squirt switches and connectors (every year) with WD40. The point here is that WD40 has a much higher dielectric strength than air so it resists low-voltage arcing in contacts. Then the sliding action of the switch keeps the contacts in good condition. I guess any other light oil would do the job. As to dust collection, it doesn't happen in the UK (its more soggy here than dusty).

I don't do high milages but most of what I do is semi-urban with the dipswitch going up and down like a yoyo. One of the reasons I upgraded again is that if you're negotiating a mini-roundabout in the dark and pouring rain with cars coming at you from all directions it can be quite difficult to see the kerb.

I'm very pleased with the HID light, it's the latest from China with a very small plasma capsule 'guaranteed' not to cause beamspread and in practice the beam is very tight. I purchased an 4700K H4 car kit for 19UKP and thus got a spare bulb and ballast. I tried to set up the install so its easy to put the Halogen bulb back if I need to.

Too soon to comment on reliability.

Hope this helps.

Last edited by GerryP on Sun May 03, 2015 5:37 am; edited 1 time in total (Reason for editing : zpelling)

Rick G · 61 Re: Headlight upgrade experiences Sun May 03, 2015 5:20 am

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Did you get the correct reflector for the HID or just run the old OEM reflector and dazzle all who cometh to you.

GerryP · 62 Re: Headlight upgrade experiences Sun May 03, 2015 5:46 am

GerryP

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Normal reflector - as I said, there is no beamspread with this bulb...

Dai · 63 Re: Headlight upgrade experiences Sun May 03, 2015 8:20 am

Dai

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The MoT man won't like you - HIDs are illegal on bikes in the UK.

I should also have mentioned that loss of reflectivity does not mean discoloration - IIRC (and it's a looong time since I did headlamp comparisons for the original version of Classic & Motorcycle Mechanics) it's caused by a thin layer of oxidation on the reflector. If you were to put (say) a new and old Cibie side-by-side, you'd be hard put to tell visually which one is which.

GerryP · 64 Re: Headlight upgrade experiences Sun May 03, 2015 12:09 pm

GerryP

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That's one of the reasons why I made the bulb as easy to replace as possible. The other is that I'm carrying an 80/100 halogen as a spare.

With the Cibies the reflecting film seperated from the shell, but this was back in the eighties and on a Lotus. Those were the days... What a Face

Last edited by GerryP on Sun May 03, 2015 12:13 pm; edited 2 times in total (Reason for editing : mor zpelling mistaks)

Comberjohn · 65 Re: Headlight upgrade experiences Sun Oct 04, 2015 5:19 am

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Thread revival alert.
Just realised that I actually started this one a few years ago!
This has always been a bit of a holy grail for K's.
I fitted a pair of HID bulbs to the GS last night and that's what has inspired me to impart my new found knowledge. My sight is nearly back to normal after looking into the lit headlight!
They are a pair of 50w 6000L H7 bulbs with slimline ballasts and an anti glare, dip bulb. Last bit is important.
Bought the kit second hand from a guy on the ukgs forum.
Did a bit of research first and it can be a bit of a minefield.
Firstly, the legislation. They are not illegal on bikes exactly. It's a gray area.
On cars they must have self leveling lamps and a washer. Bikes are not mentioned.
What they must be is, correctly adjusted, not cause glare and if more than one bulb, be the same colour.
Still on the legal thing, your 100w bulbs are illegal in the UK and probably many other countries, too. Anything over 55w is.
Many of the problems with fitting HID is that the, ahem, older person tends to go for China's finest because they are cheap. Been there, nearly done that.
These can cause glare and a thing called 'candleing' which means your headlight is scrap. Components are maybe not up to the motorcycle environment either.
HID is a popular mod on the GS and many have had them for years, passing the MOT without any problems.
The man to talk to is called Les Wassal, he's based in the UK and he runs a site called HID50.com. Very approachable if you want to ask stupid questions.
The main reason I'm sharing this is because he has a page on his site explaining why H4 bulbs are difficult to replace with HID. I've never found anyone else to give a satisfactory answer.
He claims to have found a working compromise for H4 lights and immediately I thought of all of you dinosaurs. Very Happy

Can't put the link in from my iPad but look for the page 'What bulb'.
Tell him I sent you. Feel bad buying a second hand kit after enquiring about a new one!
It's as much about being seen as well as seeing. Was cut up on a roundabout twice yesterday. Once by the driver of a cattle truck eating his ice lolly and again by a teenager trying to grope his girlfriend as he enters the roundabout. It's a dangerous world out there.

GerryP · 66 Re: Headlight upgrade experiences Sun Oct 04, 2015 1:32 pm

GerryP

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Thanks Comberjohn, all interesting stuff.

After five months of using HID lighting I've found the following:

1 - One ballast became intermittent on switch-on, took a while to stop blaming the bulbs for that.

2 - My H4 bulbs both tend to stick on main beam once they get hot.

3 - In the dark dungeons of multi-story carparks *no-one* pulls out in front of me anymore.

4 - Not quite so good in sunshine, if they don't look they won't see you... Helps with the dreaded a-pillar roundabout blindspot though.

5 - I haven't been flashed once and I did expect that. Shocked

6 - Riding friends have all commented on improved conspicuity.

Comberjohn · 67 Re: Headlight upgrade experiences Sun Oct 04, 2015 1:57 pm

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Good to hear, Gerry.
I took a run out down to Dundalk by the coast road. Wanted to test the HID plus a new fueling map that I'd loaded onto a Power Commander unit I picked up recently. But that's another story.
What a difference!
On at least four occasions, cars pulled in and stopped to let me pass, plus many others slowed up and pulled over onto the hard shoulder to do the same. Amazing.
That would happen a lot in the south west of Ireland but never up here, usually quite the opposite.
Feel a lot more confident when approaching side roads with cars about to pull out or cut across my lane. Not over confident mind you.
Still trust no one. I'm a driving instructor.
Even pedestrians seem to be more aware of your presence.
Think part of the reason may be that my HID's are 6000L and while I would describe the color as 'daylight' they are verging on blue.
Along with a similar colour of marker LED's on either side, I think it could be guilty consciences that is having the effect.
Les recommended the 35w HID's for around town and 50w for the sticks. 50w would have been my choice anyway, as we are quite rural here but the kit that came up was that anyway.

Mark K Boy · 68 Re: Headlight upgrade experiences Wed Dec 23, 2015 5:35 pm

Mark K Boy

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Update:-

I now run a Cree 3000Lum LED head light bulb.

Approx 6000K. Very happy.
I also have 2 LED spot lights to mount and just have not got around to it as the headlight is doing a good job of lighting the path before me....

I will find a link if requested.....

GF Wollongong · 69 Auxillary Lights and Brighter Bulbs Wed May 20, 2020 10:16 pm

GF Wollongong

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While searching on the forum, I found this old and, at times, heated topic.

I'll leave well enough alone ... except...

Another dubious purchase on gumtree (Aust equivalent of Craigslist) found me in possession of a pair of Hello 140 driving lights (these have gone onto my car) and a Kent Aircraft Landing Light. Heavy little bugger with a nice chrome surround.

Now I remember my mum's tired old Datsun 180B station wagon had lights that seemed to illuminate nearly a kilometre down the freeway. So strong as to nearly be unusable. Dad said they were landing lights.

So, how do I indulge myself and put it on my K100?

And before you all clammer for the mic, I guess it'll pull too much power, drain the battery, melt the wires, cause a fire in the switch, be too bright to use, attract every moth and insect in a 5 km radius (smearing my visor and thus defeating the benefits of the extra light)...

And then there's this Nathan train air horn I picked up for $2...

indian036 · 70 Re: Headlight upgrade experiences Wed May 20, 2020 10:37 pm

indian036

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GF Wollongong wrote:
and a Kent Aircraft Landing Light. Heavy little bugger with a nice chrome surround.

Now I remember my mum's tired old Datsun 180B station wagon had lights that seemed to illuminate nearly a kilometre down the freeway. So strong as to nearly be unusable. Dad said they were landing lights.

So, how do I indulge myself and put it on my K100?

And before you all clammer for the mic, I guess it'll pull too much power, drain the battery, melt the wires, cause a fire in the switch, be too bright to use, attract every moth and insect in a 5 km radius (smearing my visor and thus defeating the benefits of the extra light)...

About 6A for the headlight and tail light. Brake lights, blinkers (did you top up the fluid) and horn are too short term to worry about. Someone will come up with a figure for the fuel and ignition systems that I don't know. From my memory of the distant past, the Kent was 100W sealed beam so a smidge over 8A. Unless you have upgraded, the standard alternator is 32A if all is well. As the yanks say, "do the math". Of course, you'll wire it through a relay. Smile

Back in the day, those lights were described as 707 landing lights, back when the Boeing 707 was the mainstay of air travel and the 747 was the young upstart.
2 problems: no way would an aircraft have such a thing fouling up their airflow, nor the weight of it, and the final nail, my flatmate in the day was a Qantas mechanic, qualified on 707s and working towards a similar qualification on 747s. He informed us that the 707 used a 24V system. Razz

I had one on my '64 Falcon, and it did a good job.

Bill

GF Wollongong · 71 Re: Headlight upgrade experiences Wed May 20, 2020 10:52 pm

GF Wollongong

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Ah, given that it's in a chromed housing and a mounting stem - can't see it in an aircraft (though the sealed bulb might be generic). Tiger moth maybe. Polikarpov l-153 definitely.

But it does remind me of one of those lights on the side of a mid sixties American cop car (I'm thinking "In the Heat of the Night"... Rod Steiger...gum chewing Southern bigoted sheriff...two teens necking by the lake)...

Still possible

lefthander · 72 Eastern Beaver Relay kit question(s) Fri May 29, 2020 9:08 pm

lefthander

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Hoping I can get some help here. I have installed the E.B. relay kit with the auxiliary light install wire option on my 1992 K75. Once I installed the kit I turned the ignition on and the headlight came on. When I went back to my battery I removed the negative terminal but my digital clock was still on.
I don't have the electrical experience or knowledge to comprehend why this may be. Any suggestions of why would be appreciated. I don't want to damage the electrical on my bike.

Part 2: The auxiliary wire from the E.B. kit is a single red wire. It is supposed to tie into my hi beam switch. My auxiliary lights have two wires each. They are Warn HID lights. Any thoughts on how to wire into my bike? It's a big ask but reading the posts here there is some deep knowledge.

Also a side note: I bought a ceramic h4 bulb socket on amazon, however it did not fit inside my headlight surround. There is not enough room behind the socket to fit. The one I purchased has the wires coming straight out of the back. The one I need should be like the oem socket where the wires come out of the side area or at a 90 degree angle.
The Eastern Beaver kit I purchased is well made and easy to install.

Thanks in advance for any help.

robmack · 73 Re: Headlight upgrade experiences Sat May 30, 2020 5:53 am

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lefthander wrote:Hoping I can get some help here. I have installed the E.B. relay kit with the auxiliary light install wire option on my 1992 K75. Once I installed the kit I turned the ignition on and the headlight came on. When I went back to my battery I removed the negative terminal but my digital clock was still on.
I don't have the electrical experience or knowledge to comprehend why this may be. Any suggestions of why would be appreciated. I don't want to damage the electrical on my bike..

When you disconnected your negative lead, where did you disconnect it? From the battery or from the frame? Depending on how you wired the EB kit, you may still be getting a ground connection through the headlight circuit.

lefthander · 74 Headlight upgrade w/ Eastern Beaver Sat May 30, 2020 7:57 pm

lefthander

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I took the battery negative terminal off from the bolt that attaches the negative terminal onto the frame and left it attached to the battery post. Can you tell me if I should disconnect at the battery? I opened up the headlight surround to make sure there wasn't a loose wire or any wire with copper exposed. I used posilocks for the connections and encased them with heat shrink wrapping. I pulled the red wire for the auxiliary lights out of the headlight surround and that is not touching anything metal. I followed the E.B. install instructions carefully, but maybe I did something incorrect?

Laitch · 75 Re: Headlight upgrade experiences Sat May 30, 2020 8:21 pm

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lefthander wrote:I took the battery negative terminal off from the bolt that attaches the negative terminal onto the frame and left it attached to the battery post.

If the battery ground cable's ring terminal that was attached to the transmission or frame is making any contact with metal, it is possible to it to establish an electrical connection. When I disconnect that end of the cable during storage of the moto, I tape the terminal.

lefthander · 76 Headlight upgrade w/ Eastern Beaver Sat May 30, 2020 8:33 pm

lefthander

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I will tape the negative terminal end to see if it changes anything. I hung it near the plastic cover that my BMW auxiliary plug is attached to. There is no metal connection that I can see. Is there any concern regarding this issue that could cause electrical damage or danger?

robmack · 77 Re: Headlight upgrade experiences Sat May 30, 2020 10:08 pm

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lefthander wrote:I took the battery negative terminal off from the bolt that attaches the negative terminal onto the frame and left it attached to the battery post.

Bizarre. Taking the negative cable off of the frame should completely break any return path back to the battery, and definitely prevent the clock from working.

I suspect your concern is that you have a parasitic draw on the battery that could deplete the battery's charge over time. To support a parasitic draw of current, there has to be a complete circuit back to the battery's negative terminal. By removing the ground strap at the frame, you've eliminated all ground return from the bike's OEM circuitry. However, I suspect you still have the power and return wires from the EA relay both firmly attached to the battery. Thus, you have a potential ground return path through the EA relay. If you still have the bike's headlight plugged into the EA relay, you've now effectively grounded the bike's circuitry through the EA's ground wire. That's probably why the clock still operates. I suggest that you unplug the headlight and see if the clock goes out.

charlie99 · 78 Re: Headlight upgrade experiences Sat May 30, 2020 10:13 pm

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robmack wrote:

lefthander wrote:I took the battery negative terminal off from the bolt that attaches the negative terminal onto the frame and left it attached to the battery post.

Bizarre. Taking the negative cable off of the frame should completely break any return path back to the battery, and definitely prevent the clock from working.

I suspect your concern is that you have a parasitic draw on the battery that could deplete the battery's charge over time. To support a parasitic draw of current, there has to be a complete circuit back to the battery's negative terminal. By removing the ground strap at the frame, you've eliminated all ground return from the bike's OEM circuitry. However, I suspect you still have the power and return wires from the EA relay both firmly attached to the battery. Thus, you have a potential ground return path through the EA relay. If you still have the bike's headlight plugged into the EA relay, you've now effectively grounded the bike's circuitry through the EA's ground wire. That's probably why the clock still operates. I suggest that you unplug the headlight and see if the clock goes out.

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lefthander · 79 Headlight upgrade w/ Eastern Beaver Sat May 30, 2020 11:28 pm

lefthander

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Thank you for helping,
I unplugged the E.B. connector from the bulb with the negative battery terminal still detached from the frame. The digital clock is on but when I turn the ignition key on the numbers dim then go out. The red oil level light comes on at that point dimly. I do hear the relays click when I turn the ignition key on. Seems like a very little bit of current is there. The E.B. positive contact as well as the negative contact are both attached to the battery securely. When I remove the negative wire from the E.B. kit the digital clock will go out then.

Point-Seven-five · 80 Re: Headlight upgrade experiences Sun May 31, 2020 9:04 am

Point-Seven-five

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I realize this is a stupid question, but have you looked at the negative battery terminal to see how many wires are connected there?

Laitch · 81 Re: Headlight upgrade experiences Sun May 31, 2020 9:40 am

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lefthander wrote: I used posilocks for the connections . . .

What are the colors of the wires to which you attached the Posilocks?

lefthander · 82 Eastern Beaver Relay kit question(s) Sun May 31, 2020 8:05 pm

lefthander

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On my bike battery I have two wires to the negative terminal not including the main negative cable from the bike. One of the wires goes to my Garmin 396 lmt-s gps. The other wire on the negative terminal goes to the E.B. relay kit.
When I connected the wires in the headlight surround I cut and connected the yellow wire from my headlight to the yellow wire supplied with the E.B. kit. I then cut and connected the white wire from my headlight to the white wire from the E.B. kit. I also cut the brown ground wire from the original headlight set up, taped the end securely so no copper wire would be exposed. I then taped it back into the headlight bucket securely making sure it would not contact any part of the metal headlight surround.

lefthander · 83 Eastern Beaver Relay kit question(s) Sun May 31, 2020 10:35 pm

lefthander

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Can anyone tell me where the little brass clip goes when reassembling the headlight? It was sitting in the bottom of my headlight surround when I opened it up. It's the basic k75 model with a round headlight.

Point-Seven-five · 84 Re: Headlight upgrade experiences Sun May 31, 2020 10:54 pm

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I have another even more stupid(or is that stupider?) question: In post #72 you start this train of thought by saying that you installed the relays, turned on the ignition and had the headlight come on. This sounds perfectly normal to me.

Then you say you removed the negative battery cable from the screw on the side of the transmission. You didn't mention a problem that would be a reason to disconnect that wire. So here's my question: Why did you disconnect that wire?

As far as the electrical system allowing the clock and the oil pressure idiot light to work, you may have current leaking back to the battery through the headlight wiring. The headlight on the bike gets power through a convoluted path that includes a load shed relay and the windings of the starter motor. if you consider that the clock only draws a miniscule milliamp or two it's easy for me to believe that enough current is finding it's way back to the negative terminal to operate the clock.

Put the negative cable back and see if everything works properly, then get back to us.

lefthander · 85 Eastern Beaver Relay kit question(s) Sun May 31, 2020 11:55 pm

lefthander

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When I got everything wired up I wanted to organize the order of which negative wires were placed on the negative terminal on the battery. I put the negative cable on the battery post 1st. My thinking is that it would be the last lead I would need to take off. I then put the E.B. negative on the neg. post as that would be more of a permanent install. The last neg. wire goes to my gps. When doing this while the wires were off I noticed the digital clock was on.
I have wired everything back up and everything seems to operate properly. Just seemed beyond my knowledge to grasp how the clock stayed on. I didn't want any damage to occur to the electrical as I'm planning a big cross country trip soon. Anyway I'm probably over thinking this.
I also received an email from Jim @ E.B. and he stated not to put a Ceramic H4 socket in place of the one supplied with the kit. Also said to stick with a regular H4 bulb instead of a higher powered bulb. May be because of liability issues, but I'm following his advice. He also said that the aux. wire that came with my kit is not to be used with hid aux. lights. Only for running lights.
Also do you know where the little brass clip goes on the headlight bucket for reinstall purposes?
Thank you everyone for help and guidance with this issue.

robmack · 86 Re: Headlight upgrade experiences Mon Jun 01, 2020 12:13 am

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The clock was on because there was a complete circuit between the battery positive and negative terminals. If you want the clock to turn off, remove all the wires connected to the negative terminal of the battery, including your EA relay and GPS. then the clock will go out.

BobT · 87 Re: Headlight upgrade experiences Mon Jun 01, 2020 4:36 am

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Before anyone tries using aircraft electrical parts, test them on the bench to avoid disappointment. Most aircraft have a 28 volt system which will give about as much light as your instruments do when supplied with the 12 volts from the bike.

brickrider2 · 88 Re: Headlight upgrade experiences Mon Jun 01, 2020 6:28 pm

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"Also do you know where the little brass clip goes on the headlight bucket for reinstall purposes?"

Can you be more specific about this little brass clip?

lefthander · 89 Re: Headlight upgrade experiences Mon Jun 01, 2020 11:13 pm

lefthander

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This brass clip is small at apx 5/16 inch by 7/16. It looks to be brass. all the corners are squared. It is folded over in half. On one side that is folded over about half it bends at aprx. 45 degrees. I can't find it in any headlight photos.

brickrider2 · 90 Re: Headlight upgrade experiences Mon Jun 01, 2020 11:48 pm

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It's a tough call without knowing what bike you are working on. However, it could be the same clip that puzzled me the first time I removed the fairing side panel on my K1100LT to do the valves. That clip (I finally discovered) is used between two fairing panels forward near the nose/headlight. It was not related to the headlight at all, it just held the side panel to the front fairing panel and had a mate on the right side of the bike as well.
It turned out it was a handy thing to have when working alone and holding the panel in place when starting the other fasteners. Good luck.

lefthander · 91 Eastern Beaver Relay kit question(s) Tue Jun 02, 2020 12:03 am

lefthander

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Thank you for the help.

Laitch · 92 Re: Headlight upgrade experiences Tue Jun 02, 2020 12:36 am

Laitch

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lefthander wrote:This brass clip is small at apx 5/16 inch by 7/16. It looks to be brass.. . .

Post a photo of it. There are at least two versions of photo posting instructions in the Forum Functionality section.

Dai · 93 Re: Headlight upgrade experiences Tue Jun 02, 2020 5:30 am

Dai

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It's a spire nut judging by the description ('captive nut' in the US, I guess).

brickrider2 · 94 Re: Headlight upgrade experiences Tue Jun 02, 2020 1:49 pm

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Went back and read the description again - and of the model of the bike as well - mea culpa. With a round headlight, that mystery clip must be the thing that secures the headlight bezel to the "bucket". The clip fits into the bottom of the bucket and receives the threaded fastener that passes through the bezel.
Or, it's something else Razz

Laitch · 95 Re: Headlight upgrade experiences Tue Jun 02, 2020 2:12 pm

Laitch

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brickrider2 wrote: Or, it's something else

It's something else. Smile

Point-Seven-five · 96 Re: Headlight upgrade experiences Tue Jun 02, 2020 3:11 pm

Point-Seven-five

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Do one of these photos look like your mystery part?

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Laitch · 97 Re: Headlight upgrade experiences Tue Jun 02, 2020 3:26 pm

Laitch

Life time member

Number of posts : 3261

Point-Seven-five wrote:Do one of these photos look like your mystery part?

Impossible! He didn't indicate the dovetail cutouts, and the angle of the bend on the underside seems only 22.5º. Would you mind checking that with a protractor? Laughing

Point-Seven-five · 98 Re: Headlight upgrade experiences Tue Jun 02, 2020 3:37 pm

Point-Seven-five

Life time member

Number of posts : 4220

Unfortunately, the photos were lifted from MaxBMW. I can't get a protractor on them.

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