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Joined: Aug 07, 2008 Posts: 17 Location: Santa Rosa, CA
Posted: Sat Aug 23, 2008 11:41 am Post subject: Brighter headlight? (sorry if this is addressed elsewhere)
My '82 GS450A still has it's stock 12V 30/40W incandescent headlight. It's miserable riding out in the sticks at night, as I'm always over riding my light. Can I get a 30/40W (or slightly hotter) halogen headlight to replace the stock light?
Thanks! _________________ Randy
´82 GS450A Suzukimatic
several problems here
1. a 30/40 halogen isn't really going to be that much brighter, it's just different technology
2. the shape of the bulb/sealed beam maybe be different resulting in fitment problems
3. if you want more light you need more wattage, will your charging system be able to suppy it?
Joined: Aug 07, 2008 Posts: 17 Location: Santa Rosa, CA
Posted: Sat Aug 23, 2008 12:51 pm Post subject:
jayel wrote:
several problems here
1. a 30/40 halogen isn't really going to be that much brighter, it's just different technology
2. the shape of the bulb/sealed beam maybe be different resulting in fitment problems
3. if you want more light you need more wattage, will your charging system be able to suppy it?
I thought that halogen was a more efficient technology, so a 30W halogen light would be brighter than a 30W sealed beam. I guess I could be wrong there. Knowing that the charging system/wiring probably couldn't handle more wattage was why I didn't ask where I could get a 60/70W, etc, replacement. _________________ Randy
´82 GS450A Suzukimatic
Joined: Feb 23, 2007 Posts: 330 Location: Orlando, FL
Posted: Sat Aug 23, 2008 1:28 pm Post subject:
well, you ARE right - halogen lights tend to be brighter, whiter than their equivalent-watt incandescant equivalents.
That said, usually the sealed beams are just that - sealed, so you can't just drop in a halogen bulb. You need, typically, to do some custom fitting to make the halogen bulb and reflector fit into the OEM shell and ring.
Or, you can replace the whole shell & ring with a new replacement. Not stock, but easy enough to do. I've done it on two old Japanese bikes: a Yamaha XS400 and a Kawasaki KZ400.
IMHO, its WELL worth it.
As for charging problems, well, if you went from a 30/40 watt setup to a 55/65 set up (as I did), you're not drawing TOO much more and I've found that as long as you don't spend a lot of time idling around the 'hood at 1500 rpm, but rather ride keeping revs up above 3500 rpm, your bike will be able to keep it's battery sufficiently charged. Both mine did. I put 10K miles in one year on that KZ400 with it's halogen light and never had a charging system problem.
Good luck with it.
I'll try and find a link to the place where I got my unit from.
Kirk
*edit* OK, here's the thread on the Kawasaki KZ400 forum where I got mine, and how it worked out for me. Back when I owned that bike. I'm KDN on that forum. By the way, my original assessment was spot on, although I got used to it, and never did anything further. I'd still recommend it over the OEM sealed beam.
Eventually, I sold that KZ400, but I put the OEM headlight shell and sealed beam back on, and kept the Halogen unit. I still have it, but I changed jobs and don't commute in the dark anymore, so I haven't gotten around to putting it on my current ride, an '83 Honda FT500 Ascot.
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