headlight upgrades

Hey everyone. I took a ride on the bike last night and almost ran into a cow! :ohmy: I don't know about you, but when you can't see a cow in the middle of the road on a clear night it's time to do something. I know some of you have either upgraded the bulbs, or changed out the entire headlight assy. I'm a bang for buck guy, and could use some ideas along with possibly some pics. I would like to go halogen, but I'm worried about the strain on the charging system. Ideas, thoughts, projects, implimentations, or what ever, just throw them at me so I can come with an aproach that's best for my purposes. Thanks.

rivieracadman wrote:

I would like to go halogen, but I'm worried about the strain on the charging system. Ideas, thoughts, projects, implimentations, or what ever, just throw them at me so I can come with an aproach that's best for my purposes. Thanks.

My charging system is also crap, but I was able to install a second light.

I bought a set of those little "driving lights" from some dude on eBay, and installed ONE of them on the 750. I mounted it to where my front brake "T" thing (with the pressure switch) is. It's alittle off-center, but whatever. Quick and dirty. And, 50 more watts at the flip of a switch.

Mind you, I can't run very long with it because of the load (I watch my LED charging system gauge), but it's a nice splash of light when I need it.....

I bought the brightest bulb they sold at Wal-Mart. It's quite a bit brighter, seems to help.

I found my Halogen 55/60 Watt H4 light at JC Whitney. Look for the 7" Conversion Halogen light, it's less than $20, and get the H4 bulb for $8. Your wiring will handle it fine, and it's an easy swap. The difference in light is eye-opening, or in your case cow-avoiding.
Your request comes up often, the web link to JC Whitney should be in the Links forum!

Kent

i have see the 7 inch replacement bulb housing and the h4 halogen together on ebay from a ebay store for 19.00 pluse shipping. i think it store was called ricepaddy.

This link is from the "old" KZrider forum archives.
It shows how to upgrade your headlight using a relay.

*There are two posts on the linked/page.

If you decide to do this upgrade? Get the relays with TWO number "87's" on them.
Also, use an inline fuse on your battery power line and read the disclaimer.
I used just one relay (to the hi-beam side of the bulb) it's a former cop bike w/heavy wire so the lo-beam (stock) wire can handle the "fifty-five" side of the 60/55 watt bulb.

The link;

kzrider.com/forum/viewthread.php?tid=4632&page=#pid28794


*first post shows; "before the relay"
*second post shows; "after the relay"(note the use of two relays, one for the hi-beam and one for the lo-beam.)

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P.S. This is a vast improvement. It really lights up the road.

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p.p.s. Origionaly I used a 100/80 (off road only) bulb, although it worked well, on-coming drivers were complaining way too much ! I have since read that if you change the headlight glass to European standard glass, it's different than USA standard glass and throws the light in a better pattern so a 100/80 bulb can be used and on-coming drivers won't be blinded.

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Post edited by: ~DW~, at: 2005/10/25 17:32

Thanks for the help everyone. I think I'm just going to upgrade the bulb for the moment. I'll wait for riding season is over before I get into it further.

I put a Halogen conversion in in the mid '80s and never had a problem. When I brought my bike out of 10 years storage, my low beam was out so I bought a NOS light at $65, having forgot that I had the Halogen. When I go to throw it in, I relized I had switch years earlier. :blink: Used the NOS for a while, then bought the $7.95 Halogen replacement bulb. Sold the NOS on ebay. THe Halogen is Much better at night.

I have a spare 7" Halogen coversion, just needs a new bulb if anyone is in need of one.

Rob

I would be interested in the Halogen conversion. I'm about 1 hour away from you.

Ron

I did the JC Whitney halogen conversion. Wow, what a difference. Cheap, and looks so much more modern too!

I have installed the ricepaddy halogen kit on both my own bike and my wife's kz650. $19 with the bulb. If you are worried about the work involved don't be, it is as easy as replacing your old sealed bulb for a new one. The brightest sealed bulb is only $4-5 dollars cheaper by the way, and will still be a lot dimmer dan H4.
I was really glad I did the conversion when I went camping at Mount Laguna with a bunch of friends some weeks ago, and my wife rode her bike up there after work, by herself, after dark. It was pitch black on windy mountain roads, and she told me saw tons of snakes, rabbits, etc. on the road. I felt a lot better knowing she could actually see where she was going. Still think she's a trooper...

What exactly did you guys order? Was it a complete refector and bulb? I know that the headlight on the 650 is pretty grimm :woohoo:
Does the newer halogen bulb use much more power??
I already have 3 relays, a fuel pump, a heated o2 sensor and an ecu that the stock charging system is running!!
Dave