Short bulb life., really short.

Hey everyone, new guy here. I just picked up a 1980 kz 750.



As you can see, the PO has some fun with the styling. Its not everyone's cup of tea but I dig it. I'm having a problem witht that head light though. It eats h4 bulbs at an alarming rate. I cant seem to get more than a day of two from one.

Got any ideas?

Post edited by: absolutepat, at: 2006/05/04 19:01

Post edited by: kzrider, at: 2006/05/05 10:01

I can't exactly see how that Stalag 13 headlight attaches but I'll bet it's vibrations that are 86ing the bulb. Got to isolate the headlight somehow. Other than that a short but I'd bet the light is hard mounted. They can take some abuse but not reai shocks. The older bikes had a real problem with that. Hope that helps.

i would check all of your grounds and check your bat voltage and see what the voltage reading is

Ya,I was having problems for 2 seasons,with bulbs popping way too prematurely.
Turned out(after a lot of investigating ) that it too,was from vibration.I have aftermarket signal lights on the bike,and during the installation,I modified the way they attached to the headlight bucket(had to) and in the process,I didn't use ALL of the factory rubber grommets,because of fitmant...well...after redoing the whole set-up,and making sure that there was more than enough rubber to dampen the vibration(made some up as well as the factory ones)...all is good now(crossing fingers):lol:
I was even using the "Heavy-Duty...for MOTORCYCLES" style "G.E." bulbs,and They wouldn't hold up either.
At around $12 each,and going through one every other ride...it was adding up...nevermind the hassles of having to change them all of the time...and the safety-factor.

The headlight is indeed mounted right to the bike, with no bushings or the like. Vibrations could certianly be the culprate. Think just insulating it with some rubber washers would be good enough? Or is there a better way?

Give it a shot if you can see a way to dampen the vibes a little you may be good to go. Butr for a while I would carry a extra bulb. Mooonlight is nice for a lot of things. Not driving tho. Luck!

Rubber washers MIGHT help,but I would try to go with something a little thicker than a washer.You might even have to bore holes through it for the bolts and what not,but You also don't want to tighten(compress) the rubber too much,as that could defeat the purpose of cushioning the set-up."Nylock" nuts work good too,because they WILL lock on even when You don't torque them tight.(use some threadlock as well,for peace of mind).
I used some factory rubbers and also used some pieces of some rubber matting that You see in some hockey arenas.We installed some a while agao,and I kept a chunk just for that reason.
Just remember...the more dampening,the better(to a point,anyway)
Good Luck,Bud.

On another note I see you have a fork bag on her. I'm not a big fan of these. Here is why. Air cooled engines dissapate hear pretty good. IE the fins and such. Inline 4's are pretty good also cause the wind hits the front where the headers and the jugs themselves recieve a good flow. The fork bag restricts a good amount of this flow. Thus you run hotter. Air cooled v-twins have this same problem with the forward jug shielding the back jug from the cool rush of air. Notice a lot of them are now water jacketed. Fork bags sure are a handy item but I don't think they are worth the additional heat buildup. Better to replace it with a nice oil cooler and get a backpack or tankbag if you need carrying space. Just call me Mr. Opinionated and tell me to MYOB:whistle:

Gotta say, Pat, you are one handsome devil.

Well, I went a whole week without loosing a bulb. I think the problem has been cured. Vibration was indeed the culprate. I managed to sqeeze 4 differnt rubber washers in 4 differnt spots on/around the headlight housing.

I didn't think about airflow in relation to the fork bag. I'm not totaly convinced it blocks enough to make a difference, but I'm certianly tinking about altneratives. It just makes for such a damn convientent place to keep a spare bulb and screw driver handy.

Nevco48, trying to set me up with that bitch in your avatiar?:S