Jumpy Headlight

I just saw one on ebay the other day!!! I'll look and send you a auction #
By the way, I just won a NOS 1976 900 LTD inside right side exhaust pipe off ebay.
Pat

Please ignore the rust. It looks like my bracked could be tightened a bit...

Click on pictures for uncropped originals. The originals are quite large, but show positioning better. The images here are cropped, and the file sizes are fairly small to be kind to dialup users. The first two show underneath the headlight, and the third shows a side shot with the adjuster.

From the side:

ltdrider...open your shell and check the connector on the back of your headlight. I had mine come loose two times and cause my headlight to flash/jump around. I finally got smart (yeah right) and bent the prongs out a bit so it makes a more snug connection. No more problems. I bet that's what's happening.

Chet's is NOT the same as the ones on 900-1000's.
But he's helping more than I am
And I'm pretty sure the 900 LTD didn't have a headlight "stabilizer".. Just the black metal bracket that holds the headlight instead of the chrome "ears" like a standard Z,or KZ.
I remember thinking the same thing ( jumping headlight ) when I got my new 1976 900 LTD. And when looking at Parts Fish they don't show one either.
I'm still looking for that ebay auction too. But you can go to PartsFish and look up a 1974 900, Z1 HEADLIGHT, and it shows it as part #21, BRACKET, HEADLIGHT.
Pat

Thanks again for everyone's help. Chet, your pics helped to see what the others were talking about...many thanks.

I'm going to give savedrider's advice a try... open up the light and see if something's loose inside. The front end is smooth on the road (well, pretty smooth), so the light SHOULD be steady.
I'll let you know what I find.

Guess I was no help:unsure: sniff, sniff:(
Just kidding !!

Post edited by: patmann, at: 2005/11/16 11:08

Hey, I'm just glad the pics restored my own sanity! Ron's got more 650's than I do by far, so I was beginning to think I'd just imagined the bracket!

FWIW: The bracket I have (somewhere in the mess) is similar to that shown in the pics except it IS different as I figured it fastened on the brake splitter... I do recall that it was slotted on the one end for side to side adjust but I didn't think it was on the other end as the one shown... I think it would be fairly easy to fab one if you can't find one on eBay.

wiredgeorge wrote:

FWIW: The bracket I have (somewhere in the mess) is similar to that shown in the pics except it IS different as I figured it fastened on the brake splitter... I do recall that it was slotted on the one end for side to side adjust but I didn't think it was on the other end as the one shown... I think it would be fairly easy to fab one if you can't find one on eBay.

George, yours is the same as what I have for my Z1.

I took the headlamp out of the bucket. The two screws that hold the lamp to the chrome ring were loose. Looks like a rubber washer had dried up some, and the lamp could jiggle a little. I tightend the screws (phillips screwdriver and 11mm wrench), and replaced the lamp in the bucket. Took about 20 minutes (took ten minutes to get the lamp to snap back into the bucket). Problem solved.

Sometimes it's the simplest things:)
A pleasant supprise isn't it ??
Glad it worked out!
Pat

I'll have to say I was right on this one, brag.
Glad it's fixed, nothing worse than a fabulous looking motorcycle with a problem.
RonKZ650 wrote:

Even without the bottom bolt, the headlight beam should not jump. You can tell by holding your headlight as you are driving and see if the whole headlight is actually moving. If the headlight is not moving, but the beam is still jumping around, you may just have a bad headlight bulb, or something loose on how it is mounted to the shell.