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HID Lightning vs Incandescent bulbs
just happening to be installing some H3 HID bulbs in my mc when the subject came up in another thread on the site and figured i'd post some amp readings I took before and after both on 55W headlight bulbs and H3 driving lights,had to use a car 55W bulb since i seem to have lost any 9003's(H4) that i used to use, i've had HID that long
HID ballasts have progressed so much in the last five years that the watts required to run the 35w HID bulbs has even dropped from an average of 3.5a
to about 2.2 at 14v and 2.7/8 at 13v using the new slim ballasts vs the old ultra slim ballasts
such new units would probably allow older 1200 with a standard stator to run a pair of 35w HID driving or fogs if they also had changed out the tailights to LED's,since my aspy has been poorboy'd and my sei has the large stator,have no way to test the theory,also there are extension cables available now that would probably be able to allow someone to mount the ballasts in the rear truck if needed,actually there is enough room to mount them in right storage area even if you have an air compressor

OLD STYLE Bulbs

Car 9005 (sub for a 9003 H4) 5.0 a @ 13v
55w H3 .............. ................... 5.1 a @ 13v
100w H3................................ 6.2 a @ 13v
55w H3 (blue)........................5.3 a @ 13v

HID bulbs and ballasts

H4-3 with old style 35W slim ballasts 3.5a @ 13v
H4-3 with new style 35W slim ballasts 2.8a @ 13v

H4-3 with new style ballasts................2.2a @ 14.2v

considering the wattages of old style 55/60w headlight bulbs and brakelights etc i believe that someone with a stock 1200 stator should be able to run HID headlights and 35w driving lights

and if you run a 1500 with dual headlight and want better lightning,a $50
HID system (or less)Honda Goldwing 1500 HID Kit Xenon Goldwing 1500 Bulbs Kits HIDs Headlights

installing an HID kit is slightly more complicated than changing out headlight bulbs,and since auto parts stores are charging approx $20 for the Sylvania Ultras,which at best are slightly better than than stock,tried them and wasted my money too,no excuse anymore for not being able to see at night when all the new cars are using the technologies,if not hid at least better designed reflectors,even worse 1200's only have one headlight whereas cagers and 1500 and 1800's have two
1987 Aspencade 129K
1986 SEI 93K
2014 Tri-Glide HD 17K

Hancock,MD
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#1 12-28-2013, 11:11 PM,
Great info neoracer and very helpful, thank you. One of these days I'll switch up to the HID system. For now, I find the Sylvania Silver Star bulb has made a tremendous difference in lighting. The stock original bulb made me very nervous when riding at night and I could easily outrun it. The Silver Star bulb has given me a great amount of extended vision. I'm looking forward to trying the HID system eventually because everyone I talk to about them tells me that the difference in lighting distance is incredible.
Ed (Vic) Belanger - 1954-2015
Founder of gl1200goldwings.com

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#2 12-29-2013, 06:46 PM,
lol....wait till ya see what the H3 HID does for my lower foglights.......headlights no longer needed except for no high beam
1987 Aspencade 129K
1986 SEI 93K
2014 Tri-Glide HD 17K

Hancock,MD
Reply
#3 12-29-2013, 06:51 PM,
Awesome. Interesting thing I find with HID's is that they are much brighter yet they don't blind oncoming drivers. I wonder why that is?
Ed (Vic) Belanger - 1954-2015
Founder of gl1200goldwings.com

Reply
#4 12-29-2013, 11:20 PM,
i do know that you can aim them further out on low beams w/o a problem,only time people seem to be bothered is when you are cresting a hill
1987 Aspencade 129K
1986 SEI 93K
2014 Tri-Glide HD 17K

Hancock,MD
Reply
#5 12-29-2013, 11:35 PM,
OK you 2, here is my delema. The new HID lights that everyone says are so bright and blinding on an oncoming vehicle, (at least that what my wife says) do not bother me at all. In fact, i do not see how they put out enough light to drive by. I must ad that my lack of color vission probly has to do a lot with this, but never the less, they look like they are hooked up to a dead battery to me. My concern is the not so great stock lighting on my 85 asp. I have done the alt conversion and am planning on installing a pair of 55w fisheye driving lights. they put out a nice flood but also have a good beam for distance, Im just worried about problems this may cause with oncoming trafic. I find the stock light not acceptable during cornering and cresting hills and do not want to cut MY vission everytime another vehicle approaches. Do the silver stars put out a nice bright white light like the old time sealed headlights? If so, I may consider that option before diving into mounting the aux. lights. Your input is appriciated. Thanks PS: I looked into HID lights for another vehicle a while ago, am i coredt in that they produce differant color light and not just the blue? just a thought
Professionals built the Titanic, amateurs built the Ark.
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#6 02-21-2014, 09:11 PM,
HID lighting with H4-3 bi-xenon bulbs using 5000K (white) lighting is superior to any standard GL1200 headlight bulb you can use at the present time,aimed correctly results in seldom bothering oncoming traffic,only rarely is high beam ever needed but will always result in oncoming traffic flipping their lights,
but during daylight hours cagers are easily aware a mc is approaching,even w/o running my driving lights

living in the country and often running backroads,the lighting has saved me numerous times from becoming painfully familiar with four legged creatures,often when they are way off the road,and i'd swear that deer cant see at night but wait until they can cross the road when a car or mc approaches

ever wonder why 1500's and 1800's came with dual headlights,probably because the engineers finally realized that every other vehicle had them and why not a mc,at least if one headlight went out there was a backup
1987 Aspencade 129K
1986 SEI 93K
2014 Tri-Glide HD 17K

Hancock,MD
Reply
#7 02-21-2014, 09:37 PM,
Thanks, I will look into this further (the HID lights)
Professionals built the Titanic, amateurs built the Ark.
Reply
#8 02-22-2014, 01:43 AM,
I have no problem with "bothering" oncoming traffic. That means they can see me. Many times at night I run high beam constantly.
A rainy day off beats a sunny day at work any time..................
Reply
#9 02-22-2014, 05:47 AM,
(02-22-2014, 05:47 AM)85GL1200I Wrote: I have no problem with "bothering" oncoming traffic. That means they can see me. Many times at night I run high beam constantly.

Not absolutely certain here, but, I would estimate that if my motorcycle blinded or bothered oncoming 50+ MPH traffic then perhaps I might want to find a method of lighting that corrected the blinding or bothering affect. Why? Well, if a wide, oncoming 4000 pound vehicle is approaching my 800 pound motorcycle and I have blinded that driver momentarily then just maybe I am placing myself at risk by blinding that oncoming driver for a split second possibly forcing him to place his vehicle in my bike's path simply because he cannot accurately distinguish where I am positioned on the road because I impaired his vision with my super bright lights. There are safety standards we should consider carefully when modifying our bikes and if we don't consider those standards then possibly we are placing our lives in peril. I'm all for better (not just brighter) lighting and I would hope that most everyone would try to be on the same page with this for our mutual safety on the road.
Ed (Vic) Belanger - 1954-2015
Founder of gl1200goldwings.com

Reply
#10 02-22-2014, 06:52 AM,
Vic, your comments are heard and well taken. I think most of the problems are caused when guys try to over adjust their lights to get more distance out of them. My low beam burned our last summer, and I had to ride high beam only for a time until I got a new bulb. During this time I noticed that I got very few flashes from oncoming cars. I attribute this to having my headlight properly adjusted, so it is not shooting "too high". My worst fear is encountering a deer and oncoming traffic at the same time.

Like Earl said, most problems are when cresting a hill, and I think that issue occurs no matter what bulb one has or high or low beam.
A rainy day off beats a sunny day at work any time..................
Reply
#11 02-23-2014, 06:50 AM,
" During this time I noticed that I got very few flashes from oncoming cars. I attribute this to having my headlight properly adjusted"

i would almost bet that most people don't know that the headlight can be opened and the reflector surface cleaned, may not be needed on some mc's but after 28 years or so some reflectors may be in poor shape,running a stock bulb and adjusted incorrectly, even high beams couldn't bother most people nowadays

after running a HID setup for 5 years any regular car or mc reminds me of using a candle instead a headlight unless its a newer car or truck
1987 Aspencade 129K
1986 SEI 93K
2014 Tri-Glide HD 17K

Hancock,MD
Reply
#12 02-23-2014, 09:33 AM,
(02-23-2014, 09:33 AM)neoracer Wrote: after running a HID setup for 5 years any regular car or mc reminds me of using a candle instead a headlight unless its a newer car or truck


It is amazing how those HID lights function, so much more illumination yet much less current draw and heat than incandescent bulbs which truly do look like candles compared to the HID system.
Ed (Vic) Belanger - 1954-2015
Founder of gl1200goldwings.com

Reply
#13 02-23-2014, 10:58 AM,
We have had the HID bi-xenon systems for 3 yrs now and will never go back to the other lights. And we have next to no oncoming vehicles flash us.. the superior lighting for night riding is a must since we use a lot of rural roads with critters trying to commit suicide. You can pick out their eyes a long distance away.
One night we were visiting with a couple of OPP officers at a tim hortons, and they said that it is the best thing that a bike owner can do.. giving added visibility from another vehicles prospective.
Also.. on my shadow 1100, the HID allows me to use heated jacket liner without taxing my electrical system.

Judy
'85 GL1200 Aspencade
'07 Shadow Sabre 1100
South of Sarnia, SW Ontario, Can
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#14 02-24-2014, 11:56 AM,
OK, I'm sold, I ride at night a lot - what do I need to convert to the HID bi-xenon system?

Neo, may we be making an excuse for a fish hoagie?? :-)
A rainy day off beats a sunny day at work any time..................
Reply
#15 02-24-2014, 02:48 PM,


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