Off-road light as headlight? (KC Daylighter, Hella, etc)

[the_nutt]

I want to run a KC SlimLite as my headlight, but have a feeling it's going to pull too much power. What is the output of my current setup (details below)? What does a standard automotive headlight on "bright" pull?

I appreciate any thoughts and help! Thanks in advance!

72 XS650
PAMCO ignition
HHB PMA System

Light:
http://www.kchilites.com/light-type/halogen/slim-lite/6-slimlite.html

 

[fredintoon]

Hi nutt,
stock XS650 High beam pulls 55Watts.
The lowest power bulb that the Slimlite comes with is 100Watts.
Most likely if you swapped all the other lights for LEDs you'd come close to if not balance the alternator's output.
BUT
The Slimlite only has one filament so it can't be dipped so it ain't legal to use it as a headlight.

 

[the_nutt]

Hi nutt,
stock XS650 High beam pulls 55Watts.
The lowest power bulb that the Slimlite comes with is 100Watts.
Most likely if you swapped all the other lights for LEDs you'd come close to if not balance the alternator's output.
BUT
The Slimlite only has one filament so it can't be dipped so it ain't legal to use it as a headlight.

Thanks for the info, fredintoon. The only other light on my bike is an LED tail light, and now that I think about it, my H4 light ran both the low and high beams simultaneously for a bit when I had the switch wired incorrectly. So in theory it has already successfully pulled 100Watts, right?

Good to know about the legal standpoint as well, but I'm ok with risking it a bit if it will work functionally.

 

[fredintoon]

- - - Good to know about the legal standpoint as well, but I'm ok with risking it a bit if it will work functionally.

Hi nutt,
OK, even I ain't old enough to have seen one but my late pa-in-law told me about it.
They had dipping headlight laws back before they could make twin filament bulbs.
What they did was to physically move the headlight to a more downward position to dip it so yeah, the light really did dip rather than switch filaments.
You can do that, too.
Slacken the lamp mount so it'll swivel up and down, put a Doherty magneto lever on the bars with a bicycle derailleur cable and a spring to move the lamp should be all it takes to do it.
AND it'd look real trick.

 

[fredintoon]

Or just install a 100/55 H4 bulb and call it a day. - - -

Hi solo,
open nutt's link, eh?
http://www.kchilites.com/light-type/...-slimlite.html
That fancy lamp has a single filament bulb and thus a single contact bulb holder.
The only way to install a dual filament bulb is by swapping the existing bulb holder for a dual filament bulb holder and I betcha doing that would completely focus up the lamp's focus.

 

[fredintoon]

Hi solo,
nah, stock bucket & upgraded beam unit only makes sense if the nutt is building a bike.
From his posts I reckon he ain't doing that, he's creating an artwork.
What his dream needs is a way to make that 6" shallow bucket street-legal.
A mechanical dipper is a way to do that, eh?

 

[the_nutt]

Hi solo,
nah, stock bucket & upgraded beam unit only makes sense if the nutt is building a bike.
From his posts I reckon he ain't doing that, he's creating an artwork.
What his dream needs is a way to make that 6" shallow bucket street-legal.
A mechanical dipper is a way to do that, eh?

Yeah fredintoon you're right on the money. This bike is more about being fun and something I think is cool looking than a 100% legal daily rider. I'm most psyched on the KC Slim Lite because of its shallow depth. Looks like when I mount it it will live back in the forks and not protrude much. I also opted for the "Fog" beam pattern, which should keep it from being way up in oncoming traffic's eyeballs, and has additional width to light the sides of country roads for deer spotting, etc.

That would really come down to his state laws. That aside, I doubt that light is DOT approved anyway.

My bike is already barely street legal anyway. Tagged as an antique, it doesn't have to be inspected at all, but I'm also only supposed to drive it to/from maintenance, or to/from parades or shows. Of the three different 70's bikes I've had while living in Texas, they have all been tagged as antique and driven regularly, and even when pulled over no officer has ever questioned me regarding the restrictions I mentioned above.

 

[the_nutt]

Now, that said... I'm a little confused on how I should wire this puppy. My bike is currently running with a PAMCO and Hugh's PMA. My tail and head light have their own independent grounds.

The KC diagram looks like they want me to use a relay and a grounded switch... also the switch AND relay get hooked into the power supply (fuse)? Any suggestions or tweaks?

 

[fredintoon]

Hi nutt,
Gawd! That looks like an insanely complicated way to wire up a headlight.
Run a wire from your on/off light-switch to an aftermarket dip-switch and then run two wires from the dip-switch to the headlight bulb's filaments and make sure to ground the bulb properly.

 

[the_nutt]

Hi nutt,
Gawd! That looks like an insanely complicated way to wire up a headlight.
Run a wire from your on/off light-switch to an aftermarket dip-switch and then run two wires from the dip-switch to the headlight bulb's filaments and make sure to ground the bulb properly.

There's only two wires coming out of the KC bucket, so I'll have to pop it open and see how/if it's currently grounded.

Is there any benefit to running a relay, or should I just direct wire it like my current light is wired?