Finally decided on aux lighting

[G-Rex]

I finally pulled the trigger on aux lights for my RT.

 

I had been going back and forth over good halogens, retrofit HID's for the stock headlamp, etc. for a while now.

 

Had to say the heck with it and just do it right. Hella Micro DE Xenon HIDs. These should do the trick I think.

 

[Danny caddyshack Noonan]

Nice.

Converted my MicroDEs to HID....awesome. They have the fog pattern but it is a full fog pattern.

[johnlt]

I'm using the same ones. It was a bitch finding a place for the ballasts.

[Nesbocaj]

I have been in the same "which light" dilemma, these have been at the top $$ of my list.

 

Please let us know how you like them!

[johnlt]

Even though I have the Hella Micro HIDs, I'd take a hard look at some of the new high power LED lights. My lights are 5 years old and ballasts wwere a real pain to mount. The LED technology has really improved and I think there are some real options there with no ballasts to mount and much lower power draw.

[CruisinCruzan]

I also had those on my RT on BMR mounts. In addition I converted my low beams to HID. I could easily place all 4 ballasts under the dash. I did not have the radio option. I spliced in a waterproof switch that in the on position the lights were slaved to the high beam. When I traded in the RT I took off the lights and I am trying to figure out where to mount them on my GTL. Spend a few minutes aiming them properly.

[Peter Parts]

I wonder if you've considered all the drivers blinded by brights coming over a hill? Doubly so for fog patterns. Even for folks who swear never in their life have they ever once shined their HIDs in anybody's eyes.

 

Maybe you'll be lucky and all of them will hit trees to the right side of the road instead of oncoming traffic on the left side (that's you).

 

Stock headlights have very precise asymmetric illumination patterns ground into the headlight so as to minimize that kind of blinding.

 

Like the selfish folks who double-park on busy streets... "only for a minute"

 

Ben

[ElevenFifty]

I have only stock lighting and have ridden in front of guys with aux lights that were annoying in daylight and blinding in the rear view mirrors at night.

 

That said ... I remember a night in New Mexico when I would have given anything to see further into pitch blackness after passing a dead cow on the side of the road. Before this summer's 7000 mile tour of the west, I will install aux lighting but with handlebar mounted control. I expect to use it quite sparingly.

[G-Rex]

If you're trying to make me feel bad or guilty for upgrading the lighting, it's not happening.

 

To answer your question, yes, I have considered the repercussions of additional lighting. If you go back and look, you'll see that I originally pondered the aux lighting question over a year ago. Did I do nothing then because I didn't have time, money, or whatever? No. I've been seriously debating the best way to approach the problem and minimize the impact to those around me.

 

I'm also a *if it's going to make you look like a douchebag, don't do it* mentality when it comes to my riding. Hauling ass in traffic, cutting off cars, etc all come to mind. Before I do something, I think about how my actions will be seen by those that do not ride. Do we all do that? I would hope so.

 

For my intended use of the lights, affecting oncoming traffic will absolutely be minimized by design. My intention is to direct the lights generally towards the shoulder, for critter illumination. I will be testing, etc to make sure I aim correctly such that oncoming traffic has no more impact from me than anybody else on the road that runs factory headlights, fog lamps, HIDs, etc.

 

Ever look at a flashlight head on? Blinds the hell out of you. Turn it a few degrees to one side of the other, it's tolerable even at very close distance. Same premise.

 

Plus, I do not intend to run the lights in town anyway. They are not going to be slaved to the high beams. I am going to wire them in to be powered on/off with the existing fog lamp switch on the dash, so they will be 100% independent of the headlights.

 

So yeah, I've thought about all those other drivers. I don't double park either, ever.

 

 

I wonder if you've considered all the drivers blinded by brights coming over a hill? Doubly so for fog patterns. Even for folks who swear never in their life have they ever once shined their HIDs in anybody's eyes.

 

Maybe you'll be lucky and all of them will hit trees to the right side of the road instead of oncoming traffic on the left side (that's you).

 

Stock headlights have very precise asymmetric illumination patterns ground into the headlight so as to minimize that kind of blinding.

 

Like the selfish folks who double-park on busy streets... "only for a minute"

 

Ben

[AZRTRDR]

I just switched out my fork mounted Vision-X LED lights with their euro beam pattern to a spot beam so that there is less light splatter.

I use mine as conspicuous lights that are on all of the time. The spot pattern allows me to better control the light' s aim.

[Peter Parts]

I can see we have no moral or even practical disagreement here - just a matter of degree, and we all would love to have great lighting sometimes but...

 

I've been reading two books about how misguided we are in our judgments very often and how we can do better (one is Kahneman's Thinking, Fast and Slow... Nobel guy, great book). So let me make a statistical argument that applies to double-parking and to dazzling headlights.

 

Here goes: what if everybody double-parked just three times a year, would that result in a world with a whole lot of annoyance or not much? I'd say even on that slight basis, city streets would be judged awful.

 

Likewise, even if you (and everybody with HID lights) flip the dazzle lights off in time when on-coming traffic is coming almost all the time (and even with them lowered they often dazzle at some angles), all the folks over 45 would still be miffed.

 

Ben