LED's, Screen and Swingarm questions

[furygan man]

LED's

I'm sorry for my lack of knowledge but i'd like to know if i can enhance the rear lighting. I've currently got 24 cluster LED lights which reflects a little light on the reflector but is mainly consentrated as a small round glow, my question is can i buy a red LED 'strip' you see on Ebay and glue it around the edge of the reflector and then splice onto the existing wiring out the back...not being very understanding of electrics will i just get them working as running lights or will they glow brighter when the brakes are applied?

Mille Swingarm

I think i may be going down this route, black or silver I'm still undecided on, i prefer the angle and look of the 94/95> but understand there is a clearence issue with the battery holder, although i have the smaller battery i'm not sure how to resolve the issue and so may be easier to stick with an earlier model? Question is do i need to get another chain as i may have read somewhere it needs to be slightly longer? I have standard spockets front and back, is there anything else i need to source whilst i'm looking? I have a 03 Sachs shock and linkage to fit at the sametime and pos take the cans hi level if the link pipes are affordable/workable

Screen

Also thinking of cutting the screen down so it's flush with the top of the fairing, i know Nooj and Paddy have done various versions, is a hand held saw best or a jigsaw? Afterwards do you just smooth it down with sand paper?

Thanks in advance

[paddyz1]

LED's

I'm sorry for my lack of knowledge but i'd like to know if i can enhance the rear lighting. I've currently got 24 cluster LED lights which reflects a little light on the reflector but is mainly consentrated as a small round glow, my question is can i buy a red LED 'strip' you see on Ebay and glue it around the edge of the reflector and then splice onto the existing wiring out the back...not being very understanding of electrics will i just get them working as running lights or will they glow brighter when the brakes are applied?

Mille Swingarm

I think i may be going down this route, black or silver I'm still undecided on, i prefer the angle and look of the 94/95> but understand there is a clearence issue with the battery holder, although i have the smaller battery i'm not sure how to resolve the issue and so may be easier to stick with an earlier model? Question is do i need to get another chain as i may have read somewhere it needs to be slightly longer? I have standard spockets front and back, is there anything else i need to source whilst i'm looking? I have a 03 Sachs shock and linkage to fit at the sametime and pos take the cans hi level if the link pipes are affordable/workable

Screen

Also thinking of cutting the screen down so it's flush with the top of the fairing, i know Nooj and Paddy have done various versions, is a hand held saw best or a jigsaw? Afterwards do you just smooth it down with sand paper?

Thanks in advance

I have LED tail lights that are cluster type but they also have the led's around the sides and give off good light. Can't remember where i got them from but it was on the net.

Also done the Mille conversion and i need to get another chain because the original needs new links. I am not comfortable with adding two new soft links so i am getting a new C&S set.

I would use a hand held saw if you are cutting the screen down. I would also do it while it is still fixed to the bike otherwise you will have to find a way to hold it when you could be using your other hand to guide the blade (you get one chance only). Afterwards i just sanded the edge down but i was lucky to have a strip to fit over the edge.

HTH

[furygan man]

I have LED tail lights that are cluster type but they also have the led's around the sides and give off good light. Can't remember where i got them from but it was on the net.

Yeah i have the cluster, think it was one of your posts from a few moons back that pointed them out but i want to put a 'strip' around the edge of each reflector as well

I would use a hand held saw if you are cutting the screen down. I would also do it while it is still fixed to the bike otherwise you will have to find a way to hold it when you could be using your other hand to guide the blade (you get one chance only). Afterwards i just sanded the edge down but i was lucky to have a strip to fit over the edge.

Saw (no punn!) the video...that's what gave me the idea

Thanks for the reply Paddy and getting the ball rolling, still looking for techy answers anyone else out there?!!

[Aladinsaneuk]

I am currently playing with some led strips and broadly speaking I do not see any problems with what you have in mind.....

Hanna's bike has the cluster type bulbs and they are fine tbh - but i did add to the reflector area if that makes sense

[anzacinexile]

With either swinger the standard length chain is fine - the distance from gearbox shaft to rear axle is the same as the standard swinger. Speedo and brake cables are OK as well - JUST.

I have the curvy Millie fitted but I remember a thread "on the other side" where they did get the newer angular jobbie to fit. If memory serves they had to relocate the battery under the passenger seat (stretching cables obviously) and hacksaw of the battery holder completely to give enough clearance

[furygan man]

I have the curvy Millie fitted but I remember a thread "on the other side" where they did get the newer angular jobbie to fit. If memory serves they had to relocate the battery under the passenger seat (stretching cables obviously) and hacksaw of the battery holder of completely to give enough clearance

Well that's enough to put me of that then!! Been reading throug the old posts over the last 4-5 years and sme thing came up, seems the Dutch guys favour it and AF1

[Falcopops]

IIRC someone (BEF?) has no clearance issues with the new swinger, but he could have modified the suspension some, you may already have seenthat on AF1.

The 12v LED strips will not change brightness when joined to the brake/tail circuits. Both of these circuits will merely supply a voltage to the strips an they will light up with the same brightness. You could put resistors in the circuits that would result in a dimmer tail and brighter brake light, but that just further complicates things

I use a custom (home made) board with 5 rows of LED's. Rows 2 and 4 are connected to the tail circuit and lines 1,3 and 5 are connected to the brake circuit. All the rows are equally as bright as mentioned above, but the effect of the 3 additional rows lighting up with the brakes makes the light appear brighter. See the crappy cell phone vid below, ignore the indicators and slurred commentary

[Aladinsaneuk]

I think the idea was to actually increase the surface area of light source, not the brightness....

I could however have misread it lol

[furygan man]

The 12v LED strips will not change brightness when joined to the brake/tail circuits. Both of these circuits will merely supply a voltage to the strips an they will light up with the same brightness. You could put resistors in the circuits that would result in a dimmer tail and brighter brake light, but that just further complicates things

Pop goes the bubble...that's what i feared otherwise everyone would have done it by now! Spoke to my brother-in-law and he thinks he can rig something up but lacks the time. Wish i understood how the brake works as i knew it wouldn't be as straight forward. Like the pics by the way very informative...just wish i understood electronics!

I think the idea was to actually increase the surface area of light source, not the brightness....

Well originally yes but i just wondered if they would get brighter, but obviously they won't unless i have two rows and contect to different curcuits similar to above...just depends on the room around the reflector, proberbly won't work so just having the extra running lights around the edge would be a decent compromise

[Falcopops]

THESE might be useful Not sure of the fitting, but there a number of them

[furygan man]

THESE might be useful Not sure of the fitting, but there a number of them

mmm...can't see these fitting in the Falco lens!

I think Nooj needs to come out of retirement and create another supply of homemade rear clusters!!...We could start a campain?

[Falcopops]

Once I get my act together I'm intending to make up a new board or two, just for fun?

If you can wait I'd be happy to offer you 1st refusal on whatever I have spare.

I'd offer to make you a set, but I couldn't commit to a timescale so not really a useful plan.

TBH there are a number of off the shelf LED bulbs that would do what you want, check AF1, I think there is a recent thread on this very issue.

HERE it is

Ah! since you've already posted on this thread then I'll get back in me box.

[furygan man]

That's okay...in no hurry and may even rig something up before next Spring anyway, let's see what happens then. The AF1 thread was interesting but boy do you need some electrical know-how to follow what was going on!!

[furygan man]

I use a custom (home made) board with 5 rows of LED's. Rows 2 and 4 are connected to the tail circuit and lines 1,3 and 5 are connected to the brake circuit. All the rows are equally as bright as mentioned above, but the effect of the 3 additional rows lighting up with the brakes makes the light appear brighter

Have been thinking again about this and what i'm hoping to do is run two red LED strips around the edge and connect one to the tail lights and one to the brake curcuit, question is when you say the brake curcuit is that straight forward RE the wiring out the back? Hoping to work on the bike at the weekend, if i have the two wires from the LED where do i connect them for the different brake and light curcuits...is it just trial and error as to which wires i connect, am i right in thinking that there's 3 wires from memorey?

Sorry for the crudness but this is all new to me?

[furygan man]

Ah the fun to be had with an assortment of LED strips a glue gun, some imagination, forum advice and the other half out shopping for the whole day

There's is a fine line between taste and 'pimping my ride' which i'm trying hard to stay on the right side of!!

Also took 2" off the screen, caused a bit of a split but hopfully the edging will hold it in place? Got some funny looks from the neighbours though!!