This happend to me last nite (spooky bike story)

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OtisBlkR1

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I get off shift and start my Motorcycle (12:00 midnight), Ride through my very well lighted town and never even noticed my headlight was not working.. As im with traffic and headed out of town i realize something not right.. I pull over and it dawns on me MY HEADLIGHT NOT WORKING ! So i check my fuses, and they are good.. great now what do i do ? im 5 miles from home and its all 55 mph highway (no lighting) very little traffic. Im not calling family at 12:15 am and having my wife wake up the kids to come get me.. I dont want to be unsafe, Im certainly not going to drive without a light... HOLD THE PHONE.. I have my surefire Z-2 combat light on my duty belt.. So this guy knuckles the flashlight (a very bright light) and yes my taillight is working.. and zips it home.. let me tell you shifting gears and the flashlights beam shooting up in the air, even for a second is very spooky at speed.. I dont suggest it..

With that said i tore into the bike this morning, i replace the bulb and all i got was high beam.. lows not working.. I testlight (tested) the pigtail and i was only getting power on one of the two power wires coming in. I opened up the switch, cleaned what i could get to with compressed air then gave it a shot of WD.. nothing.. so im stumped.. I guess the low position on the switch could have given out..
 
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Was going to say, try both High/Low

FYI - I keep a spare bulb. Wrapped in foam and a couple plastic zip ties. Shoved in a void in the headlamp bucket.
Carrying a couple LED flashlights in the bag, one small, the other larger (EA-4) might be good enough taped to the bike as long as battery (NiMH-Eneloop's) power holds.
Just haven't lost a bulb yet on a bike.
 
Good move with the combat light
thumbsup2.gif


Very creative
 
Originally Posted By: OtisBlkR1
let me tell you shifting gears and the flashlights beam shooting up in the air, even for a second is very spooky at speed.. I dont suggest it..


Haha I know what you're talkin' about. As teens we've shut the lights off cruising in the middle of nowhere, pitch dark, and only momentarily just for thrills. That one second speeding blind down the road is a trip.

inb4- wreckless
 
My Triumph had a master light switch made by a company called 'Clear Hooters' it was a VERY poor substitute for a Lucas switch
(that kind of says it all!)

Well, on an unlit, twisty, country road, driving far too fast, miles from anywhere, this piece of Poop explodes out of the dashboard.
Pitch darkness......
I hit the brakes, then I remember the High Beam flasher.

It probably saved my Bacon.
 
Originally Posted By: expat
My Triumph had a master light switch made by a company called 'Clear Hooters' it was a VERY poor substitute for a Lucas switch
(that kind of says it all!)

Well, on an unlit, twisty, country road, driving far too fast, miles from anywhere, this piece of Poop explodes out of the dashboard.
Pitch darkness......
I hit the brakes, then I remember the High Beam flasher.

It probably saved my Bacon.


this was on the baby rocket, 04 250 ninja (my mile maker) no such luck on a flasher.. However this episode has now got me thinking about auxilary aftermarket lighting.
 
Does your headlight mute when you hit the start button? Maybe there's a bad contact in there or a relay somewhere?
 
Hard wired ? So you never have to decide to turn the lights on, your brain no longer has that function. I have to turn my lights on every morning....still, I had a blown low beam for some time before I noticed.
 
Legally required in the US for many years: motorcycle lights must come on with the ignition.

This is common on older Burgman scooters...the culprit is almost always the ignition switch.
 
On a related note, I almost pulled out in front of a guy on a bike with no headlight yesterday. I saw him at the last moment. I tried to tell him his light was out, but he wanted nothing to do with me. Oh well. It's a good reminder to check your lights every ride.
 
Worst was when I rejetted my carb and then had to get to school, engine would sometimes kill if you pulled the clutch and let it idle while coasting at speed. Didn't get long enough of a chance to mess with the idle during class breaks, but thought I figured it out. Rode home in the dark, and every once in a while, while coasting up to a stoplight or before a turn, the engine would kill. Problem is the bike can't run the headlight off of the battery, only a small running light which doesn't provide any illumination of the road, just enough light for other drivers to see you.
 
Originally Posted By: whip
I almost pulled out in front of a guy on a bike with no headlight yesterday. I saw him at the last moment. I tried to tell him his light was out, but he wanted nothing to do with me.


So it's his fault you didn't see him?...? Good to know what we are up against out there.
 
Originally Posted By: expat
My Triumph had a master light switch made by a company called 'Clear Hooters' it was a VERY poor substitute for a Lucas switch
(that kind of says it all!)

Well, on an unlit, twisty, country road, driving far too fast, miles from anywhere, this piece of Poop explodes out of the dashboard.
Pitch darkness......
I hit the brakes, then I remember the High Beam flasher.

It probably saved my Bacon.



I know that feeling...on a pitch dark West Virginia Mountain road, a twisty Brick paved road at that...my 1962 Vespa 150 headlight blew out. The image of a 90 degree left turn approaching, was panic stamped in my brain. LOCKED EM UP!!!! I stopped about 8 feet from running into a rock wall.
 
Originally Posted By: Silk
Originally Posted By: whip
I almost pulled out in front of a guy on a bike with no headlight yesterday. I saw him at the last moment. I tried to tell him his light was out, but he wanted nothing to do with me.


So it's his fault you didn't see him?...? Good to know what we are up against out there.

Where in my post did I say it was his fault? A working headlight would have improved his chances of being seen, but if an accident happened, it would have been 100% my fault. It amazes me what people read into things.
 
Originally Posted By: whip
Originally Posted By: Silk
Originally Posted By: whip
I almost pulled out in front of a guy on a bike with no headlight yesterday. I saw him at the last moment. I tried to tell him his light was out, but he wanted nothing to do with me.


So it's his fault you didn't see him?...? Good to know what we are up against out there.

Where in my post did I say it was his fault? A working headlight would have improved his chances of being seen, but if an accident happened, it would have been 100% my fault. It amazes me what people read into things.


wow im amazed what americans think about drl,s ...
- Its like its my right to not be seen...
Its the one who pulls out that has the responsibility to make sure its safe.
- but its everyones responsibility to make it possibol to be seen, for their owns sake and every body else!
 
Well i found out from my friend (also local parts manager) at our local shop that my low beam is not part of the switch ! he says either the relay or the harness is the problem. Obviously when i turn this motorcycle on the low bean automatically turn on.. So I guess i will try a new relay before i jack around with the harnes.
 
Hope its an easy fix for ya.

My TL1000 has wire that must have sat on dock for a while before they built the harness. I've found corrosion a foot inside the ends of some wires that looked fine otherwise.

Some of the relays can be pricy from the dealer but if your handy you can make common ones work.
 
Originally Posted By: ac_tc
Originally Posted By: whip
Originally Posted By: Silk
Originally Posted By: whip
I almost pulled out in front of a guy on a bike with no headlight yesterday. I saw him at the last moment. I tried to tell him his light was out, but he wanted nothing to do with me.


So it's his fault you didn't see him?...? Good to know what we are up against out there.

Where in my post did I say it was his fault? A working headlight would have improved his chances of being seen, but if an accident happened, it would have been 100% my fault. It amazes me what people read into things.


wow im amazed what americans think about drl,s ...
- Its like its my right to not be seen...
Its the one who pulls out that has the responsibility to make sure its safe.
- but its everyones responsibility to make it possibol to be seen, for their owns sake and every body else!




That would be SOME Americans. FWIW I had my DRLs turned on in my Dodge Challenger (they come from the factory off) and some people I know criticized my for it.
 
My problem with the DRL's at work is that every truck with them eats headlight bulbs like popcorn! We're replacing one or two a WEEK.
 
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