I see the light...

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Fast Eddie

Fast Eddie

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No light meters were used in this test and no motorcycles were ridden, so please view it as the half assed test that it is:

I just compared a standard 60/55 halogen to a “plus 50% brighter” halogen (forgot the make or source) to Paul Goffs latest 5K lumi LED.

What I couldn’t show in pictures is the view from other peoples eyes (pictures just didn’t come out well). The LED is SO MUCH brighter and white and sharper. From a day or night time ‘be safe be seen’ perspective the LEDs are on another level entirely.

From a night time riding perspective I tried to compare them below:


This is yer bog standard 60/55 H4 halogen on dip:
I see the light...


Same standard 60/55 on main:
I see the light...


This is an off the shelf “50% brighter” H4 on dip, not much noticeable difference over the standard one to my eye:
I see the light...


The “50% brighter” H4 on main, difficult to see from the pic, but it did seem brighter:
I see the light...


Paul Goff 5K lumi LED on dip. Much brighter, much whiter, better spread of light:
I see the light...


Goff 5K lumi LED on main, again MUCH brighter and MUCH whiter. Seems to put the beam higher than the halogens though, unsure if that’s a good thing or a bad thing. Will need to ride it to evaluate further:
I see the light...
 
Kool. I'll probably do a similar comparison when mine gets here. What lens do you use?

And at what distance are we looking at?
 
Bright headlights are a plus -even in the daytime.

I have 105 watts of HID [arc] lights on the front of my bike. I have had people tell me my headlight is rude even in the day.
But I always figured it was a lot more rude when someone pulls out or turns in front of me because they didn't notice I was there.
 
Looks good. I have the previous edition of the BPF LED....looks like the same basic heat fin setup as the H4 unit you have.

From the CBS website listing it:

I see the light...


"970 lm and 510 lm is equivalent to approx 60W/35W (dual filament)."

Running this in my 5-3/4" lucas shell (Hirider spec) gives much better performance overall than stock incandescent BPF. Nicely visible in bright sun for other traffic. When I ran it on a dark road at night, though it was better than stock, it really didn't throw that far down the road, maybe 100-150 ft. Could be the small lamp size or just the limitation of the LED. The newer spec Goff has seems to have might be worth a try one day. I don't ride much at night on pitch black country roads with this bike so no hurry for me to upgrade.
 
https://adventurebikeaustralia.com.au/product/cyclops-h4-7000-lumen-led-bulb/

This is similar to the one I use in my Roadster. Mine is 3800 lumens and no need to upgrade to a 3 phase charging system
Excellent day time running light, plug and play, I just adapted an H4 plug I had with the old original wiring.
I use a flat Lucas H4 headlight glass.
Easy on the eyes at night

Regards Mike
 
The wavelength of the stock bulbs seem more yellow and the LED more blue. This might be helpful for our eyes. Oncoming , LED lights appear more as a even circle of light than a incandescent lamp does. You really notice those old lamps now as there are more LEDs on
the road than ever.
And not to forget the LED pulls less amps a big plus for those of us with the stock alternator.
 
Fast Eddie said:
Seems to put the beam higher than the halogens though, unsure if that’s a good thing or a bad thing.
Click to expand...

If you lower the LED main beam so its horizontal then the dipped will be lower, with its increased brightness that would not be bad as you are then less likely to blind and disorientate oncoming traffic on dipped.
 
Like many things in life, this is one of those topics that makes you realise how little you understand about it!

Exactly what does 10, 20, 50% brighter look like? Do LEDs look brighter because they’re whiter? Does a whiter light actually improve night vision, or does it just ‘look’ brighter? Etc.

There’s no question they look brighter and they’re MUCH better at making you MUCH more visible to half asleep / distracted car drivers, day or night, so they’re worth it for that alone. I don’t know if you guys have noticed, but these days some bicycle lights are brighter than some older motorcycles lights, with super bright lights everywhere, dim lights make you harder for car drivers to spot, especially in busy cities.

But whether or not they improve the riders vision at night, and if so, by how much, I really don’t know yet, my assumption at the moment is they’re quite a lot better, but I gotta get out and see.

Kommando, I think you’re right about dipping the beam a tad, that’s something I’ll experiment with.
 
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Fast Eddie said:
Like many things in life, this is one of those topics that makes you realise how little you understand about it!

Exactly what does 10, 20, 50% brighter look like? Do LEDs look brighter because they’re whiter? Does a whiter light actually improve night vision, or does it just ‘look’ brighter? Etc.

There’s no question they look brighter and they’re MUCH better at making you MUCH more visible to half asleep / distracted car drivers, day or night, so they’re worth it for that alone. I don’t know if you guys have noticed, but these days some bicycle lights are brighter than some older motorcycles lights, with super bright lights everywhere, dim lights make you harder for car drivers to spot, especially in busy cities.

But whether or not they improve the riders vision at night, and if so, by how much, I really don’t know yet, my assumption at the moment is they’re quite a lot better, but I gotta get out and see.

Kommando, I think you’re right about dipping the beam a tad, that’s something I’ll experiment with.
Click to expand...
I once braked really hard for what I thought was a 4x4 coming out from Epping forest in front of me only to find it was two mountain bikes riding side by side on a dirt track!
Their lights were so bright I assumed it was a vehicle
What's wrong with these people riding around a forest at 11pm! On a bike with no engine!!
 
dobba99 said:
Eddie, I know this is an American based forum, but your in Britain. Please use the correct pronunciation, its 'half arsed'
'half assed' sounds like you have chopped a donkey in two!
Not a bad test though, tell us what its like after a ride at night.
Click to expand...

A fair critique sir, and one that I shall not seek to defend against.

Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have a donkey to stick back together...
 
Nigel, your Paul Goff 5K on main seems to be missing the lower half of the light which is included in the dip selection. I have the dynamo regulator LED. On dip, I get the top LED which directs the lighting down. When I select the "High beam", I get both sides of the LED together, and the lower illumination of the dip setting is still there. I wonder if our wiring is different or if our bulbs are designed to work differently.

If you look from anywhere in front of the headlight shell you can see which parts of your LED light up on each setting. As I said, the top side on mine lights up for "dip" and both sides light up for "high beam". I wonder if yours are the same.
 
Fast Eddie said:
No light meters were used in this test and no motorcycles were ridden, so please view it as the half assed test that it is:

I just compared a standard 60/55 halogen to a “plus 50% brighter” halogen (forgot the make or source) to Paul Goffs latest 5K lumi LED.

What I couldn’t show in pictures is the view from other peoples eyes (pictures just didn’t come out well). The LED is SO MUCH brighter and white and sharper. From a day or night time ‘be safe be seen’ perspective the LEDs are on another level entirely.

From a night time riding perspective I tried to compare them below:


This is yer bog standard 60/55 H4 halogen on dip:
View attachment 12743

Same standard 60/55 on main:
View attachment 12744

This is an off the shelf “50% brighter” H4 on dip, not much noticeable difference over the standard one to my eye:
View attachment 12745

The “50% brighter” H4 on main, difficult to see from the pic, but it did seem brighter:
View attachment 12746

Paul Goff 5K lumi LED on dip. Much brighter, much whiter, better spread of light:
View attachment 12747

Goff 5K lumi LED on main, again MUCH brighter and MUCH whiter. Seems to put the beam higher than the halogens though, unsure if that’s a good thing or a bad thing. Will need to ride it to evaluate further:
View attachment 12748
Click to expand...
Cant wait the fire my 5K LED from Mr G
I have read several account of the height of main beam, ... have to wait and see:)
 
olympus said:
Cant wait the fire my 5K LED from Mr G
I have read several account of the height of main beam, ... have to wait and see:)
Click to expand...

What was the consensus of these accounts, bulbs good or bad? Dip the headlight a tad or leave it high?
 
Fast Eddie said:
What was the consensus of these accounts, bulbs good or bad? Dip the headlight a tad or leave it high?
Click to expand...

Alignment is on my to-do list anyway, even with a halogen I'm hunting hooty owls. Hopefully my bulb will be here before the weekend.
 
Fast Eddie said:
But whether or not they improve the riders vision at night, and if so, by how much, I really don’t know yet, my assumption at the moment is they’re quite a lot better, but I gotta get out and see.
Click to expand...
Nigel,
the DRL on my speed Twin are great in the daylight - very white and very bright but absolutely useless at night so I need to switch to the H4 light in order to see where I am going!
John
 
i been thinking about one of those LED bicycle lights that clamp on bars I 'done seen' them on bisickle riders out in the country on same roads where I take my rides and they seem like a good add on to my headlight ..anybody tried them? recommendation? a clamp on one could be moved from bike to bike..
 
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