Headlight LED Conversion Kit

Kingfish

100 MW
Joined
Feb 3, 2010
Messages
4,064
Location
Redmond, WA-USA, Earth, Sol, Orion–Cygnus Arm, Mil
Greetings –

Arriving in my snail mailbox was the semi-regular publication from CycleGear.com. New in the latest issue was the LED Conversion Kit from SpeedMetal. There is no mention of DOT-compliance, however I will publish here the general information that is found online.

LED Conversion Kit

web2046547%7E00000


Features and Benefits
  • Brightness 2200-2400 lumens
  • Low 24 watt power consumption compared to the average standard OEM 60 watt bulbs
  • Anti-glare design
  • 30,000 hour lifespan
  • Excellent heat dissipation
  • Easy installation
This unit appears to have a small fan to pull heat away from the LED assembly.

In the process of looking for pictures, I came across similar (if not the same) products at Amazon:

From once a vacuum of nil selection just a year ago, we now have several purchase options… although methinks these are all produced out of the same factory. Strangely there is no mention of DOT compliance; that bothers me. However there are a plethora of mounting options and that is a good thing. These bulbs consume roughly twice what my pair of High-powered LED flashlights, but then again – they’re outputting twice as much light.

Anyone try these yet :?:

For reference, here are some older threads on similar hunts:
LED headlight - DOT approved?
Laser headlights on new Audi Quatro hybrid
DOT Headlights for eBikes
Motorcycle headlight

Illuminated, KF 8)
 
What would you use for a reflector on these things? I assume mounting them as-is would mean you're basically lighting up your handlebars and potentially even blinding yourself? How do you get all those useful lumens forward on an ebike application without a headlight reflector?
 
It looks like that is intended to go inside a car headlight housing? If so, perhaps I could use it with the existing old Halogen Sylvania bulbs I have on my bikes now--they're regular car headlights, the old rectangular kind.

Even if not, it gives me an idea for a way to make my own, using some LEDs that Texaspyro sent me some time back....
 
Firstly, I am posting in the EV General discussion, so the opportunity is wide open and not limited to any particular class. :) That said I’ve been looking for a replacement to the dual high-powered Cree flashlights on my present 2WD. Collectively as a pair they put out about 1600 lumens which are bright for bicycles, though not bright enough for the road at 35-40 mph.

There are several modest-sized enclosures that could work. I went to JPCycles to have a look-see, and what did I find? At the bottom of the page is…

126-846_A.jpg

Drag Specialties LED 5-3/4″ Top Mount Headlight Assembly
  • Features high-power USA-made Cree LED chips for lighting with low power consumption and high output
  • Long life; lasts up to 20 times longer than incandescent or halogen lights
  • Vibration resistant dual beam is DOT approved <-- woot! :idea:
  • Top mount
It is interesting to note that many of the headlamp shells take the H3 and H4 style bulb, a common size and within the applicable conversion list. My thinking is that it would be less expensive to purchase a shell and then do the adaptation.

If you keep looking, the possibilities of selection have just exploded with more compatible shapes!

Now I’m really excited! KF 8)
 
Kingfish said:
Firstly, I am posting in the EV General discussion

Oops, you're right. Sometimes I forget there are other equally crazy people electrifying other types of vehicles out there :wink:

Those look like some good options. The enclosures are a bit pricy, at least by my standards, but it's definitely one of those 'you get what you pay for' scenarios. If you want good lighting on a bike or vehicle that is your daily driver, you better do it right.
 
Kingfish said:
It is interesting to note that many of the headlamp shells take the H3 and H4 style bulb, a common size and within the applicable conversion list. My thinking is that it would be less expensive to purchase a shell and then do the adaptation.
Ya - I use a bobber headlight with an h4 on my bike and using this as an upgrade came to mind immediately when you posted it.

Go to eBay and search for 'bobber headlight' and see what turns up. There are many with the classic sealed beam lens, but some are available with a clear lens if you are looking for more of a driving light. The clear lens variety may be tougher to find with DOT approval.

For example - here's a 4" for $64 - uses an H4 bulb.

bobber.jpg
 
I'm using the H4 version of these in the headlamp of the Vectrix to replace a 35/35W bulb.

Verdict - excellent, although they are NOT 35W despite what the sellers tell you (They draw that for an instant, and drop down to about 12W) - Lowbeam is excellent, bright, clean white, pretty uniform (good on a bike) but highbeam sucks.

Even on 'highbeam' (both emitters on) they still only draw about 1A at 12V. I'd say this is due to the very poor heatsinking. Improve the heatsinking and upgrade the drivers and I think you would be on more of a winner.
 
These are replacements for H4 headlight bulbs. They are not approved for use on the road in Australia because testing of headlights is done with a particular bulb type and to re test with a different bulb is never going to happen. Every head light type on every car/bike model would need to be retested. The same is probably true for the rest of the world.

The samples I saw have a small fan which could have reliability issues and the heat sink is quite bulky and may not fit In some housings.

A halogen bulb has a tiny filament about 1/4 inch long, the LED is in a different position just enough to be out of the focal point designed for the halogen bulb hence they never are quite right, same applies to HID bulbs. That's why they blind you when coming towards you.
A headlight has a very distinct flat beam to avoid blinding on coming traffic.

DOT approved LED head lights are available as complete 7" and others as inserts. See this US manufacturer:
http://www.jwspeaker.com/products/headlights/

They make the LED headlights for Harley Davidson.
There are several other brands making them too.

I have one of the Model 8700. I used it on my Triumph for a few years, the light is much better than the halogen globe and only used 2 amps at 12v. It is quite heavy about 2kg a lot more than the standard glass insert.
They are quite expensive in Australia but a bit more reasonable in the US but still up there compared to a $5 halogen bulb.
If you are serious about saving power or do a lot of night riding they are well worth it.
If you ride in daylight but have mandatory headlights on, as is the case Australia for motorbikes, the bulb replacements are probably ok but won't be legal, but I've never met a biker too worried about legalities.
 
Kingfish said:
Greetings –

Arriving in my snail mailbox was the semi-regular publication from CycleGear.com. New in the latest issue was the LED Conversion Kit from SpeedMetal. There is no mention of DOT-compliance, however I will publish here the general information that is found online.

LED Conversion Kit

web2046547%7E00000


Features and Benefits
  • Brightness 2200-2400 lumens
  • Low 24 watt power consumption compared to the average standard OEM 60 watt bulbs
  • Anti-glare design
  • 30,000 hour lifespan
  • Excellent heat dissipation
  • Easy installation
This unit appears to have a small fan to pull heat away from the LED assembly.

In the process of looking for pictures, I came across similar (if not the same) products at Amazon:

From once a vacuum of nil selection just a year ago, we now have several purchase options… although methinks these are all produced out of the same factory. Strangely there is no mention of DOT compliance; that bothers me. However there are a plethora of mounting options and that is a good thing. These bulbs consume roughly twice what my pair of High-powered LED flashlights, but then again – they’re outputting twice as much light.

Anyone try these yet :?:

For reference, here are some older threads on similar hunts:
LED headlight - DOT approved?
Laser headlights on new Audi Quatro hybrid
DOT Headlights for eBikes
Motorcycle headlight

Illuminated, KF 8)

Why don't you utilize Coupons? If you want all these Cycle Gear products at Discounted prices So, you can get all these through Cycle Gear Promo Codes.
 
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