My GSX1400 Restoration

[SA14]

Ok so I went out for a night ride with my new LED globes and at first I thought "wow! these are really bright" as I was warming it up and it was shining onto my driveway and front lawn. But then when I was out on the suburban roads it kind of disappeared and I couldn't see any discernible light pattern on the road at all. Of course the street lights were doing a good job of illuminating so it was no big deal.

I ducked into some side streets to check it again and sure enough back it came and there was a strong white rectangular pattern clearly visible and fine for normal low speed riding and the street signs were shining back like my lights were on high beam so I though maybe it was aimed too high and the light was disappearing into the distance so I headed up onto the hills to test it out on totally dark roads at speed and to be honest I was a little underwhelmed. The rectangular pattern was clearly visible but soon stopped short of what was comfortable even at 80km/h and the high beam was barely helpful. It added maybe another 10-20% extra distance but that's about it.

Not sure what I was expecting. Certainly not a penetrating flood light but high beam is supposed to be a big bold light and this wasn't that. So I pulled over, got out my trusty old Leatherman Wave multi tool and aimed the light a bit further off into the distance which did help a bit, maybe a fair bit but still a little lacking in my opinion. Certainly nothing I'd feel comfortable traveling at anything over 110 km/h with. Even the low beam at slow speeds (70-80km/h) felt a bit unsettling because after the initial rectangular patch it was hard darkness. Not enough for comfortable confident cruising. I felt on edge and wanted to slow down. Cars were catching up to me and getting up close behind as I stayed at or near the speed limit but high beam is certainly not good for speeds over 100km/h and I'd need that light if there are any on coming cars and I had to dip my lights back to low beam.

I reckon it might be adjustment both for the aiming of the light and maybe me having to adjust to a different type of light. Not sure. I have a nice flat driveway so I'll do the cross hairs thing as detailed in the manual and go out for another test but I did feel myself wanting...not the original H4 because that wasn't much chop either...but something a bit more. Maybe some of those super bright deeper reaching H4s?

Anyway, that's my report. I'm fine riding around town with this globe. What say you? Is this about adjustment or is this just normal for these LED globes? Should I be blown away with both low and high beam? I'd say low beam has definitely been improved at city speeds but the high is lacking. It added another small strip to the top of the rectangle but didn't light up the whole world. This was only a tiny investment though ($20) so I'm happy to keep experimenting. Maybe I'm expecting too much?

[GSXKING]

Great report Baz very comprehensive. I personally will stick with the original H4's considering your recommendation. The cost of an LED headlight versus the amount of night riding I do is not economical. Well done and keep up the good work. 

[SA14]

Great report Baz very comprehensive. I personally will stick with the original H4's considering your recommendation. The cost of an LED headlight versus the amount of night riding I do is not economical. Well done and keep up the good work. 

They're pretty cheap (less than $20) and it arrived within a week if you're curious. But I'd like to try some H4 alternatives as well. Some of the super brights might offer a richer larger longer spread. I expect nothing but fantastic lights for a bike such as ours. These are ok, certainly no worse than stock and  brighter for around town but (unless my aim is really way off) Not fantastic for higher speeds. I'll have a play and if I find the correct adjustment makes a large difference I'll certainly report back.

[Eric GSX1400K3]

That is a bit disappointing for you im sure.

I will try to get a piccy of my Stedi LED at both low and high beam so you can see what an improvement that makes over the standard H4.

I suspect the issue with the Led globe is the reflector in the original light is not set up for LED.  The globe can definitely put out more light than a filament unit, its all about how its reflected and focussed.

[grog]

SA, sorry no good for you, especially as i recod them. Before LED i had Halogen+150, about strongest you get. LED low beam i find much better, high beam not as penetrating as it could be but still better than halogen. Maybe you need the Stedi full unit or couple of spotties.

[BlueDragon]

I've tried a lot of different H4 LED replacement bulbs and found the same problem.

Looks great in the driveway.  But then get out on the road - especially through some twisty, up and down mountain road near my place and I couldn't see an thing.  Yet, the street signs or reflectors on guide posts would near blind me with their reflection.  Wasn't impressed with any of the LED replacements I've tried so far.  I could barely do 80kph safely and was relying on the cars around me to see the road.

That said - also, I tried some LED replacements in my car (H7)  were OK - brighter, but didn't penetrate as far down the road as normal halogen bulbs.  But here's the kicker - driving in the rain.  I think the light colour being so white, all it did was reflect back off the wet road surface and I could barely see anything at all in the car.  Was worse on the bike - I couldn't even make out the road in wet conditions.

When grog mentioned the Auxito brand LED, I found these.
https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/AUXITO-H4-9003-HB2-15000LM-COB-LED-Headlight-Globes-Bulbs-Kits-High-Low-Beam-AU/393001532946?hash=item5b80b77e12:g:olQAAOSw~VhfoiXN

Which I liked the "look" better as it appears to have a properly reflected hi and low beam led like a H4 halogen.

Been trying to work out if I want to maybe waste the dollars to buy one to try...  waste as in, if its no good, then it will just be thrown into the bin and I've already wasted a lot of money on LED bulbs already.

I tend to agree with the train of thought that the reflectors are really designed for LED bulbs and are more for halogens.. 

But - here is another possible option as well - that I think I will try - especially given the cost..
https://www.autobarn.com.au/all-crash-parts-semi-sealed-beam-round-178mm-7in-h4-p43t-crystal-sp137765

7 inch round headlight that could be a replacement for the current semi-sealed headlight.  I think this, coupled with a decent Halogen H4, might will be an option.. 

Different reflector - could be just what is needed..  if I buy one, then I let you all know how it goes.  If the different design helps to throw more light on the road. 

A few years back I had something similar to these on my old model MX5 and they would really light up the road very nicely.

[KiwiCol]

Yes, that Autobarn replacement does look good and the cost is very reasonable.  I'd also be interested in how that goes if you get one.

[grog]

No more headlight options from me, feel like ive stuffed that one up. Im happy with mine, havent tried it in rain. Sorry SA.

[SA14]

No more headlight options from me, feel like ive stuffed that one up. Im happy with mine, havent tried it in rain. Sorry SA.

No, no, no. Absolutely no need to feel bad at all. I'm glad for the reco, it's opened up a new world of headlight options to me and it cost bugger all to try and to go back to stock will take all of about 38 seconds. Absolutely no harm at all. Now I've got something new to play with. It could be my adjustment and until I check that I'm not willing to right it off quite yet. Good to see others are a bit meh about them though. I was thinking I was being a bit picky. Are you still happy with yours because if you are then maybe there's something else going on here.

@BlueDragon thanks for that. Interesting that they have other motorcycle options. Here's a comparison.

The one I bought:
https://auxito.com/products/mt1-h4

The one you linked to:
https://auxito.com/products/fanless-motorcycle-h4-9003-led-headlight-hi-low-beam-6000k-bulb-play-and-plug-1860-csp-led-chip

This picture is from the ad on ebay that you linked to and it does look like a better bulb. This pic of the light beams looks more like what I was expecting from mine but "yours" costs nearly twice as much. I'd be willing to buy it and try it because it's still fairly cheap at less than $40 before discounts. If we can sort this out I think everyone can benefit because we need better lighting on these bikes that's for sure.

But before I order I want to make sure they don't have an even better one!   

[BlueDragon]

No more headlight options from me, feel like ive stuffed that one up. Im happy with mine, havent tried it in rain. Sorry SA.

Agree with SA14...

grog..  you have nothing to feel bad about.  Its all good that we share experiences so that everyone can know what a product is like.

I've even tried LED bulbs in the headlights on my VFR.  Twin headlights on low beam and had similar results.  the low beam was bright.  but again, didn't seem to penetrate much on the road and there was no spread out past the edges of the road.  No spread makes riding at night on dark country roads real interesting with kangaroos around.  But strangely enough, again - road signs were so bright reflecting back at me, it was near blinding.. 

What I have also noticed - even in the car, that whilst headlight bulbs are getting "whiter" or even "blue-er" with the different light spectrums, - I've once again found that in the rain at night - these white bulbs are not very good at all. with the rain drops in heavy rain reflecting the light back in your face (car or bike) and not really lighting up the road.  Whereas, the bulbs that have a slight yellow light spectrum offer good vision in the rain at night because the yellow light spectrum does not reflect back into your face.  Which is why real fog lights are actually yellow as well - they pierce through the fog (water droplets) rather than reflect the light back in your face.

With the VFR, I went back to Halogen H4's by Osram - Night breaker laser - which has a 3200k light spectrum.

Taking a look at the attachment on my post - it is on the edge of yellow and certainly not a pure white.  But I found the lights at night to be extremely bright - excellent penetration for long distance - even on low beam and the spread was also really good.  I could see way off the sides of the road - easily to spot kangaroos.

What I will try to do over the coming weeks is to go put different bulbs in the GSX and take photos at the same time of time at the same spot and use my digital SLR with the same exposure settings when I take the photo so that the differences can be seen.  Hope this might help everyone.

On that note, I did find on Yuotube a while back..  a guy in England was testing out halogen vs LED in his bike and whilst I can't remember which bulbs he tried, it was very noticeable in his video, that the halogen had better side to side spread beam and also better distance than the LED bulb.  Whilst the LED bulb was brighter (whiter - LED, while the halogen was on the yellow spectrum), but that was it - just brighter. 

I think it might just be case of finding the right light spectrum colour in a powerful halogen bulb - if using the Suzuki headlight.  But for sure, I will try out the Autobarn replacement and see what that is like and post some pics.

[Eric GSX1400K3]

Baz,  check out Stedi.com.au they also sell just led bulbs as direct drop in replacements, the reflector design on their bulb is different to that shown in the link images.  Not cheap, but if you don't want to change out the entire lamp unit, might be worth looking at.

Ive got their copperhead H4s in my Landrover high beam infills and they make a huge difference.

[gsxbarmy]

@SA14 I would suggest it may well be the bulbs you are using - many of these cheaper ones frankly give a naff beam and it can be a question of trial and error to get one that works appropriately.

I fitted replacement H4 LED bulbs to my Triumph and got a great light, far improved over the standard globes.

The ones I fitted were NIGHTEYE H4 9003 HB2 LED 50W 8000LM High Low Beam Headlight Kit Bulbs 6500K which I got from eBay https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/NIGHTEYE-H4-9003-HB2-LED-50W-8000LM-High-Low-Beam-Headlight-Kit-Bulbs-6500K-UK/333435624334?ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT&_trksid=p2057872.m2749.l2649

They also ship out down under as I found them on the eBay au site as well, about AU$35

Of course they may not give as good a light on the 14 and I never tested them on one either, all I can say is that they worked fine in my (ex) Triumph Explorer 1200

[SA14]

...With the VFR, I went back to Halogen H4's by Osram - Night breaker laser - which has a 3200k light spectrum.

Taking a look at the attachment on my post - it is on the edge of yellow and certainly not a pure white.  But I found the lights at night to be extremely bright - excellent penetration for long distance - even on low beam and the spread was also really good.  I could see way off the sides of the road - easily to spot kangaroos.

...

This is interesting, I do like the normal Halogen light colour and I think it especially matches the theme of our bikes which is old school retro so I'd like to try the Night Breakers. According to their website "Up to 150% more brightness, Up to 150m long beam and up to 20% whiter light and is the brightest halogen automotive light from OSRAM". I like the 3,200 k colour too even though it's whiter it still has the broad beam of a halogen. Sounds like the ticket but seems to only be available in twin packs for cars though.

[BlueDragon]

@SA14 I would suggest it may well be the bulbs you are using - many of these cheaper ones frankly give a naff beam and it can be a question of trial and error to get one that works appropriately.

I fitted replacement H4 LED bulbs to my Triumph and got a great light, far improved over the standard globes.

The ones I fitted were NIGHTEYE H4 9003 HB2 LED 50W 8000LM High Low Beam Headlight Kit Bulbs 6500K which I got from eBay https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/NIGHTEYE-H4-9003-HB2-LED-50W-8000LM-High-Low-Beam-Headlight-Kit-Bulbs-6500K-UK/333435624334?ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT&_trksid=p2057872.m2749.l2649

They also ship out down under as I found them on the eBay au site as well, about AU$35

Of course they may not give as good a light on the 14 and I never tested them on one either, all I can say is that they worked fine in my (ex) Triumph Explorer 1200

These are the ones I bought and have tried them in both the VFR and the GSX1400.. 

Has to be the reflector shape/design of the VFR and 1400, that this LED bulb just doesn't work well for them, being that it works well for your Triumph.

[gsxbarmy]

...With the VFR, I went back to Halogen H4's by Osram - Night breaker laser - which has a 3200k light spectrum.

Taking a look at the attachment on my post - it is on the edge of yellow and certainly not a pure white.  But I found the lights at night to be extremely bright - excellent penetration for long distance - even on low beam and the spread was also really good.  I could see way off the sides of the road - easily to spot kangaroos.

...

This is interesting, I do like the normal Halogen light colour and I think it especially matches the theme of our bikes which is old school retro so I'd like to try the Night Breakers. According to their website "Up to 150% more brightness, Up to 150m long beam and up to 20% whiter light and is the brightest halogen automotive light from OSRAM". I like the 3,200 k colour too even though it's whiter it still has the broad beam of a halogen. Sounds like the ticket but seems to only be available in twin packs for cars though.

What you want then @SA14 is the Osram Night Racer rather than Night Breaker - exactly the same bulb / output etc, but made for motorcycles so absorbs any vibration better.