LED's in the tail light of a 1st Gen

[Saddle_Bag]

Looking into LED's out back for the tail and brake light. Tried the simple fix with a 1157? and had the display tell me the light was out. Is there a simple fix for the non technical rider, other than live with the display????? Saddle_Bag:fingers-crossed-emo

[5bikes]

1. LEDs are not as bright as incandescents yet

2. LED's give off directional light where incandescents spread out in all directions

3. They set off the computer monitor because there isn't enough resistance

4. I wasted $10 too.

5. Gave up and went back to regular 1157's

6. LEDs give off weird colors

7. Could try a 5 ohm resistor in the brake circuit.

[dynodon]

I put some in my '86 and the light DIRECTLY behind was MAYBE the same as before and there was NO light from the side or if you got off axis from right behind.

 

There are other LED bulbs that have lights around the side and to the back, so you get light from the side or from the reflector, but I don't think it is worth the trouble.

 

Get new 1157's and keep your lense and reflector clean and polished and you will have plenty of light.

 

If you really want more LED type light, then get a stop/running light add-on bar that complements your stock lights. These work really well. I can't find one to fit my '86 VR, but the RSV works well with many of the light bars, with just a simple aluminum angle brace.

[RedRocket]

There is a thread or post somewhere in which someone went into quite a lot of detail on updating, and brightening bulbs without going to LED's.

 

It's worth finding. If I remember correctly just changing to a different model bulb increased brightness about 25%.

[Thom]

i use 1 led and 1 1157 , it saves power and is pretty brite plus no little red flashing warning lite also i have a tag lite , i also use led rear turn sigs .

Thom

[mraf]

This is the info if I do this right.

 

http://www.venturerider.org/forum/showthread.php?t=21994

 

I changed my rear brake lights with 2 I had bought. Went for a ride and almost was rear ended by my brother in law. Said he couldn't really see my brake lights come on very bright. He was right after I had looked for myself. Figured my life was worth a few more bucks than trying to save a few volts. There are alot more options for LEDs out there now compared to a few years ago. I would replace mine now if someone has found a bright enough one for the brake that makes a difference.

[CMIKE]

1. LEDs are not as bright as incandescents yet

2. LED's give off directional light where incandescents spread out in all directions

3. They set off the computer monitor because there isn't enough resistance

4. I wasted $10 too.

5. Gave up and went back to regular 1157's

6. LEDs give off weird colors

7. Could try a 5 ohm resistor in the brake circuit.

 

Woooohhh... I am not so sure I agree with all of that...

Take this into consideration...

1. LEDs are not as bright as incandescents yet. I installed LED tail light board in my 2nd gen and it is a lot brighter than any 1157 incandescent bulb I ever seen. It will blind you to the point that you see red spots after you look away. LED technology is moving fast..they are getting brighter and brighter...I expect them to be able to replace all our lighting needs in a few years at 1/5th the power useage. From headlights to the lights in our homes. I agree those little 1157 bulbs with a few LED's on the end of them are not there yet. I purchased 2 of them and quickly put them back in the bags and they are now hanging in my shop.

2. LED's give off directional light where incandescents spread out in all directions. LED's are getting better and better. Used to they were like a pen light less than a 15 degree light pattern but now they are some 120 degree LEDs and the manufactors are using multiple 120 degree LEDS and pointing them in several directions to cover most of the needed area.

3. They set off the computer monitor because there isn't enough resistance. You may try using one of those metric load equalizers that I used on my bike to fool the turn signals into thinking they were still incandescent bulbs installed and blink at the normal rate. It is a black box that does not heat up...so I do not know what is inside it. I read no resistance on this box and it needs power to make it all happen.

4. I wasted $10 too I wasted $24 on 2 of those 1157 LED bulbs.

5. Gave up and went back to regular 1157's Don't give up. I installed a led tail light in my sons Vstar custom. I was nothing more than a board with 132 LED's on it with a 1157 plug on the end of it. You simply hot glue the board inside the tail light lense. It is really really bright. plus it has some clear LEDs pointing to act as a tag light.

6. LEDs give off weird colors. RED is RED. Amber, now that is a different story. I have some yellow looking turn signals and replaced the yellow front reflectors that were all the same color. I ordered some accent lights that were supposed to be amber but they were more orange.

7. Could try a 5 ohm resistor in the brake circuit. I think you could call Tech support at Custom Dynamics http://www.customdynamics.com/ and they could come up with a solution for you. I am not associated with them but have purchased a lot of stuff from them and their products are great.

 

See this short movie of the back of my 2nd gen.

http://www.venturerider.org/forum/showthread.php?t=32917 You can see the orginal yamaha LED's in the trunk wing and the LED's under the bags are not near as bright as the tail light and the light on the license plate frame. They are strobing also but you do not notice them since they are not as bright.

 

Don't give up...I believe there is something that will work for the 1st gen bikes.

[timgray]

Paint the reflector inside bright glossy white instead of it's dingy grey. That makes them nearly 2X brighter.

 

Also I can get you LED tail lights that are way brighter than regular bulbs. They cost about $55.00 each. and even have a set of white led's that aim down for the plate. I was impressed with them at the Harley dealer, but not $110.00 + tax impressed.

[Dmnordin]

I've spent the last 2 days researching LED running & turning lights with hopes of decreasing current draw, especially from the 2, 27watt turn lights on each side.

 

I did spend $80 on 4, 28 red led (the flat, bright ones) "bulbs" at Pep Boys, but, of course, I now either have to spend more time & money on either 25 watt load resistors so they will flash (what's the point of spending the money if I can't accomplish my goal af drastically reducing current draw?), or buy electronic flashers & install them in the bike = MORE $$ + 2 more bulbs.

 

I think I'm just going to forget it & return what I've bought so far (the 1157's don't even go into the socket enough to fully turn & seat properly anyways, and I don't want another project customizing the sockets to accept these "bulbs". I'm pretty frustrated that it's so expensive to go LED (the ones that are truly bright enough), and then buy the flashers and probably lose the canceling function after having to re-wire part of the signal system, etc...it does work fine the way it is.

 

I'm seriously considering just getting some bulbs similar to the 2357LL's mentioned above and go brighter for a lot less money than LEDs. H4LIGHTS.com has some that are,"...12v 45CP bulb,(Krypton charged, 43% brighter than standard bulbs). In the dual filament I carry a 12v 43/3CP,(Krypton charged, 45% brighter than standard bulbs). Both are a BA 15 bayonet bulb and direct replacements for 1156/1157." I've bought for my auto & bike lighting need from John for many years & trust him.

 

Doug

[Thom]

you don't have to change all the to led just half of them , i have a led lite bar in back and really don't need anything else but to make the turn sigs work i only changed the rear bulbs to led . on the tail lite i don't need it anymore but for that darn flashing lite on the counsel so i put in just 1 led in the tail lite and left 1 1157 , it saves me 27 watts . the lite bars are just 35.00 and they have turn , brake and tail , Tom and Ponch have them too , Tom made a vidio of his .

Thom

[skydoc_17]

This old thread is what I did for all LED rear lighting.

 

[ame=http://www.venturerider.org/forum/showthread.php?t=26087]LED Lighting Project Finished! - VentureRider.Org[/ame]

 

Earl

[Marcarl]

This is what I've done with my 85.

Added LEDs, in the trunk, under the tail light, on the back and the sides of the trailer hitch. Also replaced the 1157s in the tail light with 1157 leds from Superbright, and then added a flat panel set of lights which I glued to the reflector section in the center of the tail light for brakes.

[CrazyHorse]

My LEDS are extremely bright. Custom Signals has them. Though my computer indicates bulb out.

[Dmnordin]

Does anyone know what the minimum current draw/wattage rating is that will 1) keep the computer from saying the brake light is out, and 2) make the turn signal relay & auto cancel unit work?

 

Thank you for your replies & info - very helpful in trying to determine what exactly I want to do.

 

Doug

[CrazyHorse]

Does anyone know what the minimum current draw/wattage rating is that will 1) keep the computer from saying the brake light is out, and 2) make the turn signal relay & auto cancel unit work?

 

Thank you for your replies & info - very helpful in trying to determine what exactly I want to do.

 

Doug

If I remember correctly to not have the computer light up you need to put a resistor in line but that defeats the low current draw of the LED. Thats if I remember right.

[bongobobny]

If you want to brighten up your rear light, disassemble and paint the Gray part WHITE! Last time I checked, white reflects all of the light spectrum, whereas silver is a variant of Gray, which is light black, which absorbs light...