LOTS OF QUESTIONS

What's up with LEDs ?

LEDs  are the most effecient, durable lighting technology currently available.  In  "old style" filament bulbs (most auto bulbs or regular house light bulbs) relatively high amperage is run through the filament and heats it to a high enough temperature to make it glow, giving off broad spectrum (white) light. This is a very low effeciency system.  Most of the energy is lost as heat.  Only about 10% of the electric energy is converted to light. To create colored light the filament is covered with a coated/colored shell or placed behind a lens that filters out all but a specific part of the spectrum.  In other words, only letting the red light shine through.

Light  Emitting Diodes work completely differently.  Without a filament that will eventually "burn out" their lifetime is many times longer and they are completely   cool. They are about 99% effecient. The specific chemical compound of the LED itself emits light in a specific color range.

But what's really interesting is that they operate on a fraction of the energy of filament bulbs.  Each LED only draws milliamps of power.  In practical terms, two dozen large LEDs might only use as much amperage as a single turn signal bulb.  Meaning you can run your light kit for hours without killing your battery.

 

How many do I need to light my bike? 

This the most common question I get asked.  The answer is: not as many as you think.  Let me ask you a question.  If someone told you he had 20 light bulbs in his family room , would you be impressed?  Probably not.  What he really needs is 2 or 3 of the right size in the right location.  I constantly have people proudly tell me that their $600 light kit has 200, 300 or even 400 LEDs.  The problem is, it's hard to compare "apples with apples" because LEDs are available in many sizes.  In the real world, a dozen 5 millimeter LEDs correctly mounted will light a bike as nicely as 40 or 50 small LEDs.  20-28 LEDs will light an entire bike, wheels and all beautifully.  It's all about the quality and size of the LEDs and most importantly, their placement. 

 

Can I install a kit myself?

Absolutely !  For most people it's a nice afternoon project.  Put the red wires together, attach a fuse holder and switch and connect to the (+) terminal, black wires together and attach to the (-) terminal.  If you get that wrong somehow, it won't hurt the LEDs; they just won't light.  All the kits I sell come with complete instructions including an 800 number direct to the manufacture.  And of course I'm always available by phone.  

By the way, don't let anybody splice into your electrical harness to add any kind of accessories.  That's a screw-up waiting to happen.  If you ever had any kind of problem, this makes the diagnostic process a nightmare, and it could void your manufacterers warrenty.  Anything not OEM should stand alone with it's own fuse and direct connection to the battery.

 

How long will they last? 
 

I install and sell the best LEDs I can find.  I use only LEDs rated for 100,000 hours.  There are many cheaper ones out there rated for 25,000 or 50,000 hours.  I don't sell those.  For all practical purposes, mine will never "burn out".  All my stuff carries an absolute "LIFE TIME WARRANTY".

Will they, you know, fall off?

No.  Properly mounted, they will stay where you put them for the life of the install.  The most common mistake for do-it-yourself'ers is not getting the area absolutely clean before mounting.  All kits in the world use a 3M style double-sided adhesive that's very, very sticky.
Myself, I like to use an all-purpose degreaser, followed by an alcohol prep wipe. if the surface squeeks like clean glass, it's absolutely good to go. 

Will the heat from my engine make them go bad?

 No !  The LEDs themselves should be mounted where they won't directly touch anything really hot, but heat radiating from the engine is not an issue.  Of course the wires should be mounted away from any heat source as well, but in case of accidental touching, quality wire insulation has a higher melting point than your engine should put out.

***KEEP EVERYTHING AWAY FROM THE EXHAUST COMPONENTS !  Those parts get much hotter than the heads or oil tank, etc.

 

What's the difference between pods, strips or individual LEDs?

 Each has strengths and weaknesses.  This is how I see it .

Pods:  Popular with installers because they're a little faster to install. 

   Strength:  Several LEDs in each housing throw a wide light "footprint"

   Weakness:  Tend to be clunky and hard to hide.  The only way to make them

     less visible is to mount them deep under the tank or as close to the spine of

     the bike as possible = poor light on the outside face of the bike. 

Strips:  Also popular with many installers, it's even faster to mount (1) 8 LED strip

      than (2) 4 LED pods obviously.

   Strength:  Smaller LEDs in strips tend to be lower in profile than pods, so much

      less visible when viewed on edge.  Good for ground-effects. 

   Weakness:  The length of ridgid strips limit the available spots to mount them.

 

      There's a finite amount of flat places (say 4 or 6 or 12 inches) to mount

 

       things on a bike,  without it looking like a cheesy add-on. New generation Flex-

 

       Strips have solved this problem.

Individual LEDs:  In my personal opinion, you can't beat the finished result. 

       Strength:  Small overall size allow the LEDs to be hidden beautifully.  Mount bases

      that can be mounted in any direction allow these to be placed in many locations

      where pods or strips won't fit and allow the light to be "tuned" for the most even

      light wash.

   Weakness:  Take a little longer to install as each individual LED is mounted one at

      a time.

 

Can I ride with my LED's on?

 

    Almost always, with a couple exceptions. There are almost no traffic laws 

 

    specifically pertaining to LED cycle lighting. Where people have issues

 

    are two catagories:

 

    1.  Being perceived as an Emergency Vehicle

 

         This is the bad one. What you don't want is to pull up behind some little old

 

         lady at night and her think she's being pulled over or something. I usually say

 

         BLUE is not a riding color, save it for the parking lot. Blue is the color cops 

 

         use and they seem to take it personally if they see it on your bike.  RED might

 

         be an issue a much smaller fraction of the time. Technically It's really for

 

         firetrucks and  ambulances, but the cops don't seem to be as personally

 

         offended. Every other color is good to go almost anyware. I'm in 15 to 20

 

         states a year and my green LEDs never get a second look.

 

   2. Being a "Traffic Nuisence"

 

          Being a Traffic Nuisence is a catch-all phrase like Disturbing the Peace.

 

          It's good for everything from playing your radio too loud, to kids hanging out

 

          a car window. Basically anything that's distracting to other drivers. So. if you

 

          have a flashing function on your kit, don't use it when riding. Again, save it

 

          for the parking lot.

 

                     ** Uncle Greg's All-Purpose Attitude When Pulled Over ** 

 

          Be polite, low-key (and a little dumb in a friendly way)

 

            "Gee Officerr, I didn't realize I shouldn't have my lights flashing like that.

 

              I just got them. (possibly a little fib) It won't happen again!"

 

         Adjust story as neccessary. The dumb part is not as functional when you're

 

         caught going 30 over the speed limit, but the first two are always good. This is

 

         going to work 99% of the time. Of course if you start out talking about

 

         his mother............well, all bets are off.