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The Great LED Conversion--PHOTOS!
Written by CalvinFold on 10/22/2004 at 03:59 am

Mind you, I'm still not happy with the night shots...some are
over-dramatic. Some of the daytime shots are under-dramatic. Darned LEDs
really mess with the sensor on my camera. I'll do my best to clarify the
shots below...

PRIMARY URL FOR PHOTOS:
<http://www.quosig.com/pc800/mods/LED_Conversions/>

DIRECTORIES:

Both_LED_Lights_Nighttime/
These shots show both the PC800 and the Uni-Go, all decked out with LED
arrays. the CloseUp shots are interesting since the camera can pick-out
the arrays easier. Night shots have proven difficult for this amateur
photographer as any point light source tends to screw-up the auto light
control on the camera. My best efforts to kludge around it have been
mediocre at best. But you get the idea.

Both_Mixed_Lights_Nighttime/
These show the Uni-Go coverted to LEDs, but the PC800 still on
incandescents. What is interesting is that once the PC800 is coverted to
LEDs, the dimmest areas the LEDs illuminate are brighter than the
hottest spot on the standard bulbs. Also remember, these are
higher-wattage than stock bulbs. If you still have the manual-spec
bulbs, they are a notch noticeably dimmer.

Honda_Logo/
Something I did just for fun while I was at it. ;-) Those are the
incandescent bulbs in the taillight bar, BTW.

PC800_LED_Lights_Daytime/
The end result of the PC800 conversion to LEDs during the day. I need
some broad daylight shots, am working on that.

PC800_LED_Lights_Nighttime/
You'll want your sunglasses for these photos. The camera keeps
"bleeding" the lights together. The reality is the LED arrays are still
quite circular and distinct, just really, REALLY bright. 120? viewing
angle makes sure they do "fill" the lenses, they just have much more of
a hot-spot than an incandescent bulb does. A more accurate idea of how
bright is comparing both #3 photos (running and brake). That wall is
about two lane widths away from the back of the bike, and the
illumination is fairly accurate (not nearly as saturated, but more
defined, but BRIGHT. FWIW, the stock lights don't put-out even half that
much light. I'd say the hotter incandescents I was using, with the
brakes on, would do what the LED running lights now do. ;-)

UniGo_LED_Lights_Daytime/
The initial LED conversion of the Uni-Go during the day. This was
dramatic as the daytime visibility of the Uni-Go *stank*. A friend
following in a car said the brake and running lights are WAY more
noticeable.

UniGo_Stock_Lights_Daytime/
The "before" shots of the Uni-Go.

BTW: Besides the visibility gained with the LEDs, I now have enough
power left over that the headlight runs brighter, my fog lights no
longer turn the voltage idiot light red at idle on long stop-n-go rides,
and my grip heaters are warmer (and warm-up faster, and at idle).

If anyone has any questions on the conversion, let me know. Still some
little things to do, will apprise the group when I get around to those
projects.

Total cost when I'm all done (including the yet-to-be-finished
electrical work): approximately $1000 in LED arrays, wiring, connectors,
gasket sealants, turn signal relay, etc.

Not for the feint of heart. ;-)

Kevin
San Leandro, CA
---
1996 Honda Pacific Coast 800 ("Red Dwarf")
45,000+ miles || HRCA #HM729375
<http://www.quosig.com/pc800/>
---
2002 Uni-Go Trailer ("Starbug 1") || Trailer #499
<http://www.quosig.com/quosig/pc800/uni-go>
---
Thursday, October 21, 2004 || 8:57 PM PST