Auxiliary fork mounted light project

[raesewell]

I thought some of you might be interested in my little light project.
I wanted LED fork mounted lights to increase the bikes visibility profile and came up with an idea.
I got the lights super cheap on ebay
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/4-White-LED-Highlight-Car-Motor-Motorcycle-Spot-Light-Fog-Driving-Lamp-Headlight-/331370185258?hash=item4d2733c22a:g:Ef4AAOSwyTZUXHfN
When I bought them they were �1.78 they have since increased slightly in price, but still cheap. The only drawback is the delivery time, I was in no hurry.
Here they are in the process of being given a coat of clear lacquer

I am awaiting a delivery of 30mm X 2mm aluminium flat bar to make some new brackets. The ones that come with them are tinned steel and would probably rust in very short order.

These are the spacers to stand the bracket off of the forks. These are made from 20mm O/D 10MM I/D aluminium tube. There is the section of raw tube to show the before and after difference.



The more eagle eyed amongst you will have noticed that one spacer is slightly shorter than the others. This is to accommodate the ABS sensor bracket on the left fork.

Here are the brackets (still work in progress) I have the two stuck back to back so that they remain identical.





I got myself some really nice bolts from Pro Bolt
Clicky Linky to Pro-Bolt

The components so far



Edit:
One thing I forgot to mention was that inside the lights is a small circuit board so I filled the lights with epoxy potting compound to make them truly waterproof.
The one on the left is only partially filled, it took a bit more than I expected so I have some more on order.

[Phmode]

Nice piccies oh wise one!

Is the green stuff on the front coming off or is it part of the light unit?

Brian (who is avoiding getting on his high horse about bloody motorcyclists dazzling him and waking him up)

[raesewell]

It's coming off Brian it's just blue masking tape to protect the lens and heat sync fins from the lacquer.

[Phmode]

...ah, now I see the light 

Brian (who sees way too many bloody lights [STOP it, right now]  )

[raesewell]

The aluminium flat bar turned up this morning and here it is complete with adhesive residue against one of the original brackets.
I would love to get in the garage and get started but I have to go and do the Christmas grocery shopping with Melanie.
Tomorrow maybe?

[TomL]

Those look the business Rae. Are they about 50mm diameter? What sort of beam do they throw?

I thought that the DRLs that I did for the K1200S where a little bit too small and I'm interested to see how yours turn out.

BTW the link that you give for your LEDs comes up with the following message.  This listing was ended by the seller because the item is no longer available.

[raesewell]

Well, I found a bit of time after the shopping took less time than expected and knocked these out on the quick this afternoon.
The 2 new brackets and one of the old ones in the middle for a comparison.



I have fixed the link Tom. The original link was to the item I had already purchased.
The OD of the lights is 54mm, I'm not sure what type of beam they throw yet.
Bearing in  mind the price, I didn't expected them to get out of the box in one piece, so the fact that they work is a bonus. I'm also not sure how long they will last but for the price what have you got to lose. If they blow up after 10 minutes at least I will have the brackets to mount some more lights to. You can afford to but 100 sets of these for the price of some "premium" brands. 

[TomL]

How are you getting on with your lights Rae?

[raesewell]

The lights are ready to go on the bike Tom, however a couple of days before Christmas I binned the bike and broke my shoulder so things are on hold at the moment. As soon as I get the bike back and my shoulder is mended I'll be on the case.

[Steve F]

Ooeer Rae! Sorry to hear about your unfortunate event. What led up to the bike binning incident then??

[Twisty]

Piggin' 'ell Rae! 

Why didn't you say. 

What happened? 

Hope you are on the mend. 

Take care 

 

[raesewell]

It wasn't something I wanted to publish but seeing as Tom asked I wasn't going to avoid it either.
The long and short of it was, there was this bend and I didn't go round it.
The bike is being assessed by the insurance company. I have broken Scapula which apparently is a very rare injury. I had a night in an NHS hotel and several Xrays but I'm on the mend now and getting a bit more movement every day. I have to go back in 4 weeks when the physio takes over I believe.

[Phmode]

Effin eck Rae! You can't go killing yerself, you own this site if I go down the tubes 

What caused it mate, lack of concentration, too much gin, reindeer in the road, not enough lights on the bike? This really doesn't sound like you. Was Mel with you? I bet she's gonna give you a good thumping just as soon as you have healed 

On a serious note, how did the Yam fare up to getting binned?

Brian (who thinks there is way too much of this nonsense going on kiddies, watch yerselves out there)

[TomL]

Sorry to hear about your accident Rae. I broke my scapula many years ago in a cycle accident. You'll be looking forward to the physio terrorist I bet.

Look on the bright side you should be ready to go when the weather gets better.

[raesewell]

I can only guess at lack of concentration, I had had nothing to eat that day which may have caused low electrolite levels which by all accounts can lead to lack of concentration. I'm not making excuses but trying to identify reasons.