K11 Owners Group

[omarsbuddy]

First off, a big tip o' the hat to Gwen for posting the link to the Cree LED lights. I ordered a pair last Sunday, and they arrived in three days . . . from China . . . free shipping!

Despite the fact they're made in China, they seem to be made from very high quality components, including a machined billet aluminum insert to which the rear cover attaches. Fit and finish are outstanding, and having seen them lighting the way on Gwen's bike, I'm real happy (so far) with 'em, and can't wait to get 'em mounted.

. . . which brings me to my question(s) phase . . .

Unfortunately, I didn't pay alot of attention, a couple weeks ago at HMSP VI, to how others had their lights mounted on the fork sliders. I'd really appreciate some suggestions/pictures on a good, secure mounting method. It kinda surprised me how heavy the lights are, relative to their size, and I want to be sure I mount 'em securely.

Also, suggestions on weatherproof switches and where to get 'em.

Gwen, I liked that little round rocker switch I saw on your bike. Don't know what it was for, but I liked the fact that it was small and seemingly easy to operate with gloves on.

Thanks much for any and all suggestions/pics.
_________________
Scot
'95 K1100LT

[sccommuter]

Scott,
Here's how I have mine mounted. A lot of folks mount theirs with one bolt, but I like the strength these brackets provide.I purchased them from Lamp one designs. www.lamponedesigns.com . I would also suggest looking a Eastern Beaver''s website and consider a new wiring harness for the lights. It 'll brighten up your headlight too. www.easternbeaver.com






_________________
1995 K1100 LT
Illegitimi non Carborundum

[omarsbuddy]

Thanks, Bob. They look good 'n' sturdy. I like the fact that they're made of stainless steel, too.
_________________
Scot
'95 K1100LT

[Shoganai]

Nice texting with you Scot.
Sorry I couldn't get to this thread until now.

Thank you so much for your help as well.
_________________
1993 K1100RS aka The Shop Whore
1994 K1100RS aka Blue Streak

The long road is a rainbow and the pot of gold lies there.
So slip the chain and I'm off again,
You'll find me everywhere. I'm a Rover. - JT


Nana korobi ya oki

[omarsbuddy]

[omarsbuddy]

It was pretty much an all day project . . . mostly because I tend to get alittle . . . uhh . . . well . . . anal, when it comes to projects like this. It's a good thing I don't do this kinda stuff for a living, or I'd probably starve to death!

Anyway, they're mounted, secured, and working well. Here are a few shots:









Okay! Now that that project is completed . . . on to the headlight!

I noticed that there were a few people at HMSP VI whose headlights were very white, like LED lights are. The addition of the LED lights to my bike really highlighted the fact that my headlight is more yellow than white. My question is: Is the white headlight a "plug & play" replacement bulb, or is there more to it than just replacing the bulb?

Update: I forgot to include a pic of my choice for the positioning of the switch. It took a whole bunch of thinkin' (about the consequences of getting it wrong) before I mustered up the nerve to drill the hole, but I gotta say, I'm very happy with the clean looking results, and I think I chose a good location.


_________________
Scot
'95 K1100LT

[SugarHillCTD]

Scot,

Before you change your headlight bulb, look at how thin the wires are that go to the headlight.

(When I started to mod my wiring, even with careful handling the ground wire broke off in my hand)

Many of us have improved the output of the stock headlight by installing one of Eastern Beaver's headlight relay system http://www.easternbeaver.com/Main/main.html. Jim produces really nice quality equipment that is reasonably priced and delivers quickly even though he is in Japan.

But if you are going to install any bulb (like an 80w/100w) that draws more current, then an E B relay is a must do.

I have a relay kit on my K-RS and installed a Sylvania SilverStar. Same electrical draw as stock, but with a better bulb and better electrical supply, people see me (I do not ride at night here- too may LARGE animals)

Good luck with your electron herding.
John
_________________
John & Cathy

'92 K100RS4V Pearl White SOLD
'04 K1200GT
IBA Several-SS1k, BBG, 50CC NYC to S.F.

[omarsbuddy]

Thanks, John. Bob mentioned Eastern Beaver in his post above, and I took a look at their website.

Being quite the novice at electron herding, and having absolutely no idea what a relay does, or why I need one ( ) could you (basically, draw me a picture) direct me to which harness/relay I need from Eastern Beaver? (this is pretty embarrassing)

John, I'm a semi-trailer mechanic, and have been for almost 30 years. I'm afraid my electron herding experience has been pretty much limited to two basic components: power and ground. Hell, before I bought this bike, all my previous bikes had a maximum alternator output of 280w, and I didn't have the option of adding all the electrical goodies I wanted. I quickly found that reflective tape was a suitable, if not optimal alternative to overloading the electrical system.

Thanks for putting up with my lack of knowledge. BUT . . . I'm learning!
_________________
Scot
'95 K1100LT

[SugarHillCTD]

Scot,

What a relay does is carry electricity directly from the battery to the headlight bulb. The existing wiring on your bike will then only act as a signal and have to carry a very small amount of electricity. Think of a relay as an electric actuated switch.

As I wrote above, the existing wiring on a K100/1100 is pretty thin and electricity has to flow from the wiring harness, through the right-hand headlight switch contacts, the left-hand low/hi beam switch contacts and to the bulb. All the time going through that thin wire bottleneck.

Here is what you need from E B. In the picture below the red and black wires connect directly to the battery, the black plugs in the upper left go between the headlight bulb and the socket that used to be attached to the back of the bulb. In the lower left are the 2 relays (1 each for the hi beam and the low beam)

H4 Single Headlight Relay Kits (Fairing mount option shown)

H4 Single Relay Kit $54.95
Bulb Lead Length
Main Leads Connection



Clear as mud?
_________________
John & Cathy

'92 K100RS4V Pearl White SOLD
'04 K1200GT
IBA Several-SS1k, BBG, 50CC NYC to S.F.

[Scott_Anderson]

Scot from Jim's website: http://www.easternbeaver.com/Main/Wiring_Kits/H4_Kits/h4_kits.html
the basic kit that will work for you will be the "H4 Single Headlight Relay Kit(with fairing mount option)" for $54.95 It's about 1/3 of the way down the page.
The "fairing mount option" consists of 16" of wire from the realys to the headlight socket as opposed to 6" of wire lead.
There are alot of other options, for those that want to get really creative with their installation.
I got mine before he offered some of more "creative" options, and I have the basic kits.
I also have 2 of his "generic" aux lighting relay kits as my aux lights are halogen and need more current than LED.
_________________
Ride safe.



1995 K1100LT 0302044
2017 FLHTK Ultra Limited
Garmin StreetPilot 2820
Garmin Zumo 550
Garmin Zumo XT
"One who does not ask questions is ashamed to learn" Danish proverb
1997 K1100LT 0302488(R.I.P.)
1997 R1100RT ZC62149(sold)

[omarsbuddy]

Thanks for the help John & Scott. (and thanks for your patience)

Yup . . . clear as mud.
_________________
Scot
'95 K1100LT

[Jim]

Scot,

Nice work on the LED lights!

I don't know whose head lights you reference in your post. The bulb I use does an excellent job.

This is copy and paste from an older post I wrote:

"Steve - I've had Jim's relay installed for a few years now - I'm quite happy with it. If you want better lighting without going to a higher wattage bulb, get some Sylvania SilverStar bulbs. I use them in the K and the Honda. http://www.sylvania.com/ConsumerProducts/AutomotiveLighting/Products/Halogen/SilverStarProducts/

You can definitely tell the difference.

In a recent review of the Jim's relay in MCN, Dave Searle reported 12.0 volts at the headlight before the relay was installed, and 13.86 after the relay was installed. Although not a great difference in voltage, there was a 50% improvement in light output - "and the light was whiter as well as brighter." The Sylvania engineers claim that bulb life drops rapidly when fed more than 12V - in this case from 7500 hours to 1400 hours.

That's not my experience. I installed the relay and the Silverstar bulb several years ago - I'm sure I've put at least 30,000 miles on the bike since then - and I might have changed the headlight once - maybe. I don't keep track of headlight bulb replacements. I do keep a spare bulb kit on the bike at all times. I run a headlight modulator (unless I'm behind Drake) during the day, and the high beam is on at night whenever possible."

I still don't remember having to replace the bulb more than once - and I still carry a spare. Look at the SilverStar and the Ultra. They have a decent price on them at Wal*Mart - even though I won't buy them there. The bulbs aren't cheap, but they are from The Fatherland - the K likes them... I think you will, too. Nice thing is you're not running a higher wattage bulb.

If you use the search box at the top, and plug in Sylvania and Jim - you'll find a few other posts.
_________________
Jim
1997 K1100LTSE 94,000 - still has gremlins!
1995 R100RT Classic 16,650 crashed - repaired!
1992 K75RTP 46,000

"We shall not all die, but we shall all be changed."

[drikko]

Remember that 1400 hours is a lot of riding, lets say worst case you averaged 20mph, that's still 28,000 miles so the time estimate might be accurate.

Personally I would rather replace the bulb occasionally than have less light.
_________________
K1100RS '97
Laverda RGS 1000 '84
Jim Young Trailer Sailer 5.7M WB

DISCLAIMER:- Anything I say may have been when I was drunk so please don't take it personally.

'Bigamy is having one wife/husband too many. Monogamy is the same.'
Oscar Wilde

[omarsbuddy]

[grant93]

Gidday Folks,

I just ordered a EasternBeaver relay myself after reading the above info, my bike is not on the road yet but I think it will be a good upgrade when the time comes.

Thanks for the info once again.

Cheers Grant
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Cheers Grant

1994 K1100RS
1981 R100RS
1978 R100RS
1928 Chevrolet tourer

www.montythe1928chevrolet.blogspot.com.au

[old guy old bike]

I had EB customize the harness for my '93. It has a relay for the aux lights and turns them off when the high beam is on. I also have it wired via a switch to turn off the aux whenever I want. Worked out nicely.
Jeff
_________________
1993 K1100LT
2003 K1200GT Gone but not forgotten
2014 Victory Crossraods

[Stoked Steve]

Eastern Beaver's stuff is the best. Funny, he used to have a K bike and now has a VStrom, so he also make some special kits for the VStrom.

I have the same EB headlight relay on my new Vstrom as I had on my K11RS., except that it powers two headlights instead of one. They are used on the VStrom for the same reason as the K, crappy thin OEM wiring and less than robust switches.

As a bonus, I also installed a PC-8 fuse block on the new bike, I almost got one for the K, but didn't quite get it done. It's nice to have all the wires correctly hooked up and fused instead of a rat's nest at the battery.

All of his stuff usually arrives from Japan within a week or 10 days (to the USA East Coast).
_________________
Steve
Virginia Beach, VA
93 K1100RS Mystic Red SOLD
12 Suzuki DL650A VStrom

[grant93]

Gidday,

My new EB relay arrived in Oz yesterday, very quick postage indeed and it will be installed soon one coming weekend.

Cheers Grant
_________________
Cheers Grant

1994 K1100RS
1981 R100RS
1978 R100RS
1928 Chevrolet tourer

www.montythe1928chevrolet.blogspot.com.au

[omarsbuddy]

I installed the EB harness with relays and a Sylvania Silverstar Ultra headlight bulb that I purchased at Wally World (That was for Jim! ) this morning. Wow, what a difference!

Thanks to all for your suggestions and advice.

Can't wait to go for a night ride!
_________________
Scot
'95 K1100LT

[firecat]

I have a E Beaver wiring/relay kit, but I can't figure out how to run the cable' from the steering column to the battery, Do I have to remove the fuel tank ??
A daunting task , no ?
also to access the relays, is tank removal necesaty ??

any info helps

'93 K1100RS 139,000 km.