Being 65 and finding that light is even more of a problem than what is was when younger, when I had good night vision. I have always disliked high beams coming at me.... OR low beams that aren't adjusted correctly(not much difference). ... Which includes people following me day or night.
It used to be that most people would deem their lights.... Now it seems that it's a norm to burn brights or adjust low lights high.
Well, I for one am against it. I have no objection to using my 100 watt high beems on my Jeep, but only when I can't see headlights or tail lights in front of me(and keep my finger on the dimmer the whole time they're on).
I also, do use the method, look down and right(or away for you lefties).
I ride during the day with the basic rule that I don't go any faster than my line of sight for stopping. So at night, I don't outride my lights. The common problem is going around a turn and being able to have the lights illuminate around that turn, without having them point high and spread across the road when going straight again. About the only thing that seems to work is to use my lights correctly and slow down.
I set up my lights(adjust) on a brick wall to get what I want, then find a average size car to set up behind and adjust to where the top of the beam will stop just short of (under) the right side mirror of the car.
Now it's time for your comments.... Please.......
Well, I try to avoid riding the moto at night, period. However, I drive an auto to work this time of year, in the dark each morning. I have no issues navigating the 16 miles of state road with my low beams only. I drive a 2006 Honda Accord. I never feel the need to use my high beams. Each morning, there is always some fool coming at me with brights blazing and they get the little blip of my brights to remind them that this is inappropriate. Yes, this is nerve-wracking, but I can't fix the issue. Then, there are the idiots that only only have one headlight that functions on low beams, so they burn their brights such that they have two working lamps...
IG
I know there are some motorcyclists who use their brights night and day, believing it makes them more visible and, therefore, safer. But brights can blind oncoming traffic, or the vehicle in front of you, day or night. And it is more difficult for another vehicle to judge distance with bright lights in their eyes. It's also distracting, discourteous and, I believe, illegal in most if not all states, not to dim your brights to oncoming traffic or while behind a vehicle. Let the flaming begin.
[image: View Post]Knife, on 02 January 2011 - 10:34 AM, said:
and, I believe, illegal in most if not all states, not to dim your brights to oncoming traffic or while behind a vehicle. Let the flaming begin.
In the District of Columbia, it is illegal to EVER have your highbeams on.
Timmy made me think of something that you UK Peeps might be able to confirm.... When I lived in the UK (69'-72') the law was that no headlights could burn at all (only marker lights) in a city at night while driving. Does that still hold true ??? .............. Buy the way I loved it, the UK and the light law........
Wow! I thought I was the only one! I'm glad to see that other people feel the same way. I don't know why people don't think of this any more. They seem to think it safer to have super bright blinding headlights but I think me coming at you head on swerving all over the road because I'm blind is more dangerous to myself and the other driver. I LOVE the look of H.I.D.'s but when they're installed on a vehicle that wasn't designed for them they cannot be aimed or focused properly so all they do is blind everyone in a flash of blue light. To me this is the equivalent of putting one 22" rim on your rusted, mis-matched panel, 1985 Caprice because one cool rim and three bad ones are better looking than four bad ones,lol I wish the police would start cracking down on this. Not that I like them but neon license plate frames, L.E.D. washer nozzles, and tire fly's will get you pulled over in half a second here (but not my sideways plate,lol I dunno) because they claim safety is inhibited but for some reason blinding H.I.D.'s will not. The same goes for having a headlight or brake light out- out= instant tpull over, but burning your high beams= nothing even though you should have checked to make sure all your lights were working before you left and there is a 24 hour Wal-Mart alomst everywhere now so there is no excuse for burning the high beams most of the time they just want to see if you've been drinking. I wonder if they have ever done a study on accidents caused by being blinded by headlights and what the results would be.Another pet peeve of mine is people who drive on the other side of the divided highway and leave the high beams on. The grass does absolutley nothing to block the headlights and just beacuse the roads don't touch doesn't mean you aren't blinding everybody. Well I feel better, and if you happen to be one of these people please stop and think about the safety of the other people who share the roads with you, that pay the same taxes insurance etc. and have every right to have the safest roads possible for themselves and their families.
p.s. I'm sure the H.I.D. argument makes as much sense to the sport bike crowd as the "loud pipes save lives" argument does to the cruiser crowd. Ride safe, ride couteous, ride happy.
I'm glad someone started this topic.
Apart from the inability to keep one's vehicle in their own lane (whether that's oncoming or with me)... my other pet peeve are those who need to run the brightest light they can find at night.
Now, it's no real drama with on-coming traffic, as long as they're in their own lane, I usually know where I'm going anyway, and might flash back to let them know. Most of my travelling is on multi-lane divided road anyway.
But what really gets my goat are those who are behind me with brighter than normal lighting, especially on my suburban commute. Are they looking for coins on the road or somehting?
Maybe it's just because I'm getting older, or I'm just whinging... but I find it hard to determine that vehicle's speed and distance with their lights so bright.
With the idiots we have here in Brisbane, a speeding motorist at night is only a few seconds away usually.
For me, I find them wayyy too distracting and IMO pointless for most of the uses I've seen them in.
Does anyone else encounter this? I find I can pick a vehicle's speed and position fine with normal driving lights. Their beams don't seem to hide as much as what's behind them... while superdooper suburban trooper lights seem to make them somewhat two dimensional, making it hard to grasp exactly where they are, and at what rate of knots their doing. Add to that the irrational behaviour they display. Do we really need such bright lights where I am, or even funnier are those who run fog lights (cough) I mean "driving" lights... both of which seem to be favourites for local and imported vehicles here.
Pretty sure running AM HIDs or fog lights in Queensland is illegal, but never enforced.
Ok, I'm getting old, and crustier :goofy: ... needed to rant
Here is Los Angeles there are so many people running their high beam at night. I used to flash them but very few responded, if ever.
So I installed bixenon HID projectors in both the VFR and the truck. And I don't hesitate to flip on the brighter when encountering these assholes. Blinding them may not be the nicest thing to do, but it beats head-on collision with a 3 ton truck because they blinded me.
But in reality now both of you may have temporary blindness coming at each other!
Sent from my DROIDX using Tapatalk
Nothing says "I'm a douche!" at night quite like a glaring cheap halogen to HID conversion.
[image: View Post]Monk, on 02 January 2011 - 12:17 PM, said:
Timmy made me think of something that you UK Peeps might be able to confirm.... When I lived in the UK (69'-72') the law was that no headlights could burn at all (only marker lights) in a city at night while driving. Does that still hold true ??? .............. Buy the way I loved it, the UK and the light law........
Monk, that is no longer the case, nor has it been for all the years I can remember.
We appear to have some of the same issues over here though, except that rarely do you encounter someone keeping their high (bright) beam on in the face of oncoming traffic...occasionally on a dual carriageway they think their beam doesn't affect the other carriageway but that's the exception rather than the rule.
IMO, the biggest issue over here is, similar to some of the US reports, the use of HID's. Not only illegal fitting of HID (without a self-levelling setup), but even factory fit low beam can often blind or certainly distract. And now the European Union have deemed that ALL new cars are to have daytime running lights fitted, so it seems that all manufacturers want to fit these 'bling' LED lights which are almost as blinding at times, but worse still, motorcyclists are now less likely to stand out than they did before (don't get me started on the EU! :mad: ).
With regard to my own bike lamps, I have non-HID but very powerful lights as I do ride in the dark. I try to balance visibility with the chance of glaring out oncoming traffic, but will certainly only use my high beam when there are no head or tail lights visible in front of me. Headlamp adjustment is measured in a mandatory annual check of all motor vehicles in the UK (vehicles over 3 years old).
Howdy,
When I commute this time of year ( if the weather allows it ) the trip both ways is in the dark. High beams only drop for traffic, and won't shine around the side of the mountain. At least not any better than you can see some places in full sun.
There are quiet a few turns on my way to work, that I just ride by faith.
Merry Christmas, and happy holidays, everybody!
Mac
Huh...no comments from all those who converted their VFR lights to HID yet?
Truth be told it's illegal in the US. Plain and simple. Any HID conversion is not DOT certified and there fore subject to penalty by law. Even if you do a retrofit (put an actual HID lens in your head light housing) it is still not DOT certified and still illegal. And that is the only reason I haven't done it.
I am all for increasing your ability to illuminate the road at night. Just not at the expense of oncoming traffic. For any reason. When you are driving you are supposed to do so responsibly and safely. The problem is too many people just don't care because "everyone else is all ready doing it" or "I only ride back roads and never see any traffic".
I prefer HID technology because it is more effective and efficient but until someone manufactures a DOT certified housing for the VFR I will do what is legal. If I find that night driving is beyond my ability with what I am allowed to use then I shouldn't be driving at night. It may sound harsh but driving is a privilege. Not a right (again here in the US). If you can't do it legally you shouldn't be doing it at all. This stems from having seen too many irresponsible drivers causing accidents that could have easily been avoided.
I think the easiest way to accomplish better lighting at night legally is to add DOT certified fog lights on the forks. They are easy to adjust the aim so you are not blinding oncoming traffic, have a nice wide beam pattern to better illuminate the entire road surface, and you can easily mount a switch to turn them on and off. This is what I do with my cages and if I drove enough at night on the VFR to justify it I would certainly do it.
After reading Mikeonbike's heart wrenching story, I'm leaning toward doing something to make myself more visible. If not HIDs, then maybe some fog lights? I've also been reading about the BMW K1600GTL adaptive headlights - very cool stuff. Being able to see where you are turning towards is a good thing.
In my experience, most people will dimm their highs when seeing an oncoming car in rural areas. Here, in NYC they do as well but not as much - Just a greater concentration of APSM (Aholes Per Sq Mile) here.
Those who don't dimm fall into two categories: Not aware/ignorant and Don't give a flying fuk about anyone else. Both should be hurded into a mining pit and the pit filled in.
Skids ......... Thx for the update on the UK's city lights law ..... To bad, it worked so well .... example (UK); making a right turn after a on coming car passes by, it's a lot easier to see a ped' walking across the street you're turning onto.
Is it possible to put an HID for high beam only? If you're dimming your high beams for oncoming traffic, then who gives a f#*k if it's kicking off "too much" light otherwise?
I'm all for having as much light as possible while respecting fellow motorists.
[image: View Post]Magoo, on 22 December 2011 - 07:26 PM, said:
Is it possible to put an HID for high beam only?
Yes it is. It's just a bulb swap and some simple wiring.
[image: View Post]vanion2, on 23 December 2011 - 08:37 AM, said:
[image: View Post]Magoo, on 22 December 2011 - 07:26 PM, said:
Is it possible to put an HID for high beam only?
Yes it is. It's just a bulb swap and some simple wiring.
Then I have no idea what all the hubub is about. If you have uncanny night vision and no desire for more light than keep your old H4's and the like. I'll let you know how it goes when I figure out how to go HID for my high beam.
Your 5th gen uses H4 bulbs and you can not get halogen lowbeam with HID high beam bulbs. Only the 6th gen has seperate bulbs for low and high beam.
HID's Illegal in the US, I suppose they havent payed the bribe.. er I mean tax yet! Seems the main difference between legal in the US and not is weather or not they paid some fee! Never mind if it is actually safe or not.
Case in point I made my xr650 street legal sight unseen by simply going to the dmv and paying the fee to have it registered in Colorado, I took it with me expecting some kind of inspection since I spent all this money on a lighting kit and other stuff outlined in the CDOT website, they did not even come out from behind the desk, here I was all decked out in riding gear, slogging my helmet and backpack around, hot as hell and I could have driven my car? I was flabbergasted cause the thing does not have an ignition key and I had to lock it to a fence pole with my cable lock and was worried somebody might just take it while I was in there! The rifraf that hangs out by the courthouse is the bottom of the barrel, too bad the DMV is in the same building where they put criminals on trial. HID's build for the housing they are in are ideal - most hid kits have the arc in the wrong spot for the parabolic reflector to focus it correctly, they are not built with the arc in the same spot as a standard filament h4 is so I suppose that's why HID kits are illegal but I am guessing the manufacturers just did not take the trouble to pay some fee the government agency imposes to consider them legal!
I have headlight flashers on mine just because I want to be seen by oncoming cars who want to cross my lane to make a left turn, after getting plowed into once I find it works, I made sure it is legal before I installed it too. They simply wont work with hid's so I never even considered a "douch bag" kit as sombody put it earlier in this thread!
I am sure I annoy the hell of out folks in the oncoming lane with my flashing headlight but damn it they notice me "and that has made all the difference" - rfrost.
[image: View Post]V4 Rosso, on 23 December 2011 - 09:24 AM, said:
Your 5th gen uses H4 bulbs and you can not get halogen lowbeam with HID high beam bulbs. Only the 6th gen has seperate bulbs for low and high beam.
So much for that idea. Thank you for saving me hours of agony for nothing!
As far as HIDs being illegal in the US...I respectfully disagree. I sell autos for a living and many of todays cars come with HIDs directly from factory. Mazdas, Kias, many GMs, Mercury/Fords not to mention most of your high end Lexus, BMW, Porsche, etc. Somebody already paid the bribe, er..."fee".
[image: View Post]Magoo, on 23 December 2011 - 12:00 PM, said:
As far as HIDs being illegal in the US...I respectfully disagree. I sell autos for a living and many of todays cars come with HIDs directly from factory. Mazdas, Kias, many GMs, Mercury/Fords not to mention most of your high end Lexus, BMW, Porsche, etc. Somebody already paid the bribe, er..."fee".
It's retro fit into reflectors that are not designed for hid that is not legal. It has nothing to do with bribes, it has to do with properly designed installations.
That makes sense. Thanks.
[image: View Post]Tamworth, on 23 December 2011 - 12:50 PM, said:
[image: View Post]Magoo, on 23 December 2011 - 12:00 PM, said:
As far as HIDs being illegal in the US...I respectfully disagree. I sell autos for a living and many of todays cars come with HIDs directly from factory. Mazdas, Kias, many GMs, Mercury/Fords not to mention most of your high end Lexus, BMW, Porsche, etc. Somebody already paid the bribe, er..."fee".
It's retro fit into reflectors that are not designed for hid that is not legal. It has nothing to do with bribes, it has to do with properly designed installations.
Exactly. viffergyrl's 2007 Acura TL has factory HIDs, and she's followed me through some local canyon roads at night on a few occasions with no problem for my nearly 50-year-old eyes. The lights are not glaring at all because the reflectors put the light where it is needed i.e. on the road not in my mirrors. BTW the high beams on the Acura are halogens, and work quite well.
Tightwad was working on a HID conversion for 5th gens. Haven't seen any updates on that, but if it's done properly I'm all for it. It's the "stuff an HID into a halogen housing" kits that are for the bling over function crowd.
i find people who drive with their high beams on during the day distracting.
guess I am a *** my low beams on 5gen burn out every month or two ,so after replacing them a number of times ,I just run on hi-beam all the time. BTW an old trick if oncoming traffic is really blinding you ,shut your lights off-every single time they will put their low beams on-has not failed in 46 years. Try it. Merry Christmas. I do not care what is legal or not-I want to be seen. Flame away.
[image: View Post]texasvfr, on 24 December 2011 - 10:04 AM, said:
guess I am a *** my low beams on 5gen burn out every month or two ,so after replacing them a number of times ,I just run on hi-beam all the time. BTW an old trick if oncoming traffic is really blinding you ,shut your lights off-every single time they will put their low beams on-has not failed in 46 years. Try it. Merry Christmas. I do not care what is legal or not-I want to be seen. Flame away.
I see this a lot here, but I've never had a problem with bulbs failing prematurely on my '98. I ride a lot of bumpy roads too, so I think it may be a voltage/connection issue.
Turning the headlight off is not an option on any US bike since the '70s.
[image: View Post]MBrane, on 23 December 2011 - 11:18 PM, said:
[image: View Post]Tamworth, on 23 December 2011 - 12:50 PM, said:
[image: View Post]Magoo, on 23 December 2011 - 12:00 PM, said:
As far as HIDs being illegal in the US...I respectfully disagree. I sell autos for a living and many of todays cars come with HIDs directly from factory. Mazdas, Kias, many GMs, Mercury/Fords not to mention most of your high end Lexus, BMW, Porsche, etc. Somebody already paid the bribe, er..."fee".
It's retro fit into reflectors that are not designed for hid that is not legal. It has nothing to do with bribes, it has to do with properly designed installations.
Tightwad was working on a HID conversion for 5th gens. Haven't seen any updates on that, but if it's done properly I'm all for it. It's the "stuff an HID into a halogen housing" kits that are for the bling over function crowd.
The bling has zero appeal to me. Who rides a vfr for bling? I just want to see as far ahead as possible. I have a guy that might be able to make this work. Won't be messing with it til Feb but will post details if we can do it right.
[image: View Post]Magoo, on 24 December 2011 - 02:53 PM, said:
I just want to see as far ahead as possible.
Then perhaps you should do some research on that:
http://www.danielste...onversions.html
End of thread · 31 posts recovered Wayback Machine snapshot 27 Jul 2012