| Author |
Message |
    
Snkkpr01
| | Posted on Wednesday, May 28, 2008 - 01:15 am: | 
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Thanks to both of you.
I will keep my eyes out for this issue. I just brought mine home on Sat. and it has about 110 miles on it right now. When should I start looking for replacements?
Darin |
Midknyte
| | Posted on Wednesday, May 28, 2008 - 01:50 pm: |
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Photos of mine above in the thread, needed replaced at just 10,000 miles... |
Spike
| | Posted on Monday, June 02, 2008 - 09:19 am: |
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Just to keep this ball rolling (not that it has rolled anywhere on its own yet, so far it's all of us pushing it with no visible help from Buell) here is my post from another thread:
quote:Here are the headlights I've had on my Firebolt:
The headlight on the left is my original high beam that has been on the bike for the past ~32k miles. The black section you see isn't some odd shadow, the housing has really turned black inside.
The one in the center is my original low beam from when I purchased the bike in '03. During the bike's state inspection in '04 the low beam was so dim that the technician couldn't even see the light pattern on the wall to check the aiming of the headlight inside the service department. We actually turned off the lights on that side of the service department to be able to see if the headlight was adjusted correctly. The bike had ~11k miles on it at the time. That low beam was replaced under warranty and the part was never requested for inspection by HD/Buell, so after 90 days it came home with me (I was working as warranty admin at the dealership). An interesting tidbit- replacing the low beam was such a dramatic improvement that my wife didn't even recognize my bike. On the way home from work that day I ended up behind her at a stoplight. She saw the bike behind her in her mirrors and thought it was a Buell, but the headlight was so bright that she assumed it couldn't be my motorcycle.
The one on the right is my current low beam with ~21k miles on it. As you can see, it's in far worse shape than my original low beam.
I've yet to read of a single case of a Firebolt owner opening their headlight to discover that the original reflective coating is still intact. Not a single one. If you can find one and show it to me, I'll accept that the headlight issue has not affect every Firebolt, but you'll still be a long way from demonstrating that the issue only affects a "handful" of bikes. All of the evidence I've seen to date indicates that it affects every Firebolt.
I'd love to just order a set of replacement housings and be done with the issue, but based on the available evidence I have no reason to believe that my next set of headlights will last any longer than any previous set. If you have any evidence to the contrary, please share it with me.
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Fuzzy
| | Posted on Saturday, June 14, 2008 - 06:06 am: |
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just checking to see if anything has changed in the last year 
think mine looked worse than your #3 with 16k on it. blisters and melted plastic. stock 30w bulbs.
after reading this thread and looking at the prices for replacements and hid conversions went the $25 route. a $20 gsxr bucket and some roofing flashing. let there be light! 2 55w lows and then all 4 filaments wired in on high. of course the little pins on the stock connector won't carry the load but no wires have melted yet. did find out the lows are not on the headlight fuse but rather the ignition fuse!
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Crashcourse411
| | Posted on Sunday, June 22, 2008 - 08:44 pm: |
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I am riding 1200 miles to go to the 25th. These things are dim... I ride with the highs on at night with or without oncoming traffic. Is there a chance of overheating and fire while on the trip?
I have only been able to read up on this issue the last few days since I ride mostly during the day, and I never noticed they were dim.
Is the reflector enough? I'll order one tomorrow since I'm taking it apart for the new speedo sensor rewire, I'll already be inspecting the lights while I'm there.
I have 12k on the bike so far with no issue but a warped rotor and an oil leak which I'm fixing before the trip as well.
What is the latest part number for the reflector? And who wants the old one when I get to the 25th?
Thanks in advance |
Midknyte
| | Posted on Sunday, June 22, 2008 - 10:28 pm: |
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Both lamps (stock) are the same tech - 55 Watt Halogen, though the reflectors are shaped differently, so the high beam by design will not heat up any more than the low beam running all the time...
With either beam, the more they are run, the more the reflective coating degrades. The more the coating degrades, the less reflectivity there is and the hotter they will get. It's a cyclical problem... |
Diablobrian
| | Posted on Monday, June 23, 2008 - 12:46 pm: |
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if the reflector coating is not dramatically damaged/gone you should not have any problems with it catching fire.
However it does not take a lot of degradation of the silver coating to cause the light to be significantly dimmer. |
Navygunner
| | Posted on Sunday, July 06, 2008 - 11:54 am: |
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Court,
I just logged into the Harley websight to check for any recalls on my 2005 XB12R and low and behold they have a recall for the headlights!!! I have a feeling you had a role in getting this accomplished. Thanks for all you do/did in regards to this matter. |
Ducxl
| | Posted on Sunday, July 06, 2008 - 12:30 pm: |
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Navygunner,got a link to that bulletin?
Edit: i found it. But what does the following quote from their website mean?
"Product Notice: 0501: PRD PGM: FIREBOLT HEADLIGHTS"
(Message edited by ducxl on July 06, 2008) |
Gjwinaus
| | Posted on Monday, July 07, 2008 - 07:42 pm: |
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"Product Notice: 0501: PRD PGM: FIREBOLT HEADLIGHTS"
+ 1 on this, I would like to know as well |
Skinstains
| | Posted on Wednesday, July 09, 2008 - 03:14 am: |
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has anyone sent their reflectors out to be chrome plated ? I spoke to Pete at Grand Stand Designes and he said that no-one he was aware of tried it. I am going to try it and will report back on the issue. |
Old_man
| | Posted on Wednesday, July 09, 2008 - 04:02 pm: |
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I think that the heat will cause a problem, even if you chrome the plastic.
But, I hope it works for you. |
Starter
| | Posted on Wednesday, July 09, 2008 - 10:44 pm: |
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Already had mine looked at by a decorative chroming shop. Their opinion was the plastic was not up to the task of being chromed nor would it last in that environment. |
Cmmfiremedic
| | Posted on Monday, July 14, 2008 - 11:09 pm: |
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I am having problems with my clock, and trip meters on bike. I ride it everyday and several times in past few weeks when i get on it and crank it the clock has reset to 1200 and all my trip counts are at zero. |
Froggy
| | Posted on Tuesday, July 15, 2008 - 12:08 am: |
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Cmm, this would be best in a new thread, but it sounds like a loose battery connection or a dead battery. |
Diablobrian
| | Posted on Tuesday, July 15, 2008 - 03:43 am: |
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cmm: check the connections at your battery. |
Nate7667
| | Posted on Monday, July 21, 2008 - 04:41 pm: |
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Im not sure if this old news. i just got a letter from Buell stating that i can have my headlights replaced free of charge.
Has anyone else gotten this? Are the replacments any better?
I was planning on trying to make the bracket for the 90mm Hella lights this winter(i still may.) |
Darthane
| | Posted on Tuesday, July 22, 2008 - 10:18 am: |
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Go look in the XBoard, there's a 4+ page thread on it.
My kit is ordered and was supposed to arrive at the dealership early this week. We'll see if they actually deign to notify me when it arrives. |
Diablobrian
| | Posted on Tuesday, July 22, 2008 - 06:03 pm: |
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Yup, I have an appointment on Friday to have it done. |
