Suzuki V-Strom (VStrom) Owners Club DL250, DL650, DL1000 & DL1050
V-Strom specific discussion => V-Strom specific discussion => Topic started by: mjc506 on September 10, 2013, 16:34:27
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EDIT: looks like this has already been done :shy: http://www.stromtrooper.com/v-strom-mod ... 65140.html (http://www.stromtrooper.com/v-strom-modifications-performance/27109-brighter-turn-signals-real-post265140.html) with better photos too!
So, I'm always frustrated by the fantastic stock indicators on the strom. A bare bulb in a black plastic housing... I can't think of many ways to do it worse :crazy:
I tried the foil trick and was less than impressed. Time to do it properly :fix:
Purchase a pair of Halfords Finest bulbs (BA15s). Wattage doesn't matter. Smash the glass, and clean out the base. Also (try to) drill a small hole through the base contact. If the contact spins out, no big deal.
(http://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-0Of1qQ8H9XQ/Ui808UskQ3I/AAAAAAAAC-0/NvC7u5oMEsg/w793-h595-no/2013+-+9)
Also get hold of a couple of these. Note the wattage and voltage - this is important.
(http://lh4.googleusercontent.com/--2s0SpJEAu8/Ui808aRiLQI/AAAAAAAAC-8/H6NuD8Kdh0o/w259-h345-no/2013+-+3)
Here's the bulb itself (try not to touch the glass - gloves are a good idea here)
(http://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-1uAoYGLkdak/Ui808dRacTI/AAAAAAAAC_I/maxdVzp2nHk/w465-h620-no/2013+-+5)
Now the interesting bit. Crimp a wire to each terminal as so:
(http://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-LHA6uyNxKxw/Ui808TYKSWI/AAAAAAAAC_M/kC2RqVmsZK8/w827-h620-no/2013+-+7)
and heatshrink the upright wire:
(http://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-7NanQgOIMms/Ui808X6RHRI/AAAAAAAAC_A/NAeTdcnexxE/w827-h620-no/2013+-+8)
Stuff the bulb into the base, making sure the upright wire fits through the hole you made:
(http://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-oYQu_CcT3to/Ui808QuW7EI/AAAAAAAAC-w/Cu8JgELK5p0/w827-h620-no/2013+-+11)
Bend the bottom wire up, and apply solder to both. A big soldering iron here helps, as you have to heat the base too.
(http://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-zhoxiVRW0xo/Ui808cTKA8I/AAAAAAAAC_U/iMXge2A3Mbo/w827-h620-no/2013+-+4)
Once the solder is cool, file away the base contact to match the original.
(http://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-BLDatQGv2Ac/Ui808ZzG_TI/AAAAAAAAC_Q/d1BSzZl-1Jk/w827-h620-no/2013+-+6)
Results: Stock (with foil) on the right, new on the left.
The new bulb lights up quicker:
(http://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-iZbYVTY0VeA/Ui86I9tDxbI/AAAAAAAAC_4/e_4gJ7t1Ba4/w827-h620-no/photo.jpg)
and are brighter at peak:
(http://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-bB9-9GAVvfY/Ui85v7UmnuI/AAAAAAAAC_s/tJ94iUP8FGE/w827-h620-no/photo.jpg)
I performed this mod a few weeks ago. No bulb failures so far (early days though) despite a good hammering over rough roads/off road.
Total cost:
2x bulbs from halfords: £2.61 (if you're confident, use the stock bulbs)
2x halogen MR11 bulbs (ebay): £2.40
2x ring terminals (for the crimps): £0.01??
Heatshrink/solder/etc: £piss all
Total cost for 2x indicators: £5.02
There is an alternative method, which involves the bigger MR16 bulbs and replacing the bulb mounts inside the indicator housing, but the bulbs are slightly too big, and the orange lenses don't fit quite properly.
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What a great bodge job :)
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Do you not have any concerns on the current drawn (and heating) in such a small place? (Yes,I know they are not on too often!)
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The current draw is the same, but it is 'on' for slightly longer as they get up to brightness quicker, so I suppose energy used and heat 'generated' is slightly higher. Maybe 10% more? but most of the brightness comes from the much improved efficiency of the parabolic collector (vs the slightly shiny black plastic...).
I'm not concerned by the extra heat at all :)
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Slight issue for those of us with clear lenses though.
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Hmm, maybe not, http://www.sparksdirect.co.uk/20w-12v-g ... our-orange (http://www.sparksdirect.co.uk/20w-12v-gu4-mr11-35mm-lamp-colour-orange)
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Halogen Dichroics get very hot and are not designed to be cycled as often as a standard filament lamp.
Keep us updated as to the lamp longevity and whether the lens discolours in time.
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just cover the inside with adhesive silver foil works a treat very good mod and cheap :thumb:
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aye, orange bulbs are a good solution. Depending on how they do the 'orange' bit (ie, if its not just an orange filter stuck to the lens) you also get a nice blueish tint when they're not lit :)
I'm sure they won't last as long as the stock bulbs, but the little 12v ones aren't as bad as the mains ones. Besides, I can't remember the last time a bulb failed before I smashed it on a gate :shy:
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I like the idea of making the indicators brighter,
the tin foil optional extra has been fitted to my rear indicators for about 2 years now, front ones are low profile ones that have reflectors anyway, but don't protrude so are a little less visible but far less likely to get damaged in a drop...
But...
No-one looks for bikers or gives a $hit when they see us, so indicators are a bit useless anyways. :shrug:
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A year later, and ~20k miles (a slow year for me :bawl: , but about 2k off-tarmac included in that) and no bulb failures, or any apparent effects of heat on bulb, holder, housing or lens.
I'd count that as a success :)
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That's good enough for me ill do it next weekend -thanks for that
Pat
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I got all exited about this... A relatively simple fix for way brighter indicators! - My Glee was going to be just that little bit more sorted...
Got straight onto e-Bay, ordered 4 GU4 bulbs, which arrived within a couple of days and sat at home till today for when I'd finished replacing the front wheel bearings and re-fitting a front sprocket -the noise from the brand new replacement was pissing me off something rotten, so I bought another aftermarket damped one - (I'll post the results in another thread when I get some)
Got the spare bulbs ready for popping & Scraping, and opened up the indicators on the bike to double-check the fitting - only to find that Suzuki have changed them! :angry-tappingfoot: - they're not front-on, they're side on!(grrrrr! ### )
Bloody good job I hadn't started popping bulbs yet!! :shock: - I know, it serves me right for not double checking, but it looked like such a good idea! :bawl:
So, after much swearing I opted for the old standard... tin-foil and double sided sticky tape - Vast improvement :lala:
I was looking forward to a bit of soldering and fettling though... :crazy: AAh well - I'm sure something else will turn up...and I do have that heated gloves/insoles controller to build...
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Hmm, side on... Might be moddable if there's enough room to mount the bulb sideways on the bayonet part, but you'd have to keep track of rotation etc. Or swap back to the old wee indicators haha
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Don't think they're deep enough to mod to 'front-on' so it's replacement time if I want to do that - Old wee or some other aftermarket jobbies.
From memory, fleabay do a nice teardrop shaped front mount one, but I' not sure of the O/D...
I think I'll stick with the tinfoil for now - it really did make a difference! :) and I'm runnin outa dosh...
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Yeah, I've got low profile ones on the front, as the standard ones seem to cop it quite easily. The rears are fairly well protected, and brightness is good now.
I do also have led strips on the barkbusters - white position lights + orange indicators. They seem to make a difference too, and they (so far) seem robust enough to survive there!