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Brighter tail light.

  • Thread starter Thread starter GS750GUY
  • Start date Start date
mriddle said:
I have read that the 2357 bulb will not last anywhere near as long as the 1157 .. grab your spares while you are there.

Mike
Click to expand...

I found some 2357's at the local auto parts store. I also found that they have a 2357LL by Sylvania called the 2357LL Long Life bulb. According to the package they last almost twice as long as a regular 2357. About $2.95 for a package of two.
Thanks for the tip in the 2357's.
I also checked out the Cycle World site on the comparison study on incandescent vs LED. It seems the consensus is that the LED's are slightly overrated.
GS750Guy.
 
GS750GUY said:
I also checked out the Cycle World site on the comparison study on incandescent vs LED. It seems the consensus is that the LED's are slightly overrated.
Click to expand...
Although I have not seen that review in Cycle World, I would have to agree that most of the replacements for incandescent bulbs seem to be lacking, lights that are designed with LEDs are far superior. A good example of these lights are newer Cadillacs, BMWs, Lexus and a few others.


.
 
I put in a 2357 today and it does seem brighter. Actually, it is quite a bit brighter in my unscientific test.

A two pack for about $3 seems like a good deal. Time will tell how long they last so the spare will go in the tool kit.

Just wanted to pass on my findings.

Cheers,
Spyug
 
GS750GUY said:
Thanks guys for your replies. Faded and weathered plastic isn't an issue in this case. When restoring this bike I did spend considerable time cleaning and polsihing the complete tail light assembly and restoring it back to its original pristine condition.
I did see a cluster LED in one of the bike parts catalogs and it illustrates how the LED's a arranged so it throws light in almost all directions. The bulb costs about $40.00 a pop. I hate to spend that kind of money and find it does not work. And then I'm not sure I can just pop it in without doing some wire work. I saw a notation regarding some bulbs that with some systems you need to use what I think is called an equallizer?????? I'm not sure if I would need that or not.
GS750GUY
Click to expand...

It could be the contacts inside the switch assembly for the foot brake or the hand brake light.Make sure those contacts are clean.A friend of mine had the same problem and it turned out to be his little contacts inside the brake lever assembly.
 
When the bike was new, the tail lights and brake were about as bright as the brake and tail lights on the typical car of the day. If they dim, modifications to the system may temporarily hide the problem, but it will come back soon.

Start by measuring the voltage at the sockets, and be sure that it is the same as the voltage at the battery. If not, all the connections must be cleaned until the voltages are the same.

Next, be sure that the stock bulb is used.

Finally, it is possible to get the same voltage at the socket, but for there to be excess resistance in the wires some place so that the voltage drops excessively when the bulb lights up. Jury rig a way to test a bulb directly off of the battery, and compare it to the bulb in the socket. If the bulb in the socket is dimmer, some of the wires in between are broken, and that part of the system must be rewired.

After that, all that is left is the condition of the lens and 'reflector'.
 
I installed a Sylvania 2357LL today and noticed a considerable difference when applying the brake light. The regular running tail light remained the same.
Thanks again for all your input regarding this.
GS750GUY
 
The plug in replacements are crap. that is why you need to make your own, then you can use a higher cd diode and use close to its maximum ma rating to get the britest light possible.
 
Clone said:
line the reflector with aluminum foil, and clean the inside of your lens. then attack the outside with paste turtle wax, to polish out the scratches and make it nice and transparent. Then get yourself some lexan, drill 48 little holes in it and mount 48 3cd leds in them in six groups of eight and mount that to the inside of your lens. The 1157 bulb remains, and then when you apply the brakes the leds light up and then let anyone tell you they can't see your brake light.
Click to expand...

I like the idea of lining the reflector with alumimum foil. The foil is much more reflective than the stock reflector. Great idea!!
Thanks!!
GS750Guy
 
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