Aftermarket Headlights

I am in the process of deciding what headlight to use for a 1982 XJ750 Seca. I have decided on a light style that I like, check it out below (the dual streetfighter style)

www.americanclassix.com/streetfighter_general.html

I have cast aluminum mounts for the headlight and intend to mount them low (about the height of the stock "fog" lamp with the turn signals mounted to the same mounts on either side.

My problem now is trying to find a way to hide all of the stock wiring that was inside the factory housings. I plan to remove the factory headlight bracket leaving just enough to support the brake line distribution block but this still leaves me with a rats nest. Any suggestions?

I do intend to mount a small flyscreen (Triumph Speed or Buell Lightning style) as soon as I find one but these in themselves don't provide a place to hide the wires either.

 

Radio shack project enclosure...worked like a charm on my old GS500e streetfighter.

 

fake nitrous bottle--plenty of room--killer looks

 

Just curious, what performance mods would you suggest to compliment this fake nitrous bottle? Kinda like those stick-on hood scoops and big wings on cars, isn't it? LOL

 

Put air pods on the carbs and make the air box your new wiring junction box.

 

xj750 guy, im pretty much doing and dealing with the same thing so ill keep you posted if i think of anything as well (with regards with what to do with the rats nest. at first i was gonna mount dual fzr600 headlights on my bike at about the aux light level. but i realized i like the smaller streetfighter style better.

im honestly tempted to just chop it all out. and have no wires. (or at least nothing that isnt vital)

 

Check this site out. I think they have what you are looking for at a cheaper price. They also have a gazillion different brackets. I too was looking at going to twin style headlights, but have since decided to go to a single round with a fly screen. If you are interested in fly screens for a single 7" headlight, check this site out.

 

Trunks - your second link? Linky no worky

 

I like the idea of dual headlights (different look and better lighting) but can't see paying the price for the dual setup I found. $150 is a bit steep for me. I think I may just make my own bracket and mount two driving lights (from an old lightbar I have) and make it my own! I figure with two lights, I will be able to aim the lights better to see the road ahead and use the dimmer switch to shut the one off that's adjusted higher incase I blind someone.

 

I've given up on even thinking once, let alone twice, about cost when I am working on this bike. I decided a while ago that I wasn't willing to shell out 3000-5000 dollars for a bike that someone else had ridden into the ground and not bothered to change the oil on. Instead I'm going to turn my XJ into MY bike!
I also have the added benefit of a place to work on it that is not often seen by my wife so I don't have to make up excuses about replacing perfectly functional parts. LOL :lol:
The lights are on order as of Friday, as is a brand new Supertrapp, new bars and bar end mirrors, and K & N Pods. Just for good measure I sent the carbs away for soda blasting, powder coating, and rebuilding. The motor goes to the mechanic next monday for rings and a cam chain.
My end budget is about 3000-3500 including the initial purchase and I will be able to proudly pull up next to anybody who just dumped 10,000-20,000 on the "latest and greatest" new toy and know that I still have enough in my jeans to buy a coffee (and don't need to "compensate" either). :wink:

 

figure out what your gonna hide all the wiring behind existing headlight? im still thinking of a way to do this too.

make sure you keep us up to date on pics of your bike man. i know im really interested how it all looks.

 

I got the lights on order as of last week Friday. I ended up going with the dual 5 3/4" set from aztec8.com. I haven't had a chance to figure any new way to hide the wiring yet as I am waiting to get the lights in place so I can size things up.
I have a friend with a welder and a great deal of skill that I will have come over when the lights are on. I think it will be some sort of flyscreen with guards to enclose the wiring behind so far.

 

The lights showed up and I love them!

I now have a plan figured to enclose the wiring. I am having a friend who is known for his welding skill build me a Buell XB style flyscreen with "boxing" that extends to the forks and covers the wiring. Nothing is finalized and it is hard to explain so I will post some pics as it progresses. Right now it is just some pieces of cardboard cut to shape and a hacked up garden spade.

Next question, has anyone tried any of the "high output " stators that are on the market. Old Bike Barn has one they claim is higher output than stock. Just curious what people have tried.

 

So, after much thought and organizing of resources I finally got the lights mocked up in place. This is just a temp bracket until I have a chance to get everything in place then I will be able to do up the real thing!



Here is a pic that gives a better idea of the positioning I am trying for.



This is a picture of my plan to cover up the wiring that used to be in the headlight assembly. It started out life as a garden spade but is slowly but surely evolving into a flycreen that will somewhat resemble that of a Buell Lightning.





I had a friend tig weld the extra metal on so that we had enough material to work with. It will be trimmed and shaped in coming weeks and evetually get a final hammering and shaping with some body filler.

As always, thanks for the help in so many of my ideas.

The floor is open to comments and suggestions.

Regards, Darryl

 

When you get done putting the shovel on are there any plans for the rake and the pitchfork still in your shed ?

I have a real nice double edged axe in the shed, I wonder if there's any way to accent my bike with that........HHMMMMMM.

You may have opened a lot of creative minds. You could combine your bike with the agricutural implements with a Bagger and a Chopper. Then you'd have a great time doing the lawn.

Acually I think that kind of creativity resourcefulness is very cool. Keep up the good work.

 

XJ750guy,
Those are the exact same lights I planned to use. I think I will mount mine with some kind of fabricated bottom mount off the lower fork brace (triple tree) I am going to cut all wires out that I don't need and mount the remainder of them in some kind of little box or tube and paint it to blend in to the bike. >PD<

 

PainterD, I have liked your bike since the first time I saw the pictures of it!

I don't know if you have the lights yet, but would recommend them to anyone. The quality is quite good. My bracket will be trimmed quite substantially from what is in the pictures. It is just a plate to get them in position and map out some sizes for the fly screen.

The reason I am going to so much work to enclose it all is because my Seca has the Master Cylinder between the forks, and there is much that needs to be hidden even if I cleaned up the wiring.

Buffalo, thanks for the comments. I think that a bike is meant as a personal expression and that the more you can build one-off the better it expresses.

 

That master cyclinder behind the headlight? Who was the rocket-scientist who came up with this idea?!!
I am thinking of taking another master cyclinder (handlebar mount) and running new lines to get rid of the remote master cylinder on the forks.
**I have however came up with more leverage on the cable-to-master cylinder, by fabricating a longer arm where the cable mounts to the master cylinder, so now I have less effort to apply the front brakes.
But, I still hate the setup with the location of the master cylinder and will probably get rid of it to clean up the front end.
My plan: to get a larger volume master cylinder that will handle two disc brakes (larger piston) and run one brake line to a T. Then run a brake line for each slave cylinders off the T. I want to be able to mount the "T" above the bottom fork mount and the headlight bracket, under the bottom fork mount. I figure I can make a light bracket out of 1/4" flat stock, bent to the desired shape to aim the headlights in the correct angle.
Or: mount the "T" under the fork mount and make a bracket for the headlights to go above the fork brace. I have to see how things look after I get the parts to upgrade the brake system first, and go from there. Either way, I want it to look factory done or as close as I can get. I got the idea off my Honda 1100 Shadow, which has a single mount off the fork brace for the headlight.
I figure I can then adjust each headlight separately to get the light pattern I need. I may use one flood light and one spot light (not sure yet) or just two spot lights, one shining up and one shining down to get a good light pattern. The spot beams are 30w, so it shouldn't over load my electrical system and be plenty bright. I have them on the Honda Shadow and they do an excellent job. The only option I have to use the high/low beam switch, is to use it to shut off one of them incase they are too bright for oncoming traffic.
Another option is to find small 4" sealed beams that have high and low beams in them already, but I'll cross that bridge when I get to it.
I will need to make the cutout in my windshield to match the new headlights too (yes, I use a windshield for long hauls) so it looks more like this: (OO) instead of this: (O) so that won't be a problem. And the windshield will cover up alot of stuff stuff nobody needs to see!!!!
I will need to do a mock-up after I remove those ug-a-ly big square instruments and install my new (to me) Honda speedometer I just got in the mail today. This bike should look sweeeeeeeeeeeeeeet when I get'r done!!!! I'll post some photos when I started on this abortion. >PD<

 

well send that remote master cylinder my way cuz I would love to get the master cylinder off my bars and hidden!

 

I just finished removing the stock gauges from the Seca (that big square thing with all the wires running out of it!) There must be 25 wires to deal with (can you say abortion)
I took a better part of the day, but I have all of them figured out and labeled finally. I cut everything just long enough to be ale to get at if I need to use them at a later date. I will only be using 7 wires and concealing the rest in some type of small enclosure (not sure just yet :? )
*2 for the bright beam indicator
*2 for the nuetral light indicator
*3 for the signal lights (they share the ground wire)
I may run two more wires from my grip heaters to another LED so I remember when I have them on.
I will be using 1/4" LED lights in my fabrication of the speedometer mount for the indicators.
Now I will be making a trip to the local Radio Shack tp see what they have for an enclosure that I can paint find a location to mount it.
I suppose I could tear apart the wiring harness and move all the un-needed wires back under the tank to hide them? I may have to look at that option later when I get out to the shop~ I have removed all the plastic connectors previously, so I don't have to deal with them anymore (solder and heat shrink are my friends)
That will more than likely take up most of my day.
I am still contemplating the dual headlight idea as long as I have them laying there on the bench staring at me. After trying to picture what it will look like with dual headlights, I'm thinking it will look too much like a street fighter instead of a bobber with two lights, as opposed to just one 7" single. I guess I'll cross that bridge when I get to it.
I'll try to remember to snap some photos of the progress later today also. Just me >PD<

 

PainterD, am I understanding that you have cut out all the connectors and just soldered and heat shrinked the entire pile of connections? I think that would take a while but may hide the wiring enough to make it a lot smaller if nothing else.

Please take those pics of some of your existing work and also what you are working on now. I would love some ideas as to how to clean it up. The fabricated flyscreen I am building will be neat but I still want it to look "light" up front and not have to have to have too much enclosed.

Any info regarding which wires are redundant and can be moved elsewhere would be great as well! I have a second instrument cluster that I will have to look closer at to see for myself.

When you mention unnecessary wiring that can be moved are you implying that there is some wiring that does not start or end in the gauges but just follows the bundle up without being used (at the gauges)? If this is the case I could easily move it to where the ignition coils used to be as they are now in the old airbox's spot.

 

I had problems with those plastic connectors on some of my other bikes and found it's just best to cut them completely out and solder the wires together then cover with heat shrink. And being the Seca has that annoying computer monitor, I found there to be 12 extra wires in the harness that are now normally there on other makes/models.
I will be running LED lights for monitors. So I only need the two wires for the headlight bright beam, two wires for the nuetral switch, three wires for the signal lights. So the rest of the wires will be cut short and tucked away for now. If for some reason I feel the need to install some kind of after market fuel gauge, I can still get at the wires to hook it up. The side stand switch will still keep the engine from starting when it's down and in gear, but there won't be a light anymore (That's the first thing I do when I get one a bike anyway is to put the side stand up, so I don't feel the need to use a monitor for it)
I can also install a tach if I need to, but I don't feel the need to use one because I noticed that I have never ran the engine near the redline when riding it. If I ran it up to 7000 rpm I'm lucky.
So to answer your question XJ750guy, yes there are 12~ , or so wires that run into the computer that are just there to monitor the systems and do not control any of the bikes operation. Those can all be cut and tucked away. The only wires that go thru the monitor that you actually need are the headlight wires, turn signals, and nuetral switch (in my case anyways) so I kept (and labeled) the 7 wires and will hook up the LEDs with two amber lights (turn signals), one green (nuetral light) and one blue (high beam) I may run a red LED light to tell me when I have the grip heaters on too.
I have completely removed the gauges now and everything works as planned (whew) Now to work on the cosmetic parts and hook up the LED lights.
I will try to remember to take a few photos of my progress, but don't hold your breath! It seems that once I get working on it, I'm in my own little world (it's a good place to be) and I forget to come in and get the camera. I'll be back later >PD<