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Led Headlight Install - 5Th Gen


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Not doing much VFR riding these days, but got another 2k+ miles trip planed at the end of the month. Not every day use, but 4000+ miles of highway riding should be a decent test of the Lifetime led bulbs. Vibration, heat, cold, rain. Will keep you posted.

Mine will be here Thursday, planning to put them in over the weekend.

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Hopefully your luck with the Lifetime LED's will be far better Cap'n. Please keep us posted as to the quality and any comparison info you may have on parts.

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Mine will be here Thursday, planning to put them in over the weekend.

Also, keep in mind they seem to do a lot of business in the off road 4x4 market. So I think durability is key for them.
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Thanks,I see that now,section 3-26 of the service manual,it must be a bit fiddly to reach the adjusters,is it done by screwdriver or do you turn the adjusters with your fingers?

I think I read adjusting the 6th gen headlights is a lot easier.

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IIRC there are two holes on the lower corners of the dash surround around the gauges. Insert a Philips head screwdriver in through the hole and the adjuster screw is just inside. I believe that is the height adjustment screw.

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So I received the Lifetime LED kit. Very nice overall, much better than the original eBay special.

led_kit_zpsec6d6860.jpg

But just before installing I noticed this. Do auto bulbs have different left and right reflector positions?? Am I missing something or is this the same problem I had with the cheapo kit I originally bought - the ring has been mounted backwards??

LEDs_zps82d0cd84.jpg

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If I recall correctly, when KevKarver showed the install of the Lifetime LEDs on his bike the actual bulb assembly twist locks into the retainer ring. Maybe you can twist, remove the bulb, rotate and reinsert it into the locking ring. To the best of my knowledge the standard H4 bulbs fit both reflectors the same way and the bulb certainly looks like one of the LED arrays is closer to the retaining ring than the other.

Hopefully it is a simple matter to fix Cap'n. After the fun you have had thus far, anything else would be just mean.

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Just a FYI, those "lifetime" LEDs or how ever many sellers are selling them are now available at Cycle gear under their speedmetal brand. If you want to check them out before buying. I'm happy with the light output didn't change anything around, just snapped off bottom two tabs so the ring would fit. Didn't remove the housing either, mounted the ballasts inside the front fairing. Time will tell, but feels like a quality built product.

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Just a FYI, those "lifetime" LEDs or how ever many sellers are selling them are now available at Cycle gear under their speedmetal brand. If you want to check them out before buying. I'm happy with the light output didn't change anything around, just snapped off bottom two tabs so the ring would fit. Didn't remove the housing either, mounted the ballasts inside the front fairing. Time will tell, but feels like a quality built product.

On Sale !!

http://www.cyclegear.com/SPEEDMETAL-LED-Conversion-Kit

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The deal isnt that great, as you only get one for that price. So two is comparable in price to the paired kits sold elsewhere. However they are stocked in store, so returning a dud should be cake if needed.

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I installed the bulbs wire down (low beam LED is one furthest from base facing up). This is how the bulb is keyed normally with the ring anyway. Instructions say you can flip 180, but you'll notice one plastic tab is bigger. I left one halogen in while installing one led to compare shining at garage door. Lowbeam height and sweep is very close to stock, so I didnt need to adjust housing angle. You won't blind drivers. Hi beam is a bit higher, produces almost a concentrated spot ahead (low beam led stays on, lower closer one comes on with it)

2014-12-06_08-11-53_902_zps3ikhxl1m.jpg

Mounting ballasts to side of housing seemed a bit goofy. On the 5th gen, headlight wires come in to sides of front cowl, so I mounted the ballasts inside this area. Removed fairing lowers to do this. Cycle gear kits come with double sided tape pad. Mounted right to fairing plastic few inches in front of radiators by turn signals. Not going anywhere.

2014-12-06_08-12-49_991_zpslyktnwnb.jpg

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Hey RC

Nice and clean looking install. Just a quick question. You mounted the power supplies to the part of the upper cowl that is directly behind the turn signals?? When I did my original install I had the headlight housing out of the bike in order to mount the bulbs, which IMHO is a much larger PITA than the Lifetime LED and this Cyclegear Kit due to the style of the bulb. I had toyed with mounting to the inside of the fairing plastic but for the life of me I couldn't seem to find a large enough flat spot other than the side of the headlight housing. Your location is sheer brilliance as far as ease of mounting and proximity to the headlight for running wires. I definitely deserve a back-o-da-head slap and you sir are just da man for the job. LOL. I just might consider tearing the bike down again and moving the power supplies since the snow has piled up 6" deep on the driveway and temps have plummeted to about 20*F outside the garage.

Very nicely done. Please keep us updated on the longevity of the kit and your overall impressions while riding.

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You can kind of see in the photo I posted. They're stuck to the red painted part just across from the turn signal connector. Running along the seam with the black plastic piece above. The install was fairly easy, you install the ring with the spring clip first. Then install bulb with boot, which was kind of annoying. Had to look in front while installing to line up the plastic locking tabs.

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The deal isnt that great, as you only get one for that price. So two is comparable in price to the paired kits sold elsewhere. However they are stocked in store, so returning a dud should be cake if needed.

Lifetime LED sells their 2 bulb kit for $150, so this is a little cheaper.

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yeah, but looks like they offer a supposed lifetime warranty. I saw no such claims on the cycle gear packaging. Probably the standard 30 days with receipt.

The deal isnt that great, as you only get one for that price. So two is comparable in price to the paired kits sold elsewhere. However they are stocked in store, so returning a dud should be cake if needed.

Lifetime LED sells their 2 bulb kit for $150, so this is a little cheaper.

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The deal isnt that great, as you only get one for that price. So two is comparable in price to the paired kits sold elsewhere. However they are stocked in store, so returning a dud should be cake if needed.

Lifetime LED sells their 2 bulb kit for $150, so this is a little cheaper.

I trust things are well with your kit so far Cap'n.

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The deal isnt that great, as you only get one for that price. So two is comparable in price to the paired kits sold elsewhere. However they are stocked in store, so returning a dud should be cake if needed.

Lifetime LED sells their 2 bulb kit for $150, so this is a little cheaper.

I trust things are well with your kit so far Cap'n.

Everything is good. I need to spend some time aiming them, the Lifetime bulbs are pointed down a little too far for my preferences.

About the original kit I bought from the eBay seller wfyb, they have not responded to any emails requesting a refund. So, originally the bulbs were on backorder when I paid. A week or so later they offered a discount to their newly updated, lower pricing if I would continue to wait until they had stock. They refunded this $15 difference by cancelling the original transaction and "refunding" me through PayPal, only $15. To eBay it appears the whole transaction was cancelled, they say, so I have no recourse through them, try your bank or PayPal.

Not sure I'll ever get that $85 back, I'm going to try to go through PayPal next and file a dispute.

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I don't see three wire (High and Low beam in single unit) in the Cycle Gear link. Am I wrong?

Also, I didn't find the H4 pair I originally bought from Lifetime listed on their site.

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