I am thinking of upgrading the headlights on my 2010 Sprint ST 1050, more to increase my visibility to other road users (especially those old and doddery car drivers we seem to have plenty of round here) than for my benefit if riding in the dark, which I rarely do. I've seen various upgrade kits for the Sprint offering higher power bulbs to increase light output, but I'm wary of overloading the electrical circuit as I already have heated grips and a plumbed in sat nav cradle fitted. I expect the other option is to fit auxiliary lights, potentially LED ones, but again I'm wary of overloading the circuit. Has anybody experience of attempting such an upgrade and is it worthwhile?
If you find the power rating of your alternator you'll be able to work out how much "spare" current you have available but personally I'd be wary of fitting higher power halogen filament bulbs in the standard light housings due to the extra heat, even if the wiring was upgraded. Upgrading lighting from halogen filament to LED type almost always results in a decrease in electrical load. Not a Sprint ST I know but I took this route on my Street Scrambler with a H4 LED bulb in the headlight, two additional LED auxiliary lights and the combined electrical load was still less than the OEM 55/60 watt halogen bulb. The two issues with retro fitting LED bulbs are it's not strictly legal (potential MOT fail) and, more importantly, beam scatter can be a big problem making the light worse and even dangerous to oncoming traffic. Fortunately the beam in my SS headlight is virtually the same as with the halogen bulb but I've tried similar upgrades on other bikes/cars and it was rubbish.
Thanks for the response. You've confirmed my suspicion that LED is the way to go, I'll see what needs to be done to replace the current halogen bulbs with LED ones. Failing an easy fix that way, a pair of LED auxiliary lights would be a useful addition. I've also got a Street Scrambler, mine's a 2019, sorry to see one of yours got nicked. I haven't thought of upgrading the lights on the SS, I very rarely ride any distance in the dark so probably won't bother. I have done a few tweaks to it - decatted with a British Customs decat pipe (US made and strictly speaking not for road use), fuel booster plug to improve the fuelling and and K&N air filter to let it breathe more easily. With the standard end cans left in place it's not too loud but it now revs more eagerly when you get over 4,000 rpm. Not a bike for long motorway trips but great round the B roads here in the Scottish Borders. As I never go offroad I also replaced the standard Metzeler Tourance tyres with Michelin Road 6s, they've made a real difference to the handling and it now turns in more like a naked street bike should.
The only mod I had to do to the SS headlamp housing to fit the LED bulb was remove the bulb shroud. Some OEM halogen headlights respond better to LED bulbs than others, plus not all LED bulbs of the same fitting (H1, H7, H4 etc) are the same so it"s a bit of a lottery finding a combination that works. I got lucky with the SS and the first bulb I tried works very well. I bought the SS for general riding round, mostly on local B roads like you and it's great for that. I replaced the Metzelers with Pirelli Rally STR's which are still a rated as a dual sport tyre but I find them much more confidence inspiring in the wet. I fitted progressive fork springs which are a big improvement but the rear shocks are underdamped with the preload on max so they may be the next upgrade.
I might try the LED upgrade to the SS, anything that makes me more visible to other road users is worthwhile. Can you tell me what type of LED bulb you found worked OK?
I can't find the exact item or seller as I bought it in 2020 and purchase history doesn't go back that far but it looks virtually identical to this.. https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/22548295...jSD6HafHDoQGvEyu1EQ9u1TPI=|tkp:Bk9SR5yq8vWOYg I think it was around £15 at the time.
Not (necessarily) an MOT failure. https://www.gov.uk/topic/mot/manuals Provided that the beam pattern meets the requirement, it will pass. Indeed, the manual explicitly says that "a ‘light source’ means any bulb, LED or other means of emitting light". If you have problems, http://www.norbsa02.freeuk.com/ sells H4 bulbs that should give the correct beam.
I recently put some LED bulbs in my Sprint GT. Very bright, but the "throw" of the light was awful. I sh*t myself riding home in the dark as couldn't see anything. LEDs are NOT designed for the standard reflector housing. I switched back to Nightbreakers and now superb.
I've now come to the conclusion that trying to upgrade the headlights on my Sprint, not to LEDs anyway, needs more thought. If I'm going to do anything I'll see if I can fit a couple of auxiliary LED lights. Thanks for your feedback.
just found this - the website was referenced on here regarding valve service, but also has section on HID upgrade. http://www.bowl-of-mice.co.uk/HID.html
Thanks Aidan. I've bought stuff from SquareDeals before and yes, they sell good stuff at a reasonable price. However the HID kit referred to on the Bowl of Mice site is no longer available, all that SquareDeals now sell are replacement HID bulbs. I suspect the article on the Bowl of Mice site is quite old, which would explain the HID kit no longer being available. Thanks anyway for bringing this to my attention.
