I've been riding my standard 2009 500F for three years now and I'm getting more than a little tired of being unable to see very much once I hot the back roads. I've been thinking about fitting HID bulbs, but they seem to be illegal in Ontario, so I was wondering about LEDs.

Does anyone have any experience to share about either/both?

i upgraded to a decent modern super brlight halogen bulb, much better and brighter...

leds emit light very very well, but i am not sure if they project the light forwards, guess thats down to the method of projection in the headlight itself...

id be interested to hear how the led bulb goes... they are pretty cheap so worth a punt..

In fact, individual LEDs are very good for directing light forward... VERY focused and forward. The work goes into getting LED lamps to produce a broad, even pattern.

My thanks for these replies. I am going to try the simple solution of upgrading the halogen bulb ans see how muich improvement I get.

Barry

Quote from: barry905 on September 08, 2014, 08:51:39 PM
My thanks for these replies. I am going to try the simple solution of upgrading the halogen bulb ans see how muich improvement I get.

Barry

there are h4 led now


all I run on my dual sports and dirt bikes are LED now.

brighter, longer lasting, lighter, and cheap

sorry if this is a bit noob-ish lol but is there something that needs to be adjusted electrically when switching from halogen to h4 LED? I would imagine that the LEDs draw less power than the halogen.

... back roads. .. keep in mind that. .. in general bright white/blue ish light will perform worse for vision than the more standard yellowish light from halogen- when taken to a rural setting with less white lines and reflectors, the bright white seems to get eaten up in the browns and greens of country roadsides.
If you still have plenty of road markings and reflectors where you ride it may be acceptable. .. but the yellow/standard color temp bulbs will return more view to the rider...

Quote from: Janx101 on September 09, 2014, 09:13:10 PM
... back roads. .. keep in mind that. .. in general bright white/blue ish light will perform worse for vision than the more standard yellowish light from halogen- when taken to a rural setting with less white lines and reflectors, the bright white seems to get eaten up in the browns and greens of country roadsides.
If you still have plenty of road markings and reflectors where you ride it may be acceptable. .. but the yellow/standard color temp bulbs will return more view to the rider...

you know there are color ranges of LEDs, right ?

go try some, you'll be amazed at all the things you've never seen before

Quote from: lynx124 on September 09, 2014, 08:45:38 AM
sorry if this is a bit noob-ish lol but is there something that needs to be adjusted electrically when switching from halogen to h4 LED? I would imagine that the LEDs draw less power than the halogen.

you'll dump more watts to the rr

Quote from: ohgood on September 10, 2014, 02:19:58 AM

you'll dump more watts to the rr

Will the R/R need more surface area/air for as a consequence?

Quote from: ohgood on September 10, 2014, 02:19:22 AM

Quote from: Janx101 on September 09, 2014, 09:13:10 PM
... back roads. .. keep in mind that. .. in general bright white/blue ish light will perform worse for vision than the more standard yellowish light from halogen- when taken to a rural setting with less white lines and reflectors, the bright white seems to get eaten up in the browns and greens of country roadsides.
If you still have plenty of road markings and reflectors where you ride it may be acceptable. .. but the yellow/standard color temp bulbs will return more view to the rider...

you know there are color ranges of LEDs, right ?

go try some, you'll be amazed at all the things you've never seen before

Didn't know! .. So thanks  .. When cash allows I shall 

Wasn't hacking on LED vs halogen per se.... More just repeating my observations from color temp bulb testing.... 

Does anyone here recommend a LED kit/set that will fit the 07 F?

Quote from: cWj on September 10, 2014, 10:32:49 AM

Quote from: ohgood on September 10, 2014, 02:19:58 AM

you'll dump more watts to the rr

Will the R/R need more surface area/air for as a consequence?

It will get hotter, yes. Does it actually "need" more airflow? Tough to say for sure. It is possible to switch over to a more efficient R/R though (Google search SH755). I think an H4 led bulb still uses about 20-25 watts though, so it isn't like an led turn signal bulb or taillight bulb that uses next to nothing.