A Royal Enfield forum for the people

[Tim]

I think the wiring diagram is a dead end, I buy it from a guy who buys it from a guy.

How about I send you one and you can be the test mule? There is a built in fuse so your bike should be safe. (famous last words)

[swamp2]

An LED on the other hand is a Diode which means it has a positive and a negative pole or wires. It allows electrical current to flow in one direction only, if the current is reversed it will immediately (fraction of second) overheat and burn out.

So, there needs to be an internal rectifier in the LED bulb to assure that the electric current is flowing in the proper direction, (if AC current is used).

Hmmm... That's a pretty weird setup, I can't imagine why they would choose to run the bulb off "regulated" AC when they already have a regulated DC voltage available. Adds cost for no evident value.

Anyway, I'm not so sure it would cause the LED to burn out if the peak voltage was held under control. I think it's more likely it would work, but you would lose some efficiency as the LED would only be conducting (and hence illuminated) during the positive half of the alternator AC voltage. So there would be a loss in apparent brightness compared to running it off DC. Diodes can generally withstand some amount of reverse voltage, if the reverse voltage spec of these LED's is > 15v or so, it shouldn't be damaged.

It wouldn't be hard to stick a $4 bridge rectifier on the output of that AC regulator thing to fix the issue (if I'm understanding it's operation correctly - no guarantee on that!).

[Mrunderhill1975a]

I suspect RE used the AC for the headlight in the '99 to 2009 bikes to get a brighter headlight bulb for the US market. As you point out, the rectifier would reduce the light emitted by 1/2. A small bridge rectifier would be fairly easy to install. I have attached a picture of a 40 volt landscape LED bulb which works on AC but has the internal bridge rectifier and big resistor. I wonder if Tim's bulb has this type of rectifier in the "Saucer Section".

Anyway, Tim, I will buy one of your bulbs and try it. How much is the bulb itself, without the trim ring and fixtures?

[Mrunderhill1975a]

Good News, I received the new headlight kit last week and installed it over the weekend. The new LED headlight works well on both my 2004 and 1999 bullets with AC current from the alternator. Puts out a significant amount of light, it should make the bike more visible during daylight. Two thumbs up for this kit.

[Tim]

The LED conversion is getting positive reviews everywhere it goes. mrunderhill confirmed it works on the Iron Barrels.

Huklbery says, it works well on the 650 INT minus the factory rubber boot on the back of the headlight.

GHG doesn't have the same bulb but they are close and his G5 has no complaints.

Mr. eBay customer hasn't requested a refund so I assume he LOVES it on his 2017 C5.

Now all we need is a Himalayan rider to take the challenge. I don't even know, does the Himalayan come stock with a 5-3/4 or 7 inch headlight?

[Guaire]

That dongle on the end of the H4 bulb is an important feature. The headlight nacelle is packed full of wiring. The regular H4 with a plug at the rear is bad enough at needing plenty of room at its backside. The LED bulb takes up some space in the rear because of the heat dissipating fins. The wired out plug lets you install it and get the connector to a less crowded spot in the bucket full of wires.

[Guaire]

I installed the extender ring on my 2011 B5. Sure enough, I had plenty of room for my LED/and its heat sync in the casquet. Now I have the bright bulb.