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Conspicuity alternatives to Clearwater and Denali

cap

Former Member
Hey, just because I bought an expensive motorcycle, doesn't mean I'm not a cheap bastidge. :wave I like to tell my wife that I am a "frugal shopper." Perhaps a "discriminating consumer."

So, I priced out conspicuity options from several premium online retailers. I have no doubt that those brands offer top notch quality. But I gagged at the cost. So, my value-meter was not tempted. I did some research, and found that CREE has a recent model LED series called "XHP" that offers very bright lights in small form factors. The XHP70 model has 4 LED's on a single die, and claims approximately 1500 lumens. That sounded about right, and I searched for some motorcycle lamps having the XHP70 LED. I found lots of flashlights and wearable headlamps, but only one type of motorcycle running light. There are several variants on eBay, I bought this one which has a large extra heatsink on the back: XHP70 Motorcycle light

For $23 shipped to my door, what's the worst that can happen? I bought one, and it showed up about 10 days later. I was really impressed with the quality of materials and machining. But does it work? I rigged it to my Hex EZCan, and yikes, it is bright. So, I bought another one, and waited another 10 days. In the interim, I wired the bike to accept the lights with a quick disconnect so that if they fail, I can swap them out without needing to route new wires. I used Denali heavy-duty mounting brackets, which are very nice. These lights actually come with an assortment of well-made mounting pieces and stainless hardware -- they are intended to be mounted on the motorcycle forks. But my RT has too much bodywork for mounting on the forks, and I have engine crash bars as a mounting alternative.

Bottom line: for $46, these are excellent value. Here are some pics...

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Nice setup. I too cannot justify spending a lot of money on extra lights. Bought some LED lights off Amazon for another bike. They lasted 25K before a rock took one out.
 
Nice job on your shopping & the installation! They say the cheapest thing on a BMW is the Rider. :dunno

I was impressed by Jerry Skene's lights, back when we were both members of BMWBMW up in DC. His lights, as you may have seen or read elsewhere, have a natural flicker effect when seen with peripheral vision or not directly Head-on. So, that means they tend to 'Catch a Driver's eye' when a car is sitting at a Stop sign (hopefully looking in Your Direction). Not only do they twinkle, but they can act as additional Turn-Signals, and they can be activated by two quick squeezes of the front brake as Warning Lites (i.e. with two fingertip jabs) [depending on the Light module U buy]. I often find it reassuring to use this feature {because I once T-boned a Geezer who didn't see me}.
The features can be checked out at: https://www.skenelights.com/online-store/Front-Visibility-Systems-c22717550

Here's how they look mounted on the front of my K-GT. I have them installed on my R90 & K's F650GS too. :thumb

BMW-Skene-lites.jpg

That's my 2 cents; in this case --> worth at least Two Bits <--
Ciao! HSV-Phil & HSV-Karen
 
Lights look good Cap. I would probably put some silicone sealer into the blue butt-connectors when I had a chance.
OM
 
Skene Lighting

That Jerry Skene must be some kind of genius! I've been using his Photon Blasters and P3 brake lights for years. Even with big bright driving lights. Now Skene has come out with a dimmer light controller. I use it on my Airhead GSPD to control my Denali 4 driving lights. The dimmer allows me to control my Denalis with the bikes light switches. It powers the Denali lights at 50% on low beams and 100% on high beams. You can adjust the brightness from 10% to 100%.
Cap, this would be good for your LED driving lights.
 
Same as U

I did similar. Works well for me. One of my $10 lamps quit, but I replaced it. The Clearwater and Denali lights are beautiful, but they are priced 10x what their value to me is. I just want added recognition, not worried about illumination.

I have two 2-amp Cree LEDs, but I am thinking of replacing with 4-amp LEDs. Two 4-amp lights should work OK on the 10-amp EZCan circuit.
 
Handguard LED strips

I might have also posted this here at some point:
LED strips on the handguards really seem to help with conspicuity, including from the sides, if you wrap them around (see 3rd pic).
The first set of strips lasted six years. It had relatively large 3050 SMD LEDs. I now switched to (hopefully) more waterproof strips in a rectangular silicone tube. They have smaller LEDs, but that doesn't seem to hurt their visibility.
IMG_20130908_193410.jpgIMG_20130908_193547.jpgIMG_20130912_191816.jpg
More details at http://www.advrider.com/forums/showthread.php?p=22284175#post22284175 (I don't want to cross-post the whole thing).
 
I’m using Baja Designs Squadron Sport v2. (3000 lumens ea). They are combo spot/flood with clear lenses and yellow cover for during the day. Awesome coverage and there no ignoring them (for safety sake [emoji6]) $220 all in from Amazon. There’s a Pro version with double lumens too...

Here is a link of a walk around if you’re interested about the Denali aux brake lights too... https://youtu.be/ni9teJ2Hvdw

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Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
If you install a HexEzcan you can install any light you want on a bike. Apparently you did. The HexEzcan is a great configureable device that has several options and a brake pulse and intelligent turn signals that turn off the aux light on the side of the active blinker. I also like the "Triple Flash" feature.

I got a cree set on Amazon for $20. I'm sure the Denali and Clearwaters are exceptional lights, but not my priority. I outfitted the G650GS and the K75S with them. Over 2 years one burned out.

Increasing a visual "footprint" can be done for far less $800 bucks. This isn't a competition to have the right lights, it's about being seen.

These lights aren't dimmable but effective.
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https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01MDJK1AJ/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o01_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

The Weiser aux/turn signal combo (2 in 1) are a really good option for less than half the price of other lights. They can also be used with or without the HexEzcan but this device makes it easier to set up. I opted for the Weiser LED turn signals.
 
Rest in Pieces

My budget conspicuity lights worked great for 2 years... one of them is still working, but the other, alas, is now non-functional.

Broken.jpg



Direct hit from a rock while the bike was mounted on a trailer. Oh well. I decided to go large this time, and bought another kit on eBay. This time I spent a almost $80 for the pair!! But they look more robust than the last set, and seem to have a wider beam pattern. I'll report when I know more.

Cap

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If you install a HexEzcan you can install any light you want on a bike. Apparently you did. The HexEzcan is a great configureable device that has several options and a brake pulse and intelligent turn signals that turn off the aux light on the side of the active blinker. I also like the "Triple Flash" feature.

You can install any light you want without spending the extra for a Hexcan, it just depends on how you want to control them.

I just mounted a pair of Rigid D2 on my 2018 R1200RT. I wired a simple handle bar mounted switch and ran power off the accessory circuit which I rarely use and if I do it is just for a cell phone charger. My other option was to wire them to the battery and control them off a relay energized by the accessory circuit. I really don't see the need to add a $200 controller that runs through the wonder wheel which is less convenient than a $10 switch.

Another consideration, do you only want drivers to see you better, or do you want to see down the road at night. Many of the less expensive lights have a flood light pattern, wide spread, throws light every where. I wanted lighting so I can see down the road at night, past the range of the headlight. The Rigid D2 are a 8 degree spot beam. They also have amber snap on covers for protection and so you more visible to other drivers.
 
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