Retro Lights for Night Riding

[Tallpaul]

A rummage in the loft dug out a few odds and sods today. Probably the most interesting was this retro set of lights. According to the label they cost me £65, I'm guessing I bought them around 1998.

The lights work running straight off the charger, not sure the battery is gonna hold a charge though. Still, shouldn't be too expensive to pick up a new (and probably smaller/lighter) battery.

 

[Easy_Rider]

That looks great, love the look of those lights, and yes a new Lithium-Ion battery would be much smaller and lighter

 

[FluffyChicken]

IF it's anything like my Smart Owl lights (and the battery holder looks the same) and uses a 6V 4/4.5Ah Lead Acid battery then they can be had for <£10 delivered on ebay. Same make mine was (Yusa ?). And of course have not changed one jot in size and shape

Anyway only problem with going Li-On or even Ni-MH is to set the 6V. Of course it can be done, running two in parallel and stepping/capping the voltage. Or changing you bulb setup.
That's not something I could be bothered to do and kept it Retro (though mine was still early 00 to mid 00's That and the Lead Acid was far cheaper than the Li-On cells and a charger

It has been mentioned there are some forums dedicated to this sort of thing, but not sure of their address.

 

[dyna-ti]

nice to see those old dogs again ,i had the single version
i might even have some of the bits kicking about :?

Are you going to upgrade the battery? I seem to remember its a sealed lead acid[that might be another light ] Nimh are a cheaper option than Li-ion :?

 

[FMJ]

Dug out my Night Suns to put on the SS. Battery's on the charger now. We'll see if it holds a charge.

Ever the tinkerer, I made a bracket to mount the for Off/hi/low switch on the bars so I didn't have to reach over to the housing bracket for the switch and can now operate it with my thumb.

 

[dyna-ti]

Dug out my Night Suns to put on the SS. Battery's on the charger now. We'll see if it holds a charge.

Ever the tinkerer, I made a bracket to mount the for Off/hi/low switch on the bars so I didn't have to reach over to the housing bracket for the switch and can now operate it with my thumb.

I have these too.Mine are in worse condition though, ive stripped out the lamps and workings and somewhere down the line ill buy something from RS components and build a good strong light

 

[was8v]

I have some old (98/99?) BLT nightsuns that are still going strong!

 

[Steve Kish]

Before my Tiger Lights, I modified a pair of the Smart 6v lights to run at a much brighter and whiter light by changing from the standard 4.5mAh / 6v lead acid battery to a 10.0mAh / 7.2v NiMH one.

Perfectly OK to over-volt halogen bulbs at 20% over stated voltage and worthwhile in terms of run times.

PM me if interested and I'll send you a detailed spec.

 

[legrandefromage]

A rummage in the loft dug out a few odds and sods today. Probably the most interesting was this retro set of lights. According to the label they cost me £65, I'm guessing I bought them around 1998.

The lights work running straight off the charger, not sure the battery is gonna hold a charge though. Still, shouldn't be too expensive to pick up a new (and probably smaller/lighter) battery.

I have the same set, 'full' beam would get cars flashing at me.

 

[Alex Creasey]

Dug my BLT's out whilst having a rumage yesterday... Still in perfect working order