Which Clearwater Aux Lights? Krista or Erica? Comparison?

I try to avoid riding in the dark, primarily due to the fear of hitting dear and other wildlife.

But there have been a few times where I've been on a multi-day ride and we've fallen behind the schedule and found myself riding through "the boonies" in the pitch black darkness.

The general consensus seems to be if you have the dough, Clearwater makes the best auxiliary lights.

I can find lots of reviews on the "Krista" set which has 3 LEDs per light, each providing 2400 lumen at a power cost of 36 watts per light.. Cost is $650.

However, the new model is the "Erica". Each Erica light has 6 LEDs, providing 6000+ lumens per light at a power cost of 60 watts on high. Cost is $850.

So here's my dilemma /thought. If you're going to be spending that kind of money on lights, might as well go out all and pony up the extra $200 for the Erica. The math says the Erica is more then double the brightness of the Krista (which is pretty damn bright).

Questions:

1) What are the alternatives to Clearwater that provide similar results and quality?

2) For those who have the Krista - what do you think? Bright enough or do you wish you had more light?

3) For those who have tried to Ericas - thoughts? What light system did you upgrade from?

4) Best mounting location? Mount to mirrors or front forks? I would think up high on the mirrors would be the best and also allows the user to angle the lights off to the sides, to spot deer/wild life as they wait in ambush to Kamikaze your ass...

5) Power consumption: Manageable?

Assuming a stock FJR, a Gen I has 120 watts of excess electrical power. Gen 2/3 have 200 watts of surplus.

On full power a set of Erica's will draw 120 watts. A set of Krista's will draw 72 watts.

My other powered accessories:

Heated Jacket Liner (Firstgear) - 90 watts

Heated Gloves (Firstgear) - 30 watts (15 per glove)

Radar detector - Escort Passport Max - Unknown, probably <5 watts

Occasional charging of iPhone, Bluetooth Headset, Sena SM10. <5 watts

I no longer use a dedicated GPS device. I use my iPhone (mounted with a ram mount) for GPS now. The map software was updated sometime ago. The maps are now pre-downloaded and continue to provide turn by turn directions even I'm out of cell service. You still need cell service to initiate the directions however. German sells a $50 app via the app store that comes pre-downloaded the roads for N. America. This works independently of cell service and is good if you're in the middle of no where, no cell service and are lost.

So math tells me that if using the Erica along with my heated gear all maxed out, I would be at 240 watts... only 40 watts over so probably not that big of a deal. That should be manageable through slowly draining the battery and/or reducing heat from the heated gear. If I'm riding in the dark, chances are it would be for under 2 hours.

The Clearwater lights are dim-able so you don't necessarily "have" to run them at full all the time.

If you did want run everything at full at the time, an option would be replacing the stock headlights with HIDs. I did this to get a little more power out of my FZ6 bike to accommodate heated gear without draining the battery.

Thoughts?

Here's a quote of myself from another thread asking about electrical requirements for CW lights.

The Gen1 has a 490 watt alternator. My calculations come to less than 290 watts to run the bike, not factoring in the fan. The fan is a manageable resource. If you're in a situation where your fan is on you can turn down/off your heated gear or turn off your aux lights. So that leaves at least 200 watts when riding of excess power. I run 2 sets of aux lights on my bike that total about 80 watts. And I can run my heated liner (77 watts) and heated gloves (27 watts) on full power with all lights on and never drop below 13.5 volts. That's 185 watts of accessories plus a few more for 2 GPS and radar detector.
Anyway, a pair of Kristas draws 70 watts. You'd be fine with those and heated gear. The Ericas pull 120 watts for a pair, so you might run into trouble when running them with heated gear. However, keep in mind, you can dim them to save power when needed. Just add a voltage meter to your bike so you can see the health of your charging system.

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The above was for the gen1. Without the fan running, the Gen2 has about 270 watts of excess power.

Just put on a set of Kristas, and while I have not used them in the dark, they made lane splitting on stopped Interstate traffic a breeze set at about 30% power. I think the cagers thought I was LEO on a bike.

My $.02 would be if you have the extra $200, go for it. why not get all you can for those rare occasions.

See Gerauld about mirror mounts. I put FZ1 mirrors on my Gen III, and there is no way the CW mounts will work with them. If you keep the stock mirrors, you can use the CW mounts with no problem.

Greg.

I have Kristas, and I've NEVER wished I had brighter lights. The Ericas are super bright, and also dimmable, so you don't really have to burn out anybody's corneas, but you could, but the Kristas project all the light you would ever need, IMO. I definitely recommend the very sturdy under-mirror mounts CW provides for lots of reasons. They widen the profile of the bike for approaching traffic--you won't be mistaken for a car that's farther away, like the stock FJR lights can be (and have been). The higher mounting position also gives a better pattern of light down the road than if they were mounted lower. CW does make a smaller fork-mounted light that's very bright, the Darla, but I prefer the larger size. Here in Kali where we like to split lanes, I'm convinced it's the optimum position to be seen between lanes as you come up from behind, too.

As for turning the lights to catch the sides of the road, not necessary. They project a wide cone of light that covers everything you need to see, though most of it is focused in the center of that cone.

With a Gen II, power consumption will be ok with either light, though the Kristas will save you some. As you said, as you turn them down, they consume less juice (unlike a traditional volume switch like you have on your wall at home).

Last, your first question. I don't believe there is a product out there with the quality, durability, or customer service that you'll get from Clearwater at any price, and especially with all the benefits that are unique to LED lighting.

I just installed Kristas when the group buy went on earlier this year. I absolutely love them. Just did a LD rally this past weekend, Mason Dixon 20-20 and was finally able to really put them to the test. Nothing short of incredible. Mirror mounts were included when I bought them. The only complaint, if you want to call it a complaint, is that after you ride with them on high, when you turn your high beams off, it almost feels like someone turned off all the lights.

I'm not an expert by any means but I think Clearwater makes some of the best lights out there. Worth the cost? They are to me.

Here's what I went with.

Erica's mounted under the mirrors.

Darla's mounted on the forks.





Without the Erica's



Rheostat and Erica switch mount.



The switchs are mounted on the back side of my GPS.



Side View



Really like the simple but effective Clearwater Voltage Sensor.



There are other good alternatives out there. Fairlaner did an under mirror mount that looks really clean.

The Darla's are always on. Dialed down to 50% at night and full blast during the day.I feel very conspicuous

The Erica's -my god! You won't need any more light - believe me! They are switched independently of the Darla's. I have used them about a 1/2 dozen times in the past 1.5 years. Was damn glad I had them. Waaaaayyyy back in the boonies, 10-11 at night, with thick ass woods on either side - you can't have too much light.

As far as power goes, the Erica's do draw. I run the same gear as you. This winter I rode Taos, 4 degrees out so I had my heated vest, pants, gloves and boots, GPS, Darla's and Erica's full blast and I was fine for about an hour. Just keep your RPM's up.

I have Erica's, Kristas and Glendas on 3 different bikes. No real experience with the Erica's yet. Love the Kristas, and the Glenda s lack any real punch for main lights.

+1 on Sac. Mike post

I have the fork-mounted Darla's on a Gen III. The way I have them setup, they nicely complement the high beams, brightening the area normally covered by the low beams on the road in front of you, while the high beams cover the far an wide areas.

From what I read, LEDs loose brightness as they heat up, so a great deal of effort needs to be invested in the casing's heat dissipation. There are also different quality LED chips, so here too, you get what you pay for.

...Ben...

If you are concerned about power consumption, just remember that the dimmer controls the duration of the on time pulse. You do not have to run them full intensity all the time. That right there will save you many watts as you manage your bike's power draws.

The other thing you may want to look into is to upgrade the electrical path from the voltage regulator to the battery. On my '06 it is 6 1/2 feet long. The OEM wiring had degraded to the point of not having the necessory power available to keep my battery charged while running my Gerbing jacket liner and Clearwater lighting on low intensity. The Shorai battery I had at the time requires you keep the voltage up to at least 13.3 volts while under way. My datel kept me informed.

Consider performing the D. Carver Main Electrical Buss Upgrade. It consists of running a new pair of heavy gage red and black wires between the volt reg. and battery. Search his write up on it. I did this on my bike nearly 2 years ago and the bike runs a solid 14.0 - 14.1 volts just above idle. The most I've been able to draw it down was around 13.2 volts while running full lighting, full heat, heated seat, and my 12 volt slow cooker.

Note that the Shorai is history. My GS battery requires 12.8 volts to stay charged while riding. Big difference.

Brodie

GREAT post, Brodie!!

(and SacMike!)

Merry early Christmas to myself! I just pulled the ripcord and ordered a set of Ericas.

Talking with Clearwater they recently updated their controllers to be able to go dial down to 5% from a previous low of 20%. That should translate to less concern about running Ericas as conspicuity lights during the days and getting flashed by oncoming traffic. Should be here next week.

Farkle-slut!!!

Matt,

You are gonna love the Erica's !

Every time you switch them on you will want to say "ZAP!!!" the kristas are great, but the Erica's are just awesome.

I have never needed more than the Kristas, even on the NPS access road to Mesa Verde at midnight. That twisting road with switchbacks has more critters along it than I think I have ever seen, even in PA. The lights throw plenty of light down the road, and do a great job of lighting the critical sides of the road. IMO, the Krista lighting is better because more lighting would contribute to night blindness when you have to dial them back, but if you are able to crank up the Ericas and leave them bright as you travel across miles of unoccupied road or offroad, they would certainly rock.

I have always felt more visible with the Kristas mounted below the mirrors, and the behavior of cage drivers around me, proves it again and again. The wider lights let them see you and judge your speed. The even see you in the rearview mirrors. Finally, Clearwater Lights has backed up their product without limitation. I bought my lights in 2011, and got new O-rings because they felt the waterproofing needed improvement, and this past year, sent back a dimmer that had failed and was either dim or bright. They rebuilt it with the new upgraded module, and sent it back without charge. I think the product is the best quality and best looking on the market, and the customer service never ends. This really is a product you buy for the life of the bike, and the best addition I've made to mine.

You bastards are going to cost me money!

So, gonna get a set for the glorious, deserving '04? Or the POS '09?

I debated between the Ericas and Kristas myself, and ended up buying the Kristas. Due to work (and SNOW/ICE!), I've only managed a few mile test ride through the country. Absolutely astounding. I think the Ericas would be unbelievable, but the Kristas throw enough light that I didn't feel for a second that I was outriding the beam. Part of my decision was due to the fact that the Ericas could (originally) only be dialed down to 20% output, which would've made them too bright even during daylight hours. Their new ability to dial down to 5% eliminates that concern, and makes them a real choice for those wanting the very brightest.

Question for those with two sets of auxiliary lights (Kristas/Glendas or Ericas/Darlas): any LEO problems from running too many lights? I know some states only allow four forward headlights to be illuminated on the front of a bike under any conditions. Is that actively enforced?

TomInCA said:

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Great shot! Love that blue....

Unleaded said:

any LEO problems from running too many lights? I know some states only allow four forward headlights to be illuminated on the front of a bike under any conditions.

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Previous to this set I ran two sets of ADV Monsters and never once bothered by any LEO in the U.S. or Canada...and I probably rode through 35-40 of them. One datapoint, however, does not make a rule.