FJR LED Tail lights

[TruWrecks]

I decided to split this off from the CCS question thread.

I found a LED replacement bulb set at Pep Boys a few weeks ago. I decided for $20 per pair it was worth a try.

PN: Pilot L1-1157RCZ

Here are the results:

The Pilot LED was placed in the right side socket. Incandescent is in the left side socket.

Brakes on close the LED is more intense, but the incandescent bulb fills the lens better.

At a distance the running lights for the LEDs are a little brighter, but not significantly more intense to the camera. To my eye it is definitely more noticeable. I did not do the brake mode since it looks the same only brighter for both sides by about the same ratio.

Zooming in on the above picture shows that the LED is brighter and more full than the incandescent light.

My conclusion: The LEDs are a good option for anyone that wants a durable replacement bulb and uses a brake light modulator. At $10 per LED bulb I am very impressed with the results. I recently got a $30 LED replacement that fills the lens better, but is not any brighter than the incandescent bulb.

Take what you want from it. That's my $.02.

 

[Checkswrecks]

Interesting how different our experiences have been. Or maybe we got different types of Pep Boys LED bulbs, but from the price it sounds like they're the same.

I've been running them for a year or more and people riding behind me have regularly said there is very little difference between running and brake lights. The reason I haven't worried too much is that I have a set of larger brake lights on the back of the Givi 52L Maxia and those do stand out.

 

[wfooshee]

I was fixing to say something similar to what Checkwrecks said, by pointing out the we only see the brake light, not just the taillight. All the LED sets I've seen have much less difference between brakes on and off than the incadescent. Also, I'd rather have the full area of the lens lit, the way the incandescent bulb works with the reflector. Since the LEDs only project light rearwards, you get the spot effect, which makes the light smaller, even if it is similarly bright.

I was in my company truck one day last summer and came upon a squid on his Gixxer with LED tail and brake lights. I got real close to him before I realized he was slowing down. I saw the difference when he released the brake, but I never saw them get applied.

 

[PhilMills]

Depends on the product. Depends on exactly who it's marketed at.

If it's marketed at the sportbike crowd, it's probably useless for actual, um, use. See: smoke/blackout lens packages, undertail-delete kits, "integrated" brake/turn elements, flush-mount turn signals., etc. Kind of like all the ricer products at Pep Boys.

If it's marketed towards the ADV crowd and/or the general public there's at least a chance that it's going to be practical and functional.

I've seen a boatload of sportbikes with functionally useless LED signals/brakes that were designed to look good. I myself put a 3W Luxeon into my F650's taillight and found it to be very effective and the brake/run distinction was very noticeable to me. The lens spread on many of the Luxeon lamps is 170+ degrees which (on my F650) picked up a reasonable amount of the reflector (it was a fairly short lamp inside the housing).

I was fixing to say something similar to what Checkwrecks said, by pointing out the we only see the brake light, not just the taillight. All the LED sets I've seen have much less difference between brakes on and off than the incadescent. Also, I'd rather have the full area of the lens lit, the way the incandescent bulb works with the reflector. Since the LEDs only project light rearwards, you get the spot effect, which makes the light smaller, even if it is similarly bright.
I was in my company truck one day last summer and came upon a squid on his Gixxer with LED tail and brake lights. I got real close to him before I realized he was slowing down. I saw the difference when he released the brake, but I never saw them get applied.

 

[Patriot]

blinking, bright, separate led braking lights are the rule of the day...