Fried Headlight Connector

[Pappy]

So my right-side high beam goes out. I go to Autozone and pick up a mundane set of H4's. I always change both lights on the theory that they started life together so they're probably going to hereafter together as well.

Anyway, so I pull out the bulb and discover that it's fine but the connector is melted and shorted out! :dribble:

Any ideas where to get a replacement? Anyone ever have this and care to comment of a root cause? I was using a set of the blue-tinted blues that yield a nice pure-white glow but since they were of the same wattage I didn't think it would cause a problem. They been in there for over a year.

The other issue is that the other connector fits way too loosely to the other new bulb (left side).

Pappy

 

[Bounce]

So my right-side high beam goes out. I go to Autozone and pick up a mundane set of H4's. I always change both lights on the theory that they started life together so they're probably going to hereafter together as well.
Anyway, so I pull out the bulb and discover that it's fine but the connector is melted and shorted out! :dribble:

Any ideas where to get a replacement? Anyone ever have this and care to comment of a root cause? I was using a set of the blue-tinted blues that yield a nice pure-white glow but since they were of the same wattage I didn't think it would cause a problem. They been in there for over a year.

The other issue is that the other connector fits way too loosely to the other new bulb (left side).

Pappy

can't help you with a replacement socket, but Google is your friend. Look for something in ceramic.

were you running non-OEM bulbs? any details on them? wuld this not be a warranty issue?

 

[odot]

He must be running the new fjr stator. 24volts. Them connectors get kinda warm after a couple hours.

 

[dgfella]

Comagination Headlight Connector

Thank Spedboy for this, he found them.

dgfella

 

[Pappy]

What's the difference between 9003 and H4's. I had a really hard time finding a set H4's.

DG, thank's for the link. You think those connectors have a higher heat spec than OEM?

I was running a set of non-dot bulbs. Blue-tinted glass, white light pattern, OEM wattage rating. I figure they run hotter than spec due to the blue filtering. You let less light out, you trap more heat in the glass (the filter).

Headlight recommendations anyone? Pure white catches teh eye better than yellow.

 

[bramfrank]

A 9003 is a high-specification version of the H4 - the placement of the filament is more precise. US spec H4s are generally 9003s.

While the light output from a blue tinted bulb 'seems' brighter, it actually is less so - because watt-for-watt, a filament bulb has a pretty well fixed efficiency in terms of lumen output and dying the bulb simply blocks some of the light frequencies, turning them into heat.

The reason the blue dyed bulbs seem brighter is that the eye is more sensitive to the 4200K color temps - AND they tend to stand out in a sea of yellow bulbs. These days, with many cars on the road equipped with true HIDs it doesn't help as much as it did - which is one reason I have a headlight modulator on my bike. THAT makes you stand out.

So stay away from blue dyed standard wattage bulbs and anything that calls itself 'xenon' or 'HID' that doesn't have a ballast associated with it.

Vision+ and Sylvania Silverstar bulbs work by packing the filament more tightly than a conventional bulb, which improves the performance of the reflector. Same light, spread over a smaller space because of better focus. They also run the filament temps up a bit to make the light whiter (more heat).

Moving to higher wattage bulbs will provide more light, but strictly speaking isn't road-legal and you'll pay the price in a shorter bulb life. You might also melt the connector and impact on the wiring and relay on the bike.

My own preference is to use true HID driving lights, though I have always had issues with the Chinese reflectors and Phillips bulbs/ballasts that H Marc calls PHIDs. I much prefer a better quality reflector like the FF100 Xenons from Hella.

 

[Bounce]

Headlight recommendations anyone? Pure white catches teh eye better than yellow.

Philips Vision +50% - on my second pair and still loving them

https://www.murphskits.com/light.htm

Avoid "blue tint". They are trying to look like HID and in doing so, you lose useable lumens on the road due to the tint blocking/filtering some of the original output from the filament. Then blue tint can also hide some road hazzards at night.

Read "Blue Headlight Bulbs & Why They Suck" at

https://www.bikes-n-spikes.org/misc/misc.html

 

[radman]

Melted due to resistance caused by corrosion, dirt, or poor connection.

 

[Pappy]

Philips Vision +50% are on the way and I bought two new heavy-duty H4 connectors from NAPA. Thanks for all the input!

 

[Vstar2FJR]

Philips Vision +50% are on the way and I bought two new heavy-duty H4 connectors from NAPA. Thanks for all the input!

+1 on the Phillips Vision +50, used them prior to the FJR on a single bulb application and have them in the FJR now. I've also used the GE Megalight +60 with good success, slightly brighter than the Vision+50 See https://www.autolamps-online.com/halogen/index.htm

I'm ordering replacment GE's tonight, for when the Visions crap out in the future.

John

 

[git-r-dan]

Silverstars here

Shipped here pretty quick, no hassles. They threw in a couple of auto bulbs for grins.