Back end lighting

[bearbait]

My Nomad is brand new, so I need some advice. My favorite riding partner says the rear lights (taillight/brakelight AND the turn signals) are "wimpy", less visible than those on the Suzuki I traded in.

Have other riders noticed that situation on their Nomads? If so, what did you do to beef them up?

Thanks in advance.

BB

[caddman11]

Check out this link, there is a lot of us who have gone with the Kuryakyn for about $100.
http://kawanow.proboards77.com/index...ay&thread=4885

[bearbait]

Thanks, caddman11; that looks like an ace solution. A wintertime project!

BB

[caddman11]

It only takes about 5 minutes to install, not much of a project but it will definitely light up your butt.

[rickyboy]

bearbait,
Checkout www.customdynamics.com/motorcycle_lights.htm . I went with the run/brake/turn pkg. through them and converted all the signals to LED's. I had to keep the frt. signals amber of course but changed the rear signals/brake/turn/run to red. It meant I had to change the lenses to clear ones { or smoked... clear allows the led's to be brighter though, of course.} I went with the "Genesis" clusters that has 48 leds in each one. There are newer styled ones now that install easier, by the looks of them. Take a look at www.customdynamics.com/kawasaki_turn_signal_led.htm
I mentioned before in another thread that I have actually had people stop to tell me that my lights are stuck on......until I show them with a pull of the lever. They are unbelievably bright. Worth the investment IMO. Good luck

[nomad561]

I like the way that looks.I'm going to change my rear lights when I do the HID headlight upgrade.

[v0lusia]

I don't know if I welcomed you over here yet so welcome. I think I know your friend ;) Are you sure she is not just saying that becuase your bike is pulling away faster from her scooter than the old bike did?

Here is Gadgit's answer
http://www.gadgetjq.com/brakelight_replacement.htm

[mrfuni]

Start with replacing the bulb...

http://www.gadgetjq.com/brakelight_replacement.htm

Couple of bucks at Walmart..no drilling required ;)

[bearbait]

Originally Posted by v0lusia

I don't know if I welcomed you over here yet so welcome. I think I know your friend ;) Are you sure she is not just saying that becuase your bike is pulling away faster from her scooter than the old bike did?

Thanks for the welcome, and the tip. Yes, you know my 'friend', but now (a) she's been riding my old bike herself and (b) it's near impossible to dust off that big scooter anyhow.

Good to see you here.

BB

[rlfaubion]

[rickyboy]

Hey Valdez, where did you get those "bag lights"? They look great !! I thought of putting something on mine. But the lights I'd found seemed too big. I did the run/turn/brake convert. along with LED and clear lenses but that mod you have there would be even better.
Another question I have is,.... how do the lower rails attach.? I've seen them on ebay but I'm not sure how they attach. I like that look and was going to buy them when I put the fender rail on last Christmas. And what's that ball and chain hanging down there.

[wheelie]

Valdez! you beat me to it, 1939 Ford teardrop tail lights, I knew those suckers would look good on a Nomad! I run a blue dot 39 on the rear of my slingshot dragster. The only problem is the space lost inside the bag for the light bucket. Looks like I'll have to save up for the LED teardrops.
Speedway has the 39 Lincoln teardrops they are a little larger & have two chrome bars across the lens. Can't have too much chrome ya know.

[rlfaubion]

Originally Posted by rickyboy ... #00722

Hey Valdez, where did you get those "bag lights"? They look great !! I thought of putting something on mine. But the lights I'd found seemed too big. I did the run/turn/brake convert. along with LED and clear lenses but that mod you have there would be even better.
Another question I have is,.... how do the lower rails attach.? I've seen them on ebay but I'm not sure how they attach. I like that look and was going to buy them when I put the fender rail on last Christmas. And what's that ball and chain hanging down there.

These are supposed to be some replica of a '39 Ford taillight. I liked that they don't seem too big for the bags, but they do protrude into the bag some (about 3").

However, I did use a bag liner this past weekend for luggage and I just had to push and mold the ass-end of the bag around the taillight housing. Wasn't a problem.

Here's a picture of the bag lights:



Here's where I bought the pair for about $90 including shipping and taxes (California only).

http://www.pro-one.com/400749_Teardr...t_p/400749.htm

However, I stopped into a local "Hot Rod" shop and found an LED setup for less money, and mine is powered by a bulb, which I don't mind, but the LED is better. So shop around if you live near a larger city.

They are 2-way lights. I have these as running lights and brake lights.

The signal lights were stolen off the front of my Classic. So they operate as running lights and turn lights. I changed them to red. These are the only turn signals I have in the rear, and they are inadequate, so I've asked my wife to arm-signal with each turn now.

In case you missed it, my license plate light is a running light and stop light. So all toll, I have 7 running lights, plus a strip of 15 LEDs on the fender brace and 4 stop lights with 1 turn signal each side (plus the human)



The lower bag rails attach where the front of your saddlebag attaches.



The rear attaches to that fender brace I mentioned above. Its all a good fit, so don't hesitate to get one if you like them...... Here's a not-so-good picture of the rear attachment.



The ball and chain -



I stopped for a smoke on a river road up here (since quit smok'n tobacco) and there were 2 of those, small but beefy chains laying on the side of the road. I gave one away, and you see the other one. The ball is actually a bell made from a bullet casing taken from the killing fields in Cambodia. I paid one dollar for it last year in a small 1800's gold town located up this way (No. Calif)

In closing I might add I have 7 running lights in the front, and I'm convinced people see me more readily from the front or rear than before these mods, and that makes my ride a little more pleasant :)

II don't talk much about the 95 LED engine lights, but they're on there.

You can't have too many lights, and you can't take too many pictures with your digital camera....

[ruruson1]

I love these lights.

[dandantmm]

My friends said the turn signals on my 08 Nomad were hard to see being so low on the fender. Plus, I used to have an 02 Nomad a few years back and I had a BackOff license plate frame with two brake LEDs on it and their modulator, which they all said was easy to see. So, for the 08 Nomad I bought the BackOff license plate frame with both brake and turn signal LEDs and added the brake modulator that allows you to change the modulation. They all say that it is SO much better now. Those LEDs are really bright and with the plate up high like it is they really stand out. Now, the only down side is the wiring involved. Each LED (there's 4 total) have 3 wires coming off of them. One is low intensity, one is high intensity, and the other is ground. You will need to drill a hole in the fender underneath the license plate mounting bracket and through the bracket itself. I soldered the connections to the wiring harness underneath the fender. You can unclamp the harness and get it outside of the fender enough to work on it which makes things a lot easier. I put bullet connectors on the wires before they go into the fender so I could take the license plate bracket off the bike if I wanted. You will also have to trim your license plate on the edges to allow the wires from the LEDs to get by. Looking at my bike you can't see any of the additional wiring. You have to bend way down to even see the wires in the plate mounting bracket. It's a very clean install. Don't let all the wiring stuff scare you off because I would do it all again in a heart beat because the LED lights are that good. I have guys tell me all the time how good you can see them. At night they are crazy bright.