Driving lights for Niken

[maximNikenGT]

10 hours ago, Switchglide12 said:

Can you take picture while its on the side stand? I made similar product but headlight housing bold didn't have enough thread. 6Mx18 mm coupling is great idea. 

Sidestand view. Bracket clears front suspension mounted brake cables by 5.5 mm. 

Including the two OEM stock spacers for the headlight bolts, for the coupling bolt I used three 1/4 inch flat washers total per side for a total of 8 washers used. One washer where the coupling bolt connects to the headlight bolt, one washer where the coupling bolt meets the bracket and two washers on the backside of the bracket. Had to use two washers on backside of the bracket because the bolts I used to secure the bracket to the coupling bolt was so long that it bumped into the headlight bolt in the coupling bolt. The two additional washers on the backside makes it fit perfectly. 

[maximNikenGT]

With flash while bike is on side stand. . 

[piotrek]

On 2/26/2021 at 1:52 PM, maximNikenGT said:

Initial impressions - Very sturdy construction yet light (1 pound/0.454 kg). It's nonmagnetic aluminum construction and black satin powder coated. Has enough room on the middle portion to potentially mount a GoPro action camera.

Looks similar to his bracket for the FJ-09. On my bike it measures 4" in the dimension shown in your photo, and is wider in the mid-span section, I presume to dampen vibration. Does it have to extend that far out on the Niken?

[maximNikenGT]

On 3/4/2021 at 3:29 PM, piotrek said:

Looks similar to his bracket for the FJ-09. On my bike it measures 4" in the dimension shown in your photo, and is wider in the mid-span section, I presume to dampen vibration. Does it have to extend that far out on the Niken?

It does need to go that far out (from front to back orientation) if you use the coupling bolts. If you don't use the coupling bolts then it will stick out about 20mm from the front and in theory, it could be shortened, except for the fact that the stock headlight bolts that the bracket needs to connect to won't stick out enough for a nylock nut to be fastened securely e.g. the nylock nut doesn't actually screw onto the bolt far enough to where a little bit of thread from the bolt sticks out past the nylock nut. 

If you were asking if it needs to extend that far out to the sides, it depends on the size of lights you're using. If you're using the really small lights, then technically, no, you could get by with a bracket that doesn't go out that far to the sides and have it mount on the underside. However, if you are mounting auxiliary lights that are sized for automotive application e.g. like my Baja Designs Squadron Sports, then yes, it needs to go out that far in order to:

a. If mounting with the lights mounted on the bottom of the bracket,

       a.1 Not become a crush hazard in turns between the top of the front wheel housings and the bottom of the headlight assembly. In my opinion, there is NO way to safely mount a full size automotive auxiliary light in the space directly under the front headlight because of the danger of the front suspension coming into contact with the lights under full lean scenarios. 

       a.2 Also, this will give enough space for the bolt that secures the auxiliary light to the bracket to not come into contact with the upper fairing. 

b. If mounting with the lights mounted on top of the bracket,

       b.1 To safely clear the top fairing enough so that the lights can be pointed perfectly straight ahead AND

       b.2 It will be mounted far enough to the sides to not interfere with the stock headlight beam pattern. 

Image source : Fortnine's review of the Niken. 

[maximNikenGT]

Took the bike out for a test ride today and did figure 8s of increasing tightness in a local parking lot for about 30 minutes to be sure that there were no issues with front suspension interference from the auxiliary light bracket. Bracket worked fine with no issues in deep turns or quick transitions. On to the next part of the test where I mount the lights to confirm no interference from top or bottom mount configuration. 

[piotrek]

10 hours ago, maximNikenGT said:

If you were asking if it needs to extend that far out to the sides...

No, just forward. The horizontal part of the L looks long (vibration). Would it be possible to just replace that OE fastener with a longer one so you could do away with the stand-off (vibration)? Appreciate the constraints here... just thinking out loud.

[maximNikenGT]

31 minutes ago, piotrek said:

No, just forward. The horizontal part of the L looks long (vibration). Would it be possible to just replace that OE fastener with a longer one so you could do away with the stand-off (vibration)? Appreciate the constraints here... just thinking out loud.

I have the same question regarding vibration of the bracket  but until I mount the lights and hook them up I won't know if there will be noticeable  vibration  frequencies with my setup. 

I did however consider whether it would be easier to just install longer bolts on the backside of the headlight vs using coupling bolts. 

But when I looked at the service manual the headlight assembly (#7 in attached photo) appears to be a single sealed unit. I ruled out the option because of my fear of not being able to seal the headlight correctly after I open it. I've seen on YouTube folks disassemble their headlight assemblies to install HID bulbs or do some other customization with headlights / taillights and one of the potential problems that arises is moisture making its way into the headlight assemblies from not being able to reseal it as good as it was from the factory. .

My brother used to have a Honda del Sol  where we swapped his rear taillights with aftermarket clear assemblies and these had problems with condensation even though they were clearly at one point factory OEM taillight assemblies. The moisture always bothered me and I took mental note that while the car may look better, I should consider whether  I was ok with potential condensation in the assembly during damp mornings. 

[maximNikenGT]

Informal poll: mount the lights on top or on bottom of bracket?

 

[piotrek]

35 minutes ago, maximNikenGT said:

Informal poll: mount the lights on top or on bottom of bracket?

I think the bottom looks better, but watch fork travel vs. clearance from fender... maybe it's just the angle that makes it look like there could be contact.

[piotrek]

5 hours ago, maximNikenGT said:

But when I looked at the service manual the headlight assembly (#7 in attached photo) appears to be a single sealed unit.

Okay... so it's a stud that is part of the light assembly. I take it back then. I don't know that it's #7 though (one below I think, which isn't shown for some reason)... and looking at torque values on these fasteners around 5 lb-ft... 😬

 

[maximNikenGT]

1 minute ago, piotrek said:

Okay... so it's a stud that is part of the light assembly. I take it back then. I don't know that it's #7 though (one below I think, which isn't shown for some reason)... and looking at torque values on these fasteners around 5 lb-ft... 😬

 

Yes sir - didn't tighten them down yet since I was testing preliminary fit. Plan on utilizing blue Loctite now that I've confirmed  that there's no suspension interference. 

[betoney]

49 minutes ago, maximNikenGT said:

Informal poll: mount the lights on top or on bottom of bracket?

Only due to suspension/wheel travel, I would say on top but from a visual/aesthetic perspective, -to me- the bracket looks way too large, both too wide and too far forward.  The smooth, streamlined look of the front end is gone. 😪

[maximNikenGT]

10 minutes ago, betoney said:

Only due to suspension/wheel travel, I would say on top but from a visual/aesthetic perspective, -to me- the bracket looks way too large, both too wide and too far forward.  The smooth, streamlined look of the front end is gone. 😪

So what you're saying is that it's visually stunning!  

I suspected that my little project here was potentially analogous to putting a tow hitch on a Ferrari. Yes you can do it, but definitely not everyone's cup of tea. 

 

[betoney]

25 minutes ago, maximNikenGT said:

So what you're saying is that it's visually stunning!  

I suspected that my little project here was potentially analogous to putting a tow hitch on a Ferrari. Yes you can do it, but definitely not everyone's cup of tea. 

 

I didn't want to come off as an ass and tried to be diplomatic in my opinion.  I happen to like the front end bodywork of the Niken and how it has smooth,  flowing lines.  I don't feel that the right angles or perpendicular lines of the bracket do the Niken any favors.

[maximNikenGT]

5 minutes ago, betoney said:

I didn't want to come off as an ass and tried to be diplomatic in my opinion.  I happen to like the front end bodywork of the Niken and how it has smooth,  flowing lines.  I don't feel that the right angles or perpendicular lines of the bracket do the Niken any favors.

No worries. I appreciate  the honesty.  I did this primarily to address the lack of cornering lighting on this bike, and as you can tell from the sheer length of this thread there have been various pros and cons with wanting larger auxiliary lights on the Niken. So if this thread has managed to help others avoid some of the challenges I've encountered along the way then I've done my good deed for fellow riders.