I put an 80/100 watt osram bulb in my headlight and it sparked a little discussion about it making the headlight too hot or burning the wiring. I looked at the wiring diagram and it didn't seem that that there was anything else connected to the headlight wiring so at 80 watts and 12.5 volts I'm thinking it is way below 15 amp. On the other hand, I might not be reading the wiring diagram ( a pretty busy looking diagram).
Any electrical experts out there who can decipher the diagram for an amateur and give their opinion?
thank you

 

By my calculations at 100 watts you should be pulling 8.0 amps. My guess is the wire is either 16 or 18 awg in size. You are cutting it pretty close. What you need to be more concerned with is your connections and hope Harley made all their crimps good and tight.

 

My experience with high wattage bulbs is that they are great for night time riding ...But seem to have a short life...Be sure to use dielectric grease on the prongs where the socket plugs in...I have seen some melted sockets with the heat involved with the high wattage bulbs.

 

Gentlemen,
thank you for taking the time to reply. Very good suggestions. I never considered the wire gauge and I'll put the electic grease in the socket, too.

 

If you decide to go a different route, I, and many others, installed a 35W HID light bulb which is much brighter and less watts than stock for under $50... The HID system uses the stock headlight connector with no splicing required. I used the accessory lights connector at the headlight wirring harness for +12V. There are many posts in this forum about it. YMMV...

 

Main concerns are heat at the bulb housing and connectors and the shock to your high beam switch if you're not using a relay. Ask me how I know...

 

I'm getting an HID. I'll check out the numerous posts but I've already done a little research and it seems that everyone who has tried HID swears by them (not at them). I just put a Hella E headlight in and although it has quite a bit differernt pattern, it's brightness isn't any better imho. Must confess that my night vision isnt' what it used to be especially with mild cateracts developing. Hence, need all the light on the road I can get. Again, thank you for the input.

 

I used 80/100W Hella bulbs on my '96 RK for nine years and never had a problem with the headlight connector, wiring, or the durability of the bulbs. The last two years I owned that bike I used a Kisan modulator, which pulsates 20-100% 4X/sec., and that cools the bulb by reducing net amperage. Before I installed the modulator in 2004 I was getting about 3-4 years out of a high-output bulb, and since that time have not changed the bulb at all. The bulb and modulator were transferred to my present SG in late '06 and I installed a new modulator about a month ago. The bulb is the same one that's been in use for over six years, and probably at least eight. I didn't keep a maintenance log on the RK like I do with the SG, so I don't know exactly now old the bulb is.

I've never seen any evidence of wire or connector deterioration on either bike. I put 106k miles on the RK and the SG now has 37k. I will say that two friends, one with a '98 Softail and the other with a BMW GS, had trouble with connectors related to heat using these bulbs. Both replaced the stock connector with a high-heat connector they bought at Auto-Zone and to my knowledge didn't have any more problems.

 

iclick: I think I got the 80/100 bulb idea from one of your posts. If not, someone else who makes substantive posts. thanks for the info. I just ordered an HID kit and after I put it in, I'll post something to give my experience.

 

The easiest way to improve the headlamp circuit and supply "all available" power to the bulb would be to use a relay setup.
This also takes all the main load off the handlebar switches and contacts and stock wiring.
The stock wiring would then just "trigger" the relay with a small load and the relay would provide full power to the lamp through it's "own" larger wired circuit.
This guy provides a really neat setup , which I will do this winter on mine.
http://www.easternbeaver.com/Main/Pr...s/h4_kits.html
The H4 single headlight relay kit makes this really easy to do yourself and should make the circuit more or less bulletproof (and efficient).
The power wires are 14 gauge and plenty large enough to power any headlight bulb you choose.
This would provide a noticeable improvement even with the stock 55/60 bulb.
I run a 70/65 Osram , which really lights things up well at night.
Take some time and read what he's got , I emailed him and he seems like a straight shooter and has some great feedback and well designed stuff to offer.
Mick