Lighting Up MyPalomino - Phase I

[jarrejx]

I don't know if something similar been done and shared on this forum before, but I thought I would share my attempt to light up my RSV. I am starting with the saddlebag rails, by cutting, bending and installing a piece of acrylic into the rail opening and attaching several LED pods on each. I used a small heat gun to form the acrylic into the shape of the saddlebag rails and trimmed both pieces to fit into the respective rail opening.

 

Only took three (3) tries to get an acceptable specimen, which I used to create a cardboard template for future pieces. After trimming to fit, I fitted the insert with chrome body molding which presents an almost custom appearance once the piece is inserted inside the chrome rail opening. The chrome molding fits just about perfectly, except for some minor puckering on the curve edges. A little splicing and adhesive will make for an acceptable finish.

 

I found some 3/4" plastic clamps at Menards which I will fit around the rail and affix to the acrylic to hold it in place. A coat of primer and a coat of chrome paint makes the clamp almost inconspicuous. I ordered a set of dual mode amber LED lights from a seller on ebay. A lot of eight lights was $38.00 plus $7.55 shipping. The dual mode will allow me to use the lights as combination running and turn signal lights. I was able to put four (4) lights on each acrylic insert, i.e., 3 on the side and 1 in the rear. Each light is affixed to the acrylic with two (2) small screws. Below are several pictures of the insert with lights in place.

 

I will install them on the bike tomorrow, if I can stop riding the bike long enough. I will take more pictures then. The total costs for this project was less than $75.00 and could easily be done in an afternoon by the more experienced craftsman. I estimate my total time commitment through the end of this project will be approximately 12 hours, including making inserts for my brother-in-law's RSV. He is going with a different light configuration on the acrylic inserts.

 

My next step is to move up to the trunk and fabricate a piece of acrylic to extend down from the trunk where I will affix LEDs that will be used as a combination running light and braking light.

 

I would appreciate any thoughts, concerns and suggestions.

 

jarrejx

Edited June 7, 2008 by jarrejx
grammatical error

[Mavrick]

Very nice.....l am looking forward to seeing pictures of them mounted on the bike. Do you plan on running the wires inside the saddle bag?

 

Mike

[jarrejx]

Very nice.....l am looking forward to seeing pictures of them mounted on the bike. Do you plan on running the wires inside the saddle bag?

 

Mike

 

I considered that but concluded it would interfere with bag removal for cleaning and other sundry purposes. We (my brother-in-law and I) decided run the wire along the side of the saddlebag or along the underside of the saddlebag mounting rails. I will also take pix of the wiring route we settle upon. Thanx for your reply and input.

 

Jerry

[Bummer]

I like your idea better than anything I've seen so far. Looks great!

 

The only concern I can think of is how the plastic will handle cleaning. A little plastic polish occasionally should take care of that.

[bill04]

should look good when instaled , show more pics , I did the same thing whit pieces of stailess .

[Jerry W]

I am thinking those look great. Looks like a project for this winter.

[jarrejx]

Well we got a late start yesterday, due to my inability to stay off the bike. That is why I try to avoid any modification work on the bike during riding season. Nevertheless, we got started around 2:30 PM and almost immediately I changed my approach to mounting the lights on the rails. The clamps I had mentioned earlier just did not blend into the look of the bike as much as I would have liked. My B-I-L introduced me to a brand of double sided adhesive tape which he obtained from Walmart. You can see a picture of the roll of that tape lying on the floor in one of the attached photos showing the wiring route.

 

Since the insert was cut to fit tightly inside the saddlebag rail after affixing the chrome trim, I was able to place the tape on the inside of the rail and it securely held the insert. I placed 2-3 inch strips of the tape at 6-7 locations on each rail and after riding home on some of the bumpiest roads in the State of Indiana, it was still securely in place. I really think the insert gives a nice look to the bike. I only wish that I could have found a amber lens on the new LED's to add some color contrast during the daylight hours. But overall, I am satisfied with the appearance. There are a couple of finishing issues I need to attend to, such as taking out the pucker on the left side chrome trim and hiding the wiring from the LEDs.

 

I tapped into the bike's wiring system under the driver's seat approximately 3" from the electrical pin connector. We determined that the blue wire is running light, green is right hand turn signal, brown is left hand turn signal, black is ground and yellow is brake light. We wired the right side first, running the braided 3 wire leads down under the driver's seat, behind the saddlebag front mounting rails and along the bottom rail. I chose red, yellow and white for the wire leads to match the color of the wire leads on the LEDs. We then tapped each LED wire leads into the braided wire by taking the wires under the saddlebag over to the bottom mounting rail. My thought is that wrapping the three lead wires into black tape make the wiring less noticeable.

 

On the left side, I tried a different configuration and decided to hook the LED's in sequence toward the rear and tie the last LED into the braided wires at the end of the black saddlebag mounting rail. This eliminated the exposed wiring going under the saddlebag but the wiring was visible through the acrylic. My B-I-L suggested that a piece of flat chrome trim between each light could hide the wiring. Gave it try and it doesn't look half bad. Unfortunately, we ran into a significant problem when we tested the LEDs and found that the turn signal function did not work on this side. When we tied into the bike's brown wire, which should have been the LH turn signal, the brake light started blinking. Does anyone know if we chose the wrong wire to tie into? Eventually, we blew a couple of headlight and turn signal fuses, before I decided to disconnect the LED turn signal function on the left side. BTW, the right side works fine.

 

So currently, I have dual function on the right side, but only running light function on the left. Going to get back on it sometime during the week and report progress then. In the meantime, any other ideas or suggestions would still be appreciated.

 

Jerry

[jarrejx]

should look good when instaled , show more pics , I did the same thing whit pieces of stailess .

 

You really have to be an artisan to get that type of finished look w/ stainless. Great looking add-on. It looks a lot more integrated w/ the bike than any of the aftermarket rail lights I have seen for the RSV. BTW, how did you attach the stainless to your saddlebag rails?

 

I have posted some pix of my project and will add some night time photos on tomorrow.

 

Jerry

[Mavrick]

Hey Jerry,

Thanks for the update and photos.....just wondering if you could use the double sided tape to secure the wires to the bottom rail and hide them from view. You have given me some ideas that I may try this winter. That is what I love about this site.......someone is always coming up with something that is a great idea.

 

Mike

[jarrejx]

Hey Jerry,

Thanks for the update and photos.....just wondering if you could use the double sided tape to secure the wires to the bottom rail and hide them from view. You have given me some ideas that I may try this winter. That is what I love about this site.......someone is always coming up with something that is a great idea.

 

Mike

 

Finally getting around to updating this board on MyPalomino's lighting and posting photos of the mods. I changed the routing of the wires and took Mavrick's suggestion to use double sided tape to hide the wires from plain sight. I believe it came out very presentable. The attached photos were taken in the summer. I was not satisfied with the clear lens on the marker lights so I bought a can of VHT smoke tint spray ($9.00) and gave the lens a smoke look. IMHO it gives a better contrast during the daylight hours. BTW the 3M double-sided tape held well all riding season (approx. 7K miles of mixed city and highway riding).

 

Very low cost and straightforward modification for those who don't want to pay the $200+ asked for the aftermarket rail lights. Total cost remained in the $75.00-80.00 range.

[usnmustang]

VERY cool. I just started working with some smoked acrylic I had laying around. I am about to post the results. How did you heat and bend your acrylic? I heated mine in the oven but ended up with some marks from the cookie rank I put it on.

[jarrejx]

Okay, I caught the plexiglass add-on bug and decided to try to make an alternative to the Harley Davidson add-on taillight assembly which is so popular with my fellow Venture riders. I thought if I could mount LED lights to a section of plexiglass, it could be mounted on the license plate holder on our RSV. I spent about $7.00 for a piece of plexiglass and cut it into an oval shape. I then cut openings for two (2) round 9-LED brake lights to be placed on left and right sides of the license plate, placed chrome molding around the edges of the plexiglass (mostly to hide the imperfections of the cut) but let's keep that between us.

 

I also used chrome molding around the edges of the license plate itself. Lastly, I experimented with several single LEDs which were added to the plexiglass and attached to the brake light wiring. I then attached the entire unit to the license plate holder using the original reflector screw and wing nut assembly. Attached is a photo of the finished product. Unfortunately, I didn't capture a good shot of the individual LEDs but I will take a few nighttime shots with the brake lights on and post later. Hopefully, it won't take as long as it took for me to post this update. Too busy ridin' and workin' I guess.

 

The round lights and single LEDs were purchased from an Ebay seller for approx. $25.00. Total cost: less than $35.00. Took less than five (5) hours of time commitment from a lightweight such as myself.

 

The plexiglass could be cut into any shape you choose and any number of LED lighting configurations could be used, e.g., dual turn signal-brake light, etc. One could also bend the plexiglass backward and paint it to hide the wiring from view. You could also paint the entire piece of plexiglass to coordinate with the color of your bike. Lots of options and an easy add-on for the result. On my next attempt, I think I will lose the single LEDs and replace with some type of LED strip. (less wiring)

[jarrejx]

VERY cool. I just started working with some smoked acrylic I had laying around. I am about to post the results. How did you heat and bend your acrylic? I heated mine in the oven but ended up with some marks from the cookie rank I put it on.

 

I used a small heat gun that I borrowed from my sister who uses it for her craft and scrapbooking projects. Not sure of the wattage but it is a small handheld unit about the size of a derringer pistol. It put out enough heat to bend the acrylic into desired shape in less than five (5) minutes. I first cut a piece of acrylic that was 2" larger than the rail opening on all sides. I clamped the acrylic to the rear of the rail at the point nearest the center of the bike and began to heat the acrylic at the point where the rail began to bend to the front of the bike. Heating and bending until I obtained the desire shape. As I explained in my post back last spring, it took me several attempts before I received a satisfactory result.

 

I then clamped the acrylic at other points on the rail and allowed it to cool in the shape of the rails. Heat gun left no noticeable marks on the acrylic. Here is a link to the site where I obtained my very limited knowledge of heating acrylic. Hope it helps and be sure to let me see your finished product.

 

http://www.bit-tech.net/modding/2004/05/27/cinemedia_pc/3

[usnmustang]

Thanks for the info. I too have limited knowedge on plexi, but I am learning...