Copied from the old forum
I converted my T100 to a sealed beam this evening. I had tried it before and changed it back for comparison. Then I just left the stock setup in place since I don't ride much at night. Last night I rode my TR6; the first night ride I have done with it. That old headlight was better than the stock headlight on my T100 - which isn't necessarily saying much. My high beam on the had T100 burned out and I decided to go back to the sealed beam rather than replace the bulb in my stock set up.
I took it out for a brief ride after dark and the difference in the light is astounding. With the stock setup. getting the high and low beams aimed is a compromise. If you get the high beam aimed right, the low beam illuminates your front fender nicely - and little else. At thirty miles per hour, you are over driving your headlight on low beam. If you get the low beam aimed properly, the high beam becomes an effective search light - great for finding racoons in trees or flying squirrels. I did finally get mine fairly well aimed; but the low beam was still too low.
A sealed beam changes that. High beam lights up the road ahead nicely and the low beam still lets you see where you are going at speed. It works like a headlight should work. The sealed beam bulb is 65W/55W - the same as the stock bulb. I installed a Sylvania CoolBlue halogen. I had running an 85W/65W halogen bulb. I get more light with less wattage. The head light number is H6024.
The pattern is different and, at first, it feels and looks strange. It is an automotive headlight. But you get really good light down the road and just enough to the sides. The high beam points straight ahead. The low beam is one degree down and three degrees to the right of the high beam. The sealed beam unit is less expensive than a holgen bulb for the stock unit. I paid $18.09, including 7% sales tax. A holgen bulb is $23.00 - $27.00.
I have been told that a motorcycle specific sealed beam is even better.
If you don't like your stock headlight, try a sealed beam.
Carl this is very interesting. As I also hardly ever ride at night nowadays I have never really given this much thought. Also when I have ridden at night it has always been in an area where there is plenty of lighting from the street lights. At one time I thought of putting on a pair of riding lights but never got around to it as it was more for the looks than being a practical solution. Thanks for this information. - DaveM
Dave, I have to ride six miles (9.7 kilometers) south to find the first streetlight, sixteen miles (25.7 kilometers) north, or 22 miles (35.4 kilometers) west. I need a decent headlight. - CarlS
The '05 Americas came with a sealed beam, but it was as bad as the other stock headlights. Low beam was a pathetic, downward aiming, yellowish light. I put in a Sylvania Silverstar, about $20 at Discount Auto Parts. For quite a while after that would often forget to hit high beam. Some have said that auto bulbs wouldn't last as long due to the vibration. I've had mine for 8 or 10 thousand miles. A bike-specific one would probably cast a better pattern, though. - Lonzo
Lonzo, the Sylvania CoolBlue is the next step down from the SilverStar. I couldn't see much difference in the specs for the two and since I did not know how well it would work, I got the less expensive one. When I have to replace the bulb in Mae Lyne's T100, I'll try the SilverStar. I got mine at Discount, too. I was really tring to find a GE because GE's are American made. But Discount doesn't carry GE and I would have had to go to St Augustine to find the GE.
As far as vibration goes, my T100 vibrates less than some cages I have owned!! I think you can find a motorcycle specific sealed beam at Harley shops; but I hear they are pricey. You are right about the low beam. I can actually ride using it with this sealed beam,
This was cheap mod and an effective one. - CarlS
I installed an H6024 sealed beam in mine last night. Conversion was real easy and it works fine. Bulb is a Wagner, and it says made in USA. Got it at Car Quest and it only cost $9.99. We'll see how well it holds up. Can the vibration on a T-100 be worse than a 70's anything cage??? I think not. Thanks for the tip, Carl. - Fuzzy
You are welcome, Fuzzy. Let us know what you think of the sealed beam. - CarlS
Sealed beam works well. No problem with installation at all. Side illumination is good and I am much more confident at highway speed. When compared to the stock light, I am surprised the stock light would ever pass DOT muster. - Fuzzy
Thanks for the feed back. I had to ride in the dark in the fog Thursday morning leaving about 05:30. It did much better penetrating the fog than thn the stock headlight did. I try to avoid riding in the fog as a rule. - CarlS
Changed my Silverstar sealed beam with one of these (the link is no longer valid). I do quite a bit of night riding. The Silverstar light pattern was great when riding straight, but less than ideal on dark, twisty roads. The beam pattern consists of a rectangle right in front of you, and a long, narrow beam straight ahead. I think its because its an auto bulb, designed to be used in pairs, and not leaning in turns. This ebay light (I opted for the 100 watt bulb) seems to be much better so far, we'll see how long it lasts. Its not a sealed beam, takes an H4 style bulb. - Lonzo
Lonzo, now that you've used the Autopal headlight, what do you think of it?
How does it compare to the stock headlight and the sealed beam? Which bulb are you using? - CarlS
I like it. The hi-beam isn't as focused as the Sylvania. It lights up a broader area. I got the 100w blue. Lo-beam is plenty bright, too. - Lonzo
Thanks for the update. I may give it a try. Having ridden my T100 at night with the sealed beam and Mae Lyne's at night with the stock reflector, I can attest that I like the auto sealed beam much better than the stock beam - especially the low beam. - CarlS
