Jerry
Cook fromTemple Hills Maryland notes "You have 700
watts available on the R11RT
300
for lights and my guess 75-100 for the vest (probably less)
leaves you 300 for charging battery and electronics, you
should be OK"
Barry
P. Blank, Ph.D." <PsychB@concentric.net>
of Roslyn Heights, New York was in touch with light manufacturer
PIAA, and shared the following information: (along All the
usual disclaimers.) "There is no problem in mounting
the PIAA 1000 series vertically, "due to the unique
‘Touring’ pattern from the dichroic bulbs, with
an even spread vertical and horizontally". However,
it "is not unusual for the lamps to reach up to 400
degrees F, so it is important to provide as much airflow
as possible." "Each 85 watt bulb will draw 7.087
amps." "Another option would be the PIAA 1200
Series. 2 ½" in diameter, 55 watt system. Less draw,
same "Touring" pattern and it is completely round
rather than oval."
"In
addition, the PIAA 1000s can be painted! (important to some
of us). "Used (sic) Scotch Brite ™ pads to bring
the surface to a dull finish and then applied (sic) acrylic
paint from a ‘rattle-can’ to match the paint on
the vehicle."
"Solvents
like the ones found in Loc-Tite ™ may damage the PPS
housing, so I wouldn’t recommend to use a primer if
it contains harsh solvents."
Mike
<MikeP1977@aol.com>
writes "Just picked up the R11RT w/new PIAA’s.
They look OEM IMO. I got the new "Platinum- 1100X"
series. These are very much like the 1200’s only silver/metallic
rather than black, ever so slightly smaller/lighter, and
pack a bit greater punch as they are rated at 48,000 candle
power vs. the 1200’s which are rated at 36,000. The
1100x is also a tad more streamlined w/rounded front rather
than the 1200’s flat face. Slightly less drag coefficient
I’d guess, but mostly I liked the way they looked.
"The
1100x’s (kit part #1192) look stock to me cause other
than the chrome ring round lens, their metallic body has
very similar lines and color/appearance to the engine (259?)
head fin coolers. They are mounted in the roundels and are
adjustable up/down and side to side. They throw a wide circular
pattern and I got ‘em at New England Auto Acc. (suggested
by PIAA corp.) I talked to Dave at N.E.A.A. at 1-800-732-2761.
They cost $175.00 plus $5-10 shipping (had ‘em rushed)"
"These
lights are 55 watt each, but PIAA’s claim is that due
to design, they throw off 85watts each and are similar in
appearance to the HID’s in that light thrown is very
white...I AGREE and am happy with the lights though I’ve
only got 25 miles on ‘em at this point. If this changes
I’ll let you know."
"I
chose to use the wiring/switch provided by PIAA. The switch
is currently (maybe temporarily till I get feel for it)
velcroed to my RCU "shelf". The lights are wired
such that they can be switched on/off as long as bike is
started (key turned), but turn off automatically when bike/key
is turned off."
"Also
installed "runnin lites" for rearward conspicuity.
It hooks up to tail lites and lights up the entire rear
end of bike (all of rearward tail lens/signal plastic)...very
very bright red but retains amber turn signal. I like ‘em."
Jon
Zurell <jazurell@apk.net>
offers an easy solution for rear running lights: "I
re-wired the whole rear light assembly using dual filament
fixtures in all 4 openings. In doing this I have 2 red running
lights and 2 amber running lights. Then there are two red
brake lights and 1 turn indicator light for each direction.
You can get dual filament sockets at any auto store that
will insert and snap in. They don’t fit as air/water
tight as the BMW ones, but have not been a problem. Do not
hesitate to e-mail me if you need further clarification.
Mitchell
Patrie < patrie@mediaone.net>,
our resident CAD guru has developed a schematic and instructions
for creating your own light mounting bracket that looks
great and works well:
For full details and instructions, and step by step
photos, visit Mitchell's web site at http://people.mw.mediaone.net/patrie/lights.htm
Fernando
Belair <febelair@aol.com>
has four lights on the front of his bike:
Fernando
writes "My lighting project began with a two-part plan.
First, I wanted to be conspicuous, to be quickly noticed
as I split lanes in SoCal rush-hour traffic so cars would
ease over in their lanes and give me a little extra room.
Second, I wanted to be able to “light up” those who are
in the ozone as they drive, and wouldn’t notice if a 747
landing behind them. After much research, I realized one
set of lights wouldn’t do the trick. I needed two.
After
much discussion with CBT imports (a division of California
BMW/Triumph in Mountain View, CA --- www.cbtimports.com
) I settled on a set of 1253 PIAA Ion Crystal 55-watt yellow
fog lights which I was to mount on my RT’s fairing, in place
of the BMW roundels. However, when they arrived I noticed
that their bases were slightly wider than the indentations
where the roundels had been. This meant that there was going
to be a gap between the base of the lights and the fairing
where the roundels had been. While CBT assured me that the
thick double-sided tape provided with the PIAAs would fill
the gap, and that the standard screws were plenty strong
and that they had seen dozens of RT’s with these setups,
it wasn’t sanitary enough for my liking.
I
had a machinist cut 4 aluminum discs, the same OD as the
roundels and 3/32” thick. These I had black anodized. Total
cost about $40. I used these to fill the gap between the
fairing indentation and the lights’ bases, as well as used
them as backing material on the inside of the fairing. Properly
drilled to allow wire passage, and with the fairing indentation
slotted to allow up-and-down light adjustment via rotation,
the 1253’s were installed.
The
second set of lights I chose were a set of PIAA 1082 clear
driving lights. Unlike the legal 55-watt fog lamps, the
1082’s are 85-watt lights and are only used when needed.
These were mounted on EMP Design Brackets (no website, but
you can e-mail Pat at empdesigns@prodigy.net -- they cost
about $80). The brackets are beautiful and snake out from
between the RT’s mirror housings and the fairing.
Deciding
on switchgear only took one look in the dealer’s microfiche.
I selected the European right side switchgear, which has
a sliding, 3-position switch. My bike is wired so that I
can have headlight only, headlight and fogs, or everything
on, depending on switch position. Couple this to my PIAA
Super White halogen headlight bulb, and I’ve got a great
system that serves me extremely well in traffic. One side
benefit is that the position of the fog lights is not too
far off from the turn signal position on the old CHP Kawasakis.
So, at night, or in the early morning when I’m on my 65-mile
commute to or from work, people often mistake me for a cop,
and boy do they get out of the way in a hurry! Of course,
a polite wave as I pass makes sure they give me the same
courtesy when they see me time and again.
Overall,
I’ve got between $500 and $600 invested in my system and
it was money very well spent."
For
those of you who are less inclined to create your own brackets
and mounting systems, There are several commercial vendors
that sell mounting kits for the RT for placing your lights
in a variety of positions:
Dallas Motorcycle
Accessories makes a bracket that will put your PIAAs
just under the oil cooler. E-mail for info and prices to
ezymount@bmwr1100rt.com
EMP
Provides a mount that places the lights above the mirror
housing - similar to the RT-P. Contact EMP
Designs . I have been told that certain states,
including California, have vehicle codes prohibiting this
sort of lighting set-up and that folks have been ticketed
for having them. Something about having auxiliary lights
mounted above the headlights. Fernando has this setup as
pictured above and has had no trouble with the law about
it so far.
Motolights
mount on the RT's forks. Info at www.motolight.com
To
see how these and other lights look on the RT, be sure to
visit the Custom Gallery
