[vrprabhu]

Originally Posted by Raccoon

I have heard that ordinary Stanley bulbs (imported) give the best illumination. But could not find one that fits the Shogun. Anyway, this may not be applicable for the Glady... but you might want to check it out.

Can you tell me which is the best area in Pune to scout for bulb - they take you for a ride in Nanapeth. In JM Road / Tilak Road areas all of them have only Osram / Halonix bulbs. Philips bulbs are available - but only as a pair!!

[Raccoon]

Nana Peth people will take you on a long ride about anything. And the area is the pits.

Also, fakes are supposed to be pretty common when it comes to bulbs.

I actually tried out most of the bulbs on my bike to see the difference at a small spares/garage shop on Paud Rd. The name starts with OM (can't recall the full name). Its on the left side while coming from Karve Rd... somewhere near Vanaz. The guy was happy to let me actually try out all the brands he had, on the bike. As I said, the Osram was relatively the brightest, so I retained it.

Another place you could try is Swami Raj something auto shop opp. S P College. He said he had Stanleys, but not the type that would fit my Shogun.

The MICO I tried was from the MICO authorized outlet at the begining of Tilak Rd. He agreed to take it back if I didn't like it... and thats what I did.

All useless junk. Currently using an ordinary Rs. 20-25 "Ravi" bulb, as I mentioned, for want of any other options. Its better compared to all the other so called halogens, which is very strange. But the light intensity is still woefully inadequate esp. for highway driving... or even for city driving in rain. :(

[vrprabhu]

Originally Posted by Raccoon

All useless junk. Currently using an ordinary Rs. 20-25 "Ravi" bulb, as I mentioned, for want of any other options. Its better compared to all the other so called halogens, which is very strange. But the light intensity is still woefully inadequate esp. for highway driving... or even for city driving in rain. :(

Thanks for the inputs, Raccoon.

I will try both the shops - Tilak Road & Paud.

Yes, I too had experienced that "Ravi" brand was as good as the original bulb on my KB100 - even better than halogens.... However, the life of "Ravi" bulb wasn't good (especially the tail lamps). And don't know if they manufacture halogens....

You know what, most of the spare part shops and the suppliers seem to be hand in glove - the same stuff is available in all the shops without variation!!

[Shashank.A]

Here is a strange problem. The day I took the delivery of my standard and the next day, I was a happy soul. Unlike reports from other people, the light was actually good and bright. I thought RE have got their act together.

On the third day, the stock horn started to give problems, I though the Horn might have conked off, laughed on poor quality of RE stuff and went for a new horn (I anyhow was about to get them installed). However after the new horns were installed, they refused to blow, electrician told me that problem was with battery.

Went to RE dealer the same evening and told him battery was not charging, he simply fiddled with some wires in battery area charging was fine. I was happy, he refused to tell me what did he do. But I later realized that light has gone dim. And that fellow simply switched the wires that went into batter for charging to headlight and headlight wires to Charging. So eventually my charging is running fine, however the headlight is low. They have a 40/45w bulb installed in there, and they are saying that the NV tube should increase the light.

I dunnot the technical term, but I guess its the coil trouble. It has a setup of 4 and 2. the 4 thing was for light and 2 for battery, now 4 is for battery and 2 for light.

Lot of people get it changed to a 3-3 setup, it costs around Rs.750 from reliable dealers.

RE workshop guys recommended the 35W tube that goes into LML NV Scooter.

[SriramEfunds]

Originally Posted by Raccoon

I have heard that ordinary Stanley bulbs (imported) give the best illumination. But could not find one that fits the Shogun. Anyway, this may not be applicable for the Glady... but you might want to check it out.

I now recollect that when I bought my RX 135 in 98, the bike's headlamp came with the make called Stanley- Japan. It was too good like, after some years of use, it got slight black shade on the top resulted in poor lighting hence had to change to local one.

I wish if I could get that Stanley bulb would love to put it back.

Right now, I have changed the doom that of Swaraj Mazda and fitted M5 Halonix 35/35w. This is good in terms of spread and brightness.

Now, tempted to switch to slightly higher one i.e 55/60w. Hmm.. I so particular that do not want to change the existing set ( modification such as DC etc).

Do I have an option?

[rm_arjuna]

My TBTS run on 12v DC 12 amph battery and the stock bulb is H4 35w/35w . illumination is pretty bad .Looking to change to H4 60w/55w . can i directly plug in or should i use a relay or any other solution pls suggest .

[Raccoon]

Originally Posted by SriramEfunds

I now recollect that when I bought my RX 135 in 98, the bike's headlamp came with the make called Stanley- Japan. It was too good like, after some years of use, it got slight black shade on the top resulted in poor lighting hence had to change to local one.

I wish if I could get that Stanley bulb would love to put it back.

Right now, I have changed the doom that of Swaraj Mazda and fitted M5 Halonix 35/35w. This is good in terms of spread and brightness.

Now, tempted to switch to slightly higher one i.e 55/60w. Hmm.. I so particular that do not want to change the existing set ( modification such as DC etc).

Do I have an option?

What I don't understand is that how can an ordinary tungsten filament bulb be brighter than halogen bulbs? And it is not like the light is not being focused on the road. So I guess there is nothing wrong with the position of the filaments in the assembly. Its just that the light isn't bright enough!

The shop I inquired at said he had ordinary Stanley bulbs, so if anybody gets it with the right type of holder for his bike, it would well be worth trying.

One other thing worth trying - I'v head that the bulbs used in Hero Hondas... esp. Karizma, CBZ-x, are made in Germany. If the holder is the same, they could be worth trying in other bikes. My CBZ-x headlight is far better than the one in my Shogun, though they are of the same wattage (35 W). Of course the better Hero Honda reflector would play a big role here, but even brightness wise, it seems way better. Anybody interested to try could try to see if the same Made in Germany bulb is available with HH dealers.

[ksethuram]

I had my Rx-135 with modified alternator (cost 350 in 2002), updated battery, big horns, etc.etc. ... The downside was that the power output from the alternator was so high that whenever i raise it for a very high RPM a few bulbs would be blown off, which ment i could not drive fast with my lights on.. I tried different bulbs, but eventually gave up... Only solution was to hold the horn continiously when lights were switched on, which was stupid anyway...

It still is a problem, but i only drive it very rarely, also i am older now and do not drive at high RPM's, so it is fine to live with..
On the whole i think i wasted a lot of money which i think should have been spent better.
Only good way is pls get a new head lamp unit and stick in a halogen bulb.

[Raccoon]

^^^ Not the best option for me as getting a new headlamp assy. means I cannot fix the Shogun's fairing... unless I can get the same sized rectangular assy.

[n.devdath]

Sorry if someone has posted it earlier, but you get HID kits for bikes these days. Try to get a Philips or an Osram kit used in cars as most bike kits are overly 'K" rated and though the beam will appear very bright, it wont illuminate the road.
These kits should cost you around 4-5k for bikes but are worth the spend as they do not put any additional load on the battery or the wiring and last long as well.

[vrprabhu]

Originally Posted by Raccoon

^^^ Not the best option for me as getting a new headlamp assy. means I cannot fix the Shogun's fairing... unless I can get the same sized rectangular assy.

Your Shogun has a fairing and a rectangular headlamp unit, right? What is the state of the reflector? If it is old / yellowed / lost the shine, it could also be cause for poor light. It is possible to separate the lens (glass) from the reflector and you can clean both. I think the KB's reflector unit might fit there - KB had the best headlight in those days.........

[Raccoon]

Yes it is rectangular. The reflecting surface on the inner side (where the bulb is) seems fine. Cannot visually detect any imperfection when looked at thru the lens. Nor can any yelowness be observed. However, it seems there is a coating on the outer side of the glass also, which has peeled at some places. But I guess this does not play a part in the reflectivity, so should not matter.

How does one separate the lens from the reflector?? Isn't it supposed to be sealed? If I can open it, it could help to examine it better, and also I could clean the lens from inside, which may help a bit. Actually I did some cleaning of the lens by using a cloth dipped in glass cleaner and then tying it around a short stick and pokint it thru the hole for the bulb. That helped and now the lens looks quite clean, but if I could open it up, I would be able to clean it perfectly. I could also try to clean the lens itself... which is not possible unless I can open the assy.

Thanks for the info... will have to check if the KB's reflector is a perfect fit. Is it easily available? Any idea about the price? If it is a perfect fit, I hope to get it replaced, as the current assy. has rusted on the outer chrome plating and also around the lens-reflector joint. Also, the rubber holder for the parking light has degraded big time (any idea if this is available somewhere?) Overall, you can see that these parts lack quality on TVS-Suzuki bikes of that time. :(

[vrprabhu]

Originally Posted by Raccoon

How does one separate the lens from the reflector?? Isn't it supposed to be sealed? If I can open it, it could help to examine it better, and also I could clean the lens from inside, which may help a bit.

Thanks for the info... will have to check if the KB's reflector is a perfect fit. Is it easily available? Any idea about the price? If it is a perfect fit, I hope to get it replaced, :(

The reflector and the lens are two separate units, stuck with industrial glue. I had removed the KB lens and reflector using a chemical for dissolving the glue. It took some and you have to be patient. Cleaning the glass and reflector (from inside) doesn't help much - guess the wear and tear is because of the heat generated by the bulb. I purchased the whole unit from Bajaj Authorised Centre for about Rs. 250/- (about 4 years back).
Should be available with the shops - as there are plenty of KB 4S running here. Think one of the shops in JM Road - opp to Sambhaji Park - told me once he can get any Bajaj parts (wanted one for Sunny which even the service centre did not have - but this guy had it).

Originally Posted by Raccoon

Overall, you can see that these parts lack quality on TVS-Suzuki bikes of that time. :(

I mentioned the same thing in some other thread - and there were a couple of furious rejoinders!! Yes, overall quality of TVS-Suzuki (plastic / metal parts) is below par.

I have a friend in Chennai who runs a garage - I will ask him whether it is possible to source an OE headlight for Shogun.

[Raccoon]

Originally Posted by vrprabhu

I mentioned the same thing in some other thread - and there were a couple of furious rejoinders!! Yes, overall quality of TVS-Suzuki (plastic / metal parts) is below par.

Emotional outbursts, more than rational ones, I'd say. While the bike has been reliable and all, nobody can argue that quality, esp. of plastic, rubber parts, locks, etc., and refinement are on the lower side.

I have a friend in Chennai who runs a garage - I will ask him whether it is possible to source an OE headlight for Shogun.

Hey thanks a lot for that. But it seems the consensus here (discussed in another thread) is that the stock Shogun reflector/assy. itself is not good, resulting in this sub-par headlight effectiveness. So do you think replacing it with a stock assy. will be a good idea? Won't the KB's assy. be a much better idea? And btw, when you mean KB RTZ, do you mean the 2 stroker or the KB 4S champ (4 stroke)? The biggest issue is whether the KB assy. will fit the Shogun without any fuss...!?

[vrprabhu]

Originally Posted by Raccoon

Hey thanks a lot for that. But it seems the consensus here (discussed in another thread) is that the stock Shogun reflector/assy. itself is not good, resulting in this sub-par headlight effectiveness. So do you think replacing it with a stock assy. will be a good idea? Won't the KB's assy. be a much better idea? And btw, when you mean KB RTZ, do you mean the 2 stroker or the KB 4S champ (4 stroke)? The biggest issue is whether the KB assy. will fit the Shogun without any fuss...!?

Here is the feed back from my friend -

1. The headlamp assembly for bikes are manufactured in India by Lumax & Fiem - amongst others.
2. The headlamp of Shogun is the same as AX100; Shogun's is slightly bigger, so by having some packing it should fit.
3. The KB100 or KB4S Champion headlamp unit will also fit, as it is almost same size as that of Shogun's.

(By headlamp he means only the lens + reflector)

Now here is the research I did and found out -
Lumax has a factory here in Pune - Chinchwad and Chakan! If you call them, may be you will find out where to pick up the headlamp assemblies. May be you can measure the existing unit on your bike and cross check with that of KB100 from them.