So I looked for a replacement - I hadn't yet been riding in the dark, and I was a bit fearful of doing so with the original style bulb in place. I found a bulb on a well-known online auction site (I won't say what it is, but it's name rhymes with 'mee-bay') as a suitable replacement. It's rated as a 35W/35W bulb (meaning the dipped and main elements were the same rating of 35W), in an 'extreme white blue xenon' colour. It was cheap, and thought what the hell.
So I undid the two screws at the bottom of the chrome headlight surround, and popped the cover off. Inside I found a warren of wires. I disconnected the 4-way mini connector for the headlight, and removed the incandescent bulb. The new bulb slotted right in, which made me happy!
The main reflector has a small hole in it for a pilot light - a small, five watt bulb which is meant to light up the headlight just enough to make the bike visible - sort of a daytime running light. The bulb in mine was burned out, so I removed the bulb and set it aside to find a replacement.
I then crammed the reflector back in place, moving the wires around until it all fit, put the two screws back in, and switched on the light. It looks really good! It is a much white light, and seems brighter - I don't know if this is true or not, but I thought I may aw well test it out. It was getting close to dusk, so I thought I'd go for a short ride.
Here is a portion of the ride - check out what happens as a stop at a junction, right about 22 seconds in:
Yep, my bike was smoking!
Seeing as it's only ten years old, I figured I better pull over and have a word. I went back to the garage, shut the thing off, and this is what I saw inside:
Yeah, the wire for the pilot bulb? I never put it back in. The bulb socket was rattling around loose, and short circuited with the headlight casing, and melted all the shielding off. It was warm enough that it melted a bit off a few mini connectors as well.
What an idiot.
So, my test drive cut woefully short, I parked the bike, and went off to sulk. I looked online to purchase a new wiring harness for Hank, and ordered one.
By Saturday morning, the harness had not arrived, but I thought I would go and have a closer look at the damage. After looking at it, I realised it's not as bad as it looks - one wire was melted, and there was a bit of damage to the shielding of maybe two other wires. I had a look around the garage, and found an ISO wiring harness for a car stereo. I wondered if this would work.....
I looked at the existing wiring, and compared it to the stereo wiring. The stereo wiring was thicker, and more robust than the original, so I thought I'd give it a shot. What's the worst that could happen - it catches fire again?
I cut out the burned wiring, and replaced it with the new cable. I soldered it properly, and wrapped it in shrink wrap, and crossed my fingers.....
I put it all back together, and switched on the ignition. I then waited for the smoke to start pouring out. None did.
Hooray!
It would appear that I have fixed it! So I thought I'd go for another test ride!
It all looks good - however the indicator on my gauges that tells me my main beam is on tends to flicker on and off - even though the headlight itself does not change - it just gives a steady beam, and switches properly. I guess there is a wire loose in there still, or a mini connector that is a bit wobbly.
I have since received the new wiring loom, so I will tackle the process of installing the new wiring soon - another Saturday wasted when I should be out riding, I imagine....
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