Lights and Lighting Accessories | Gear

Seeing and being seen are two of the most important aspects of safe riding, especially after sunset or in crummy weather. Here’s a compilation of lights and lighting accessories that will help make your motorcycling experience a little brighter.

PIAA Replacement Bulbs

Can't tell if it's your vision getting worse or your bike's? The filaments in your bike's halogen lights will decay over time, first going dim and eventually burning out. PIAA has a large catalog of replacement bulbs for your bike, and a variety of options that could increase your ability to see and your visibility to other motorists. These Night-Tech bulbs are said to offer 90 percent more light than a conventional bulb due to a new filament material and a higher proportion of inert gases inside the bulb. Aftermarket lighting products are also available, including HID and LED options. Prices vary, so check out www.piaa.com to see the choices.

Baja Designs Dual Sport Kits

Sometimes the best way between two trails is a public road, but you hate the idea of selling your beloved dirt bike. Baja Designs is way ahead of you. In addition to a fleet of aftermarket lighting products, BD sells these Dual Sport kits that can turn your OHV bike into a true dual sport. The kits are model-specific, but there are lots of options to choose from. (It's up to you to obtain legal road registration, which can be easy or hard depending on where you live.) Baja Designs kits range in price from $374.95–$509.95 and come with a DOT-approved headlight, taillight, signals, horn, regulator/rectifier, and complete wiring harnesses. To see if one of these kits suits your needs go to www.bajadesigns.com.

PowerHub Fuse Block

If you've hooked up more than two or three electronic accessories to your bike, things can start to get messy in your battery compartment. The PowerHub can help keep things organized with a plug-and-play power center that connects directly to the battery. Each of the six 10-amp outputs can be toggled individually to turn on and off with the ignition switch, or set to "always on." The unit is rated for 30 amps total, but each of the six circuits can take on as much as 10 amps (120 watts). Just make sure your bike's alternator is up to the job. The unit is $115 at www.twistedthrottle.com where you can also find plenty of stuff (including a variety of lights) to plug into it.

The Top Lite

There's nothing quite like going through your luggage with a flashlight in your mouth looking for your toothbrush to make you feel uncivilized and perhaps a bit disorganized. The Top Lite from the Redline Technical Group sheds light on your cargo via four LEDs powered by three AAA batteries, all housed in a steel case that measures 2.5 x 3.0 x 0.75 inches. A non-mercury internal tilt switch makes sure the Top Lite stays off when your luggage is closed, and a manual toggle allows you to switch it off should the luggage need to be open for extended periods. $24.95 buys one top-trunk light, while $47.95 gets you a set of two lights for saddlebags. For more info, check out www.thetoplite.com.

Lunasee ASL 1000

If you're serious about being seen at night or secretly wish your bike looked more like it was in the movie Tron, Lunasee has the product for you. Special photo-luminescent tape, dubbed LERtape (for Light Emitting Rim), adheres to your bike's wheels and is charged as the wheels spin by LED lights mounted on the swingarm and fork tubes. Lunasee says the mounting hardware is minimal and the LERtape is nearly invisible during the day. The ASL 1000 isn't cheap, at $149.99 for one wheel and $199.99 for the full two-wheel kit, but it's unique to say the least. Check out www.lunasee.com for more information.

Trail Tech Equinox Driving Lights

Being seen is good, but if seeing what's in front is on your agenda then some auxiliary headlights could be the ticket. Trail Tech is mainly an off-road company, but is branching into street products with the Equinox, which Trail Tech claims has reinvented what's possible with an LED light. The Equinox is said to have a smaller and more efficient diode array than other LED spotlights and draws just 14 watts per pod. Black anodized billet-aluminum housings and hardened glass lenses protect the LED array and secure to a 3⁄8-inch stainless steel post, which connects to a variety of frame clamps depending on the bike. $439.95 gets you one kit that includes two Equinox 75mm lights, a wiring harness, and your choice of frame mounts. For more options and bike fitment, see www.trailtech.net.

LED Light Bars

Ever slow down when a traffic light turns yellow and wonder if the person in the car behind you knows you're stopping? Custom Dynamics offers a way to combat that possibility with a line of LED Light Bars to bolster your stock taillight and/or blinkers. The bars shown here are tubes of LEDs called TrueFlex. A two-wire, single-intensity system is standard, and an extra $4.95 gets you a converter for combining running lights with blinkers and taillights. Prices range from $10.95 to $89.95 depending on the size of the light, or you can explore other LED auxiliary lighting options at www.customdynamics.com.

Remix Headlamp

Occasionally it's nice to have a light that's not attached to the bike. Princeton Tec has an extensive line of such devices, from handheld to head-held and from "family" to military spec. Running on three AAA batteries, the Remix has a 100-lumen spot beam that can be turned down to a lower "flood" setting, while the cluster of three, 5mm LEDs are available in red, green, or white light. The Remix is made on site at Princeton Tec HQ in New Jersey and comes with a 5-year warranty. Get one for $39.99 at www.princetontec.com.