need a H4 bulb for motorcycle

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bowlofturtle

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I'm looking to replace my old bulb which is 10 years old now. I have a SINGLE beam.


FLY_SV650N03GLOB.jpg


my bike looks like this. So i need a single bulb replacement. I always thought hella bulbs were great but i never got a chance to use them because of their price but seems like its changed. Bulb is now under $10 shipped on amazon.

But the watt is what bothers me. More Wattage .... does that mean more output/lumens and short life or better overall. Could this melt my harness or something? I've once used some ricer blue bulbs about 10 years back and it has no output but more importantly it melted my 9004 connector. But a 9004 is a plastic flimsy housing. The H4 is a solid block.


http://www.amazon.com/HELLA-HLA-H8314010...amp;keywords=h4
Hella 60/55w

VS

http://www.amazon.com/HELLA-HLA-H8314017...amp;keywords=h4
100/80w

VS

http://www.amazon.com/HELLA-HLA-H8314014...amp;keywords=h4
100/55w

That high beam isn't a factor since i don't drive with them on at all, i just use it for communication.

Life of the bulb isn't high priority since its a motorcycle, I only ride 5000 miles a year if that, maybe 200 hours a year on the bulb. I wouldn't mind dropping $10-15 a year for a bulb, i would consider it maintenance along with everything else.
 
Avoid over-wattage bulbs unless you like the idea of damaged wires and/or headlamp housings.

These are going to be the brightest you can buy without going over-wattage or being illegal (remember that there are legal limits for the number of lumens an H4 can produce). These are the brightest because they have very efficient filaments that waste less energy creating heat and focus better:

Philips Xtreme Power
Osram Night Breaker


http://store.candlepower.com/houpbuthno.html
 
Originally Posted By: dparm
Philips Xtreme Power


The Xtreme Power is a great bulb; I have them in our CR-V. The Xtreme Vision is its replacement, and is purported to be an improvement in most areas. I haven't tried them yet, but likely will when my XPs go out.
 
Have Google take you to "Dan Stern Lighting", he has the dope on lighting technology, and is objective. The wiring in most bikes is sized for a standard 55/65 watt H4 if that's what is in the bucket, and older bike electrical systems don't have a lot of reserve, so stick with the stock, (and street legal) rating. AS to which bulb, the differences are mostly in the minds of the ad writers, especially if you stick with the stock current draw, I get a kick out of the ads which say "replace your existing bulbs and see twice as far" when in the fine print ought to be "because we are comparing our NEW bulbs to bulbs which have been in use for 10 years". Many lens designs are just not good enough to control the glare which results from 85/100 and such versions of the H4. BTW, the DOT approved H4 systems for bikes while still BANNING them for use in cars. Back before the days of "aero" headlights, one could slap a set of 7 inch or 5x7, or 5.75 inch diameter lamps into almost any car and much upgrading was done despite the DOT "ban". Interestingly, those lamps were accepted in Canada at the time, and REQUIRED in some European countries.
 
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BTW the headlamp connector required by the H4 is the SAME connector which fits the millions of 5x7 and 7 inch round sealed beams used for decades in the US.
 
Originally Posted By: JethroBodine
You can find a brighter bulb (lumens) with the standard 55/65 watt spec. Just shop around. BTW, do buy a motorcycle spec bulb designed for higher vibration issues. They are more expensive but worth it. I use the PIAA extreme duty in my bikes. Expensive but they last.

http://www.amazon.com/PIAA-70456-Xtreme-White-Anti-vibration/dp/B000TK3U4O
I wish it were as simple as that. Much dorking around is done with specifications including color of the light output and bulb pattern. It isn't that hard to pick a bright spot out from YOUR lamp and then claim it is "twice as bright" as another bulb with more even dispersion. I bought my first set of H4's, BTW, in 1972.
 
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Originally Posted By: Hokiefyd
Skip the Hella bulbs. The best H4 you can buy is the Philips Xtreme Vision.

http://www.amazon.com/Philips-X-treme-Vision-Headlight-Bulbs/dp/B007K6E51W


Absolutely agree, and you can walk into a CarQuest and buy them off the rack. Online you can get Narva, but I'd say they're equal, not better. The Hella bulb is probably re-branded (and marked up) Osram or Narva bulb anyway. Hella builds *lamps* (good ones) but not the bulbs that go in the lamps.

And whatever you do, don't get suckered in by junk like PIAA.
 
MC bulbs are heavy duty, vibration can kill normal automotive bulbs quick ask any old Harley rider who carries a couple of spares.
IMO your probably better of getting an OEM MC rated bulb from a dealer. Been there, done that.
 
Originally Posted By: Trav
MC bulbs are heavy duty, vibration can kill normal automotive bulbs quick ask any old Harley rider who carries a couple of spares.
IMO your probably better of getting an OEM MC rated bulb from a dealer. Been there, done that.
An H4 is an H4. My BMW R series cam with a Phillips H4. Doesn't say anything special on it.
 
I have the candlepower store brand H4 55/65w bulb in my XS850G. It was in there from the PO so I have nothing to directly compare it to but this think works better than some of the cars I've owned.
 
Originally Posted By: HerrStig
Originally Posted By: Trav
MC bulbs are heavy duty, vibration can kill normal automotive bulbs quick ask any old Harley rider who carries a couple of spares.
IMO your probably better of getting an OEM MC rated bulb from a dealer. Been there, done that.
An H4 is an H4. My BMW R series cam with a Phillips H4. Doesn't say anything special on it.

They are not all the same. Most OEM use a vibration resistant bulb, these are stronger built then automotive bulbs.
Just one example.
http://www.osram.com/osram_com/products/...tId=ZMP_1042315
 
Originally Posted By: HerrStig
Originally Posted By: JethroBodine
You can find a brighter bulb (lumens) with the standard 55/65 watt spec. Just shop around. BTW, do buy a motorcycle spec bulb designed for higher vibration issues. They are more expensive but worth it. I use the PIAA extreme duty in my bikes. Expensive but they last.

http://www.amazon.com/PIAA-70456-Xtreme-White-Anti-vibration/dp/B000TK3U4O
I wish it were as simple as that. Much dorking around is done with specifications including color of the light output and bulb pattern. It isn't that hard to pick a bright spot out from YOUR lamp and then claim it is "twice as bright" as another bulb with more even dispersion. I bought my first set of H4's, BTW, in 1972.


I put a PIAA in my bike and they are really much brighter that the 55w one from the factory so it was pretty simple. I did also change the lens for the light bucket. The combination of the two increased my night sight range by about 80%.
 
Originally Posted By: Trav
MC bulbs are heavy duty, vibration can kill normal automotive bulbs quick ask any old Harley rider who carries a couple of spares.
IMO your probably better of getting an OEM MC rated bulb from a dealer. Been there, done that.


+1 which is why I use the PIAA...they are $35 but I have never had one blow out from the vibration in 2 Harleys
 
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Originally Posted By: HerrStig
Originally Posted By: Trav
MC bulbs are heavy duty, vibration can kill normal automotive bulbs quick ask any old Harley rider who carries a couple of spares.
IMO your probably better of getting an OEM MC rated bulb from a dealer. Been there, done that.
An H4 is an H4. My BMW R series cam with a Phillips H4. Doesn't say anything special on it.


Big difference in a BMW vs Harley as far as vibration especially the HD "A" motor.
 
Originally Posted By: 440Magnum


And whatever you do, don't get suckered in by junk like PIAA.




Do you own a motorcycle?
 
Originally Posted By: JethroBodine
Originally Posted By: 440Magnum


And whatever you do, don't get suckered in by junk like PIAA.




Do you own a motorcycle?
Again, I suggest DanSternLighting.com for the dope on things like "blue headlights".
 
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