I have worked with LEDs for over 15 years, both in the professional/industrial arena and as a hobbyist. When "super bright" LEDs first hit the mainstream consumer market I had already been working with them for years. While I am not an expert on the doping/manufacturing procedures, I do have a great deal of practical application experience with them.
I am building a setup in my workshop that will allow me to rate/test/evaluate all types of automotive/motorcycle light bulbs. From power consumption (actual wattage required to operate the bulb) to luminous intensity and even wavelength (color spectrum), I hope to find bulbs and /or manufacturers that can meet the needs of those who wish to use them here on the forums. Whether you plan to completely replace your existing incandescent bulbs with LED types....or simply wish to add additional lighting, This thread ought to provide at least some useful information.
My first testing will be to determine which LEDS are suitable replacements for our 8 watt "running lights". In other words, what rating does an LED have to have in order to compete with the standard 8 watt filament of a typical 1157 bulb. We all know that a standard 8 watt bulb is "daylight visible". My very early initial testing shows that if you put a 1.2-2 watt LED bulb behind a lens of the same color....the luminous intensity is nearly the same...meaning they are daylight visible.
I will also be posting links (ebay mostly) for actual bulbs that I have purchased and tested. While this is by no means a guarantee that all of the bulbs by that seller will be identical...it will at least provide some insight as to which manufacturers/sellers are worth looking into and which are not.
I will also be discussing different ways to add LED lighting to your bike with the minimum amount of fuss and hopefully, cost.
As with all of my posts here, anyone interested is welcome to chime in with questions or their own personal experience, and such input will be appreciated.
My rig consists of a fully charged and regulated 12 volt maintenance free battery (the same one that is currently on my Savage), volt meter to measure voltage drop, current meter to measure amp usage, a watt meter to show actual watts used by the bulb, and a photographic light meter to measure output in lux (or lumens). by comparing the LEDs with standard bulbs, I should be able to come up with a basic chart that will show what type of LED bulb will be needed for a given application.
As with any topic here, the thread will be driven by the interest of the community. If there is little to no interest....it will just fade away
I will do my best to update this thread at least once a week.