so this isn't going to cover all the crap that is taking the headlight assembly off of the bike so much as just giving people an idea of how easy it is overall as long as you take your time and don't forget you put part of your bike in the oven. You absolutely will melt tabs or deform the assembly if you go too hot or too long or both. Placing the assembly directly on a rack and not on at least a cookie tray will leave marks in the plastic, once you separate the assembly it is important to place the lenses inside facing down to prevent dust from settling on the inside of the lense. Don't touch the glass with your hands and that's the rough stuff, now some pics and explanation of them.
while preheating, gather oven mitts or leather gloves, a flat head screwdriver and possibly a second one, Set a timer for 7 min and place the assembly in the oven. Check in on it after about 2 or 3 min to make sure it isn't sitting on a lense and that the whole deal is roughly level and stable, try and keep it as centered as possible and away from the walls of the oven.
After the 7 min you need to remove the assembly and place on a soft surface that won't Mar or scratch the now softened plastic. Starting from an outside corner pry the two halves apart, you can use two flat head screwdrivers to help make this happen quicker. Once the corner is pried up quickly go around and gently pry anywhere that the lock tabs are while leaving the first screwdriver in the corner already pried up. Now with your hands grab the assembly and separate by pulling apart. It should only take you all of 2 min to do this without damaging the assembly. Place the lenses aside and place the lights back in the oven for another 2 min to replace lost heat.
obviously it is a repeat of the first side. I couldn't take pics and still do it without making a mess or ruining my lights so use your imagination, this is what it should look like when done.
While apart I got a clean cloth and a lil rubbing alcohol and gave the chrome part a wipe down, after it dried I spray painted the chrome a Matt black. no need for the chrome with the projector instead. start by just misting the whole deal and waiting a min or two for the solvent to evap. After that must a couple more times, this ultra light coating will help prevent birds eyes and runs from forming. it just allows this to be done without having to scuff and then clean the chrome. I have a green enamel high temp engine paint I wish I had used but it is at my friend's from painting the radiator gaurd so black it will be. Just do lots of light coats and let it slowly get to the color. you don't want a run or a thick paint job or it could chip and look like shit. not worth rushing this part. here is a pic of it after painting
once dry you will need to install the projector units, for this I only used the thin silicone washer/gasket and the little steel retainer that came with the projectors. You should remove the stock retention clip by loosening the one Philips head screw and also remove the retention clip on the projector so that you can unscrew the retention nut. in the pic from left to right is the silicone washer which goes on the projector before placing it into the assembly, then on the far right is the retention clip that should be slit over the threads once in the assembly. In the center is the nut that came with it, just take your time and be gentle to start so you don't cross thread the thing. The beveled side should be facing out.
once I got both if them installed and looking level, making sure the cut off flap was on the bottom cause the light is flipped when it comes out of the lense like looking through a magnifying glass, I carefully set the assembly on my bike and plugged a light in, started the bike and checked the beam pattern for a correct cut off line that showed on the top. To do this you will need to reinstall the projector retainer with the 3 tiny screws, then insert the round plug deals that came with the led lights and clipped it down, now all you need to do is slide the LED directly into the attached hollow adapter and plug in the leads. Start the bike and aim at a wall, make sure everything is level with the bike if the bike was being held up at a stop light. I just used a screwdriver to flip the hi low flap down to check how my beam was going to show. once happy I pulled the LED lights and headed back to the oven. The pictures show the light pattern with the cut off flap closed then open for high beams. I'm happy.Last pic is after I pulled the lights and had it ready to go back inside
now is the time to install angel or demon eye LEDs or any other effects style lights in the assembly because once back together it's best to leave it that way.
took a quick break to run to the autoparts store and buy some overpriced app controlled LED rgb lights. got some cool chasing strips and also picked up a 4 pack of accent color LED lights to use as demon eye lights, will probably do one on top and one on bottom to help make sure the demon eye effect is full and not from a single point. Also needed some black silicone adhesive sealant to ensure my lights to leak next time I ride in the rain. That would cause nothing but headaches
got the single function demon eye LED units installed, got the tracing LEDs installed and matched up, went ahead and used the rtv sealant to caulk the stuff in and smooth it all out, it looks grey in direct sun light but will get darker as it cures. I'm going to leave it out in the sun for about an hour to cure and set up, if it is still too grey I will paint over it
got them all put back together, took 3 separate 3 to 5 min oven sessions. didn't want to leave it in longer cause didn't want the new silicone to soften up enough that my new lights shifted. I'll use a heat gun to straighten any lock tabs that are out of shape from prying it open, I'll also fix any other warped areas again from the prying open. will route and solder and heat shrink all the extra wire together inside the housing and link everything to my switch that controls my other lights. The headlight hi low switch on the bike will need to be located and spliced into so that my hi and low beams will function properly and the height and angle of my lights now needs to be adjusted to get the beams on the road infront of me rather than lighting up overhead signs. Will post more including pics of all the tidying up, and will snap a few after the sun goes down, probably a YouTube video to show the tracing lights working too. anyhow, here's what I have now.
I spaced on posting the reassembly steps. it's pretty much just backwards from separation. I have a shit load of Kevlar laying around so used some of it to protect the new accent lighting controller and the softer wires as the pics will show.i just add a small bead of rtv along the top and around the top corners and then carefully place the lenses back on, press as much as I can without the oven then pop it in the oven at a slightly higher heat but for less time. I am trying to avoid heating the stuff inside up while still saturating the sealant and joins of the deal. after 3 to 5 remove and quickly and systematically squeeze the corners and halves together, relock any tabs that are able to and if it still seems like a gap back in the oven for another 3 to 5. Heat gun on low heat high blow around any overly deformed areas and use something hard and flat to press back into shape.
Alright, I decided to take the last 2 days off as it was in the upper 90's and my garage has almost zero ventilation so finished the thing last night. To get the hi low stuff working required me running additional wires from the bright side to the low side for the hi low solenoid, and also running some wire from the low side to the high side to have both lights always on. Basically pulled the lights from the low side and the hi beam switch came from the high side. ran it all up under the front fairing behind the speedo. Still trying to decide how best to clean it all up. my 05 I could run wire inside the headlight assembly from one side to the other. this bike that is not an option which blows.anyhow here are some quick pics low beam and then high beam, I'm gonna need to adjust the lights to get them aimed correctly but for now I'm going on a ride to make sure nothing falls off my bike
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