Motorcycle-style headlight, anyone?

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Happy New Year to all! I don't ride at night much during the summer months, but once daylight savings time goes bye-bye, I do. It gets dark so much earlier! I am looking for a large headlight to replace my stock headlight. It's not a terrible headlight, but I want something much bigger, and also brighter. This is a big "beefy-looking" fat tire cruiser, and I think a motorcycle-style headlight would look good. So during the winter I want it to really light up the road, and during the summer it's just for looks :)

All suggestions appreciated -- thanks!

Magicycle Cruiser.jpg
 
If you could get a matching speedo drive, I think one of these would be pretty awesome:

https://www.ebay.com/itm/203672261586
Some options here: https://www.1977mopeds.com/product-p/7203.htm
I have a couple similar style lights in some old Ducatis and I put an Acewell speedo in one of them. It took a simple adapter ring but it means I can use and size wheel/tire since it's all electronic. If you don't want to use a magnet and sensor set up, they also have a gizmo that screws into a speedo drive and runs it off of that.

It doesn't look like I have any decent pictures of what I'm talking about but these may give an idea.
speedo_9303_l.jpg


speedo_9308_l.jpg


Not exactly a cheap way to go but it's pretty trick once it's set up. I like the idea of using a moped light. The one you have a link to costs less than a trim ring on the real deal old Italian stuff I've been playing with...
 
That's awesome -- hope I can find something similar.
I took moped headlights. The one on the black bike is an old one that I converted to led and the one on the chopper is a new one that originally takes a led bulb, cost me a 20.

I took moped headlights. The one on the black bike is an old one that I converted to led and the one on the chopper is a new one that originally takes a led bulb, cost me a 20.
View attachment 221550View attachment 221551
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I went the opposite direction by stepping down from a 6.5" headlight to a smaller 4.7" unit. I had a fairly large 6.5” LED headlight – 48V Hi/Lo Beam Function 400 lumens w/optional lens guard from the Revi Bikes Cheetah that I replaced with a brass finned grill black bobber headlight.


1g9B4kP.jpg


9bU8xxN.jpg
 
I saw that @axemann88 mentioned 1977mopeds.com. Another great moped parts source is treatland.tv in California.

They always have some cool headlight assemblies and many of the speedos that go with them.

While you're there, check out forks, handlebars, and 16" tires (that fit on wide 20" bicycle rims). They have lots of cool stuff for rat rod projects.

Happy hunting!
treatland headlights.png
 
Thanks, this info is exactly what I was looking for! Can someone help me understand how you mount a 48v LED in one of these cans?
Or do you somehow reduce voltage to 12v and use a standard bulb?
 
Thanks, this info is exactly what I was looking for! Can someone help me understand how you mount a 48v LED in one of these cans?
Or do you somehow reduce voltage to 12v and use a standard bulb?

That's a good question! Never even thought it through to the voltage issue. Seems like most 48V led bulbs are made with huge A26 Edison screw bases, or have too little light output to be a good headlight.

I did find a couple that might be in the ballpark:
https://wattalight.com/collections/...ylight-48vdc-gu-10-base?variant=6833126506560
https://www.amazon.com/Ruiandsion-BAY15D-Chipsets-Backup-Reverse/dp/B0BF9GB6FF?th=1

But, one would have to hack the appropriate socket into the housing.

How many lumens do you want?

DC / DC conversion seems like an easier thing to implement. DC "Buck" converters are not hard to find and reasonably inexpensive
https://www.ebay.com/itm/314126698861https://www.ebay.com/itm/354322058816
Not all of them will handle 48V in though. They are pretty efficient, but some power gets wasted as heat, so I think one would want heat sinks and ventilation. A 48V light bulb would be more efficient, I would guess.
 
There are led bulbs that work between 6 and 36V. The headlight in the black Felt is converted to led. The bulb is in the headlight and runs a plus and a minus cable to an old bicycle lamp, which runs on 4 or 5 AA 1,5V batteries. (I could have connected it to the battery for the electric motor, but this is beyond my skills.)
 
"It may even fit in the headlight bucket."
That would be ideal!
I'm not sure about lumens. I mostly ride in the city.
Thanks for your imput bro's (and sista's).
For reference, the tiny, USB rechargeable, Lithium powered headlight that I bought last year claims 700 lumens. It has decent output, and high / low / and flash modes. The rechargeable battery is rated at 1200 mAh.

I think think this is sufficient light for me to feel seen, but I imagine from the driver's perspective, it's a very small spot of light. Bigger might be better. I think that car driver's brains tend to see everything as another car. I avoid twin lights on motorcycles for this reason, because I think drivers tend to see them as two car headlights, at a greater distance. A small single light probably registers on the brain as a car very far away, far enough away that the headlights merge. Far enough away that there is no reason not to make a left turn in front of whatever that is.

1681848833911.png


The matching Taillight claims 245 lumens and 180mAh. It's got multiple modes with different blink patterns for the multiple LEDs.

That's another way to get more light output, ... multiple LEDs, even as discrete bulbs. This is how some relatively high output bicycle lights are built nowadays. For example, this assembly has 12 LEDs and an integrated, rechargeable Lithium battery:
1681849711123.png


With these little, self contained lights costing under $6 for the set of white / red, it might be a viable idea to use the entire assembly as a replaceable insert into your larger housing, if it is bright enough, and can be placed near the focal point of the reflector.

One could magnet or velcro mount, and pull the entire assembly out to recharge and swap with a fully charged assembly. Less wires, less electrical components means less hassle, better reliability. It would be a shame to ruin an expensive 48V lithium pack because my cheap DC / DC converter failed as a dead short, or the insulation on my amateur wiring job chafed.
 

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