Bonneville America Forums Forums Technical Forums Accessories Light up that engine at night

This is pretty interesting. I would love to be able to light up my bike at a BBQ or some otherwise outdoor summer gathering. It would make me hip and interesting! Imaging the ooooo's and aaaaa's as I worked my magic with the remote control! Imagine the kudos I'd have once everyone realized it's me and my bike making all this happen. Chicks would drop their boyfriends in a heartbeat for a chance to fondle my remote... if I let them.

LOL, I had a few on my old M800, nice blue led`s, when I went to the pub I got so much stick I cut them off there and then.

Each to his own though, be prepared for some stick though unless you dont have any mates anyway LOL

Actually I like the accent lights if they are not overdone.

Some people here might think they are gay but then they would have to say the same about bikes with excessive amounts of bling, running lights and chrome. Also excessive use of kitch skulls and maltese crosses and flames could fall into the same category. So could blokes in excessive amounts of leather and studs and chaps - no wait they ARE gay.



I have waterproof versions of these which I will mount under the tank. I can change the colour and intensity to whatever I want with my 'chick-pulling' remote and they do make night riding significantly safer IMO.

OK - so now I'm out of the uncool accessories closet.

Sigh! ... I might have been wrong about what chicks like once or twice before this. I blame Mountainman. He could make a can of sardines look sexy and blokes like me would believe it was the sardines.

sorry... you have to remember though I'm not a normal chick. Most chicks are happy to sit on the back...I'm not.

But all the same. There's not need.

(And I don't like sardines either! )

I think it's a personal choice. I was getting ready to look into it when BB went down. I am now looking at my New blue and white one and think what cool things to put on and add. {Like Gina's White painted console.} I did order a tank slapper to protect the top of my tank. So like maybe some dark blue lights could be nice

Consider investing in a more practical gee gaw



A flame thrower / smoke screen kit

James Bond like a M'fer

Not for me.

First, I wouldn't want to insult my bike. She's already beautiful.

Second, if I wanted something that looked like a pimped out (tricked out, prostituted (word?) out?) Honda sedan, I'd drive that instead of a bike.

Those lights might not be gay, but they sure are lame.

Hmmm, wonder how this thread got split up.... Anyway Gina, appreciated your perspective even though I still fantasize about being the highlight of the party with some cool and rad engine lights.

As for the flame thrower.. in S. Africa not a novelty but used to throw flames from under the running boards to torch a would be thief at your door as you wait at a traffic light.

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Those lights might not be gay, but they sure are lame.

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Nah, Jim. You had it right the first time - They're gay. Not that there's anything wrong with that, of course.

I suspect one would have better luck trowling for Village People than ladies with those light shows. Hey Keith - borrow someones dog for an evening. I hear they work better than anything LED.

My house mate is gay... he thinks they're lame too.

I got a good deal on my green neons for my green '05. He wanted $100, I told him to forget it,,,,He was like "But wait...look at these"....$50 got a strip of about 10 per side to go under my gas tank...They've been on there like 3 years now, never had a problem with them...Looks good at night....(I think)

Maybe someone should ask Nate Berkus. Oprah could do a whole show on it

neon lights? Heck I wish I could turn off my headlight.

last year I was out at sturgis and saw a lot of people getting these extra lights put on by the vendors. these same folks were so happy with showing off their new lighting that they left them on over night. I saw quite a few riders attempting to push start their bikes. BTW - you can't push start a EFI bike no matter how much you push it.

lots of entertainment for me.

LED lights... not just an accessory, it's a lifestyle

Personally I think they attract attention; good or bad. When riding at night anything that attracts attention qualifies as a safety enhancement. Weather Gay, or cool, or not, at the very least they should get you a discount on your insurance. So Mountain Man, I say get'um and when you put them on, post pictures. Let us know what the insurance company says too. For the record, I don't have them, but I’ve thought about them.

Need attention!? Ride naked.

I'm with JimF on this one. My neighbor called me last year and asked if I could help put a set on his HD Deuce. I said nope. He asked why not, told him they look too goofy and I can't contribute to to messing up his bike. Of course the views expressed above are soley my opinion.....

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Not for me.

First, I wouldn't want to insult my bike. She's already beautiful.

Second, if I wanted something that looked like a pimped out (tricked out, prostituted (word?) out?) Honda sedan, I'd drive that instead of a bike.

Those lights might not be gay, but they sure are lame.

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I'm quite surprised the amount of very polarized opinion there is over something so innocuous.

I always went the opposite to where peer pressure was directing me so I have no problem holding my own against the masses who flock to the perceived safety of a popular opinion.

Although some may have tagged their judgements of gayness with "but gay is OK", in a transparent attempt to not seem bigoted, there probably isn't a bigger insult for the majority of our age group (average profile of membership) than to say something is "gay".

It's a bit similar to a common value judgement here in Australia - saying something is "Un-Australian". I would imagine "Un-American" gets a lot of usage too. These phrases elicit a huge emotional response and peer group pressure. They make taking an opposing opinion very difficult. They actually have no meaning at all except to define the person using it as extremely bigoted. There is no definition for what is Un-Australian except what is the personal and convenient bias of the speaker.

Maybe we could start a "Cool & Uncool" bike picture thread. That way everyone will eventually have identical bikes.

Keith...is there supposed to be a picture or something?

Trying to "Cover your a$$" now are ya?

I was calling things 'gay' in the 60s as a kid. I didn't even know what 'gay' meant. Just thought it was a funny term.
That being said, I think the lights are 'gay'.

And you know I got to thinkin' about being a teen and having my first car and such. I LOVED hooking up lights here and there... red ones, blue ones (nice) other colours under the dash, under the seat, on the homemade console fitted over the hump. We used to call them sex lights and I think chicks grooved on them. It was all part of making the ride, yours and different from anyone else so as to leave an impression. So ummmm, where am I going with this... no where really. Just reminiscing.

In spite of un-American opinions (I wish we had a sarcasm font) these lights are definitely a safety feature for night riding.

We are invisible to cagers in the daytime - it's even worse at night.

By looking at the two headlights of an approaching car you get an idea of how far away that car is and how fast it is approaching. If the lights are close together the car is far away. If the lights are further apart the car is close.

But one headlight on a motorcycle makes it very difficult for others to judge your distance or approach speed and whether you are noticed at all - or perhaps mistaken for a distant street light.

You could deck your bike out with multiple headlights, but not everyone likes the heavily accessorized bagger look. If you prefer a cleaner look then accent lighting is a viable alternative.

They are way overpriced. However I have two eight inch led strips under my tank on the tank flange/seem. I got the strips as a car light set at Big Lots for $7. They were made to plug into a cig lighter and had about ten feet of wire. I bought an accessory plug with a pig tail, and a toggle switch. Soldered in the components and stuck them on. They plug into the pig tail for my battery tender and the on/off is mounted on the engine mount under the tank in easy reach. Total cost $27.
They add a slight blue glow to the engine. They worked WONDERFUL last night as ground lights. Leaving a friends I took a short cut through his yard....full of 1/2 rotted pairs. Which threw the bike into a slide that ended where mud and gravel lined the temp work site the township has on his property. Now on a hillside, left side high, right side-well, I couldnt touch ground, my front tire was up hill and wedged against a huge rock. The only ambiant light was from my tank lights. Gave enough light so I could see how close to the gravel my exhaust was. I had to dismount the bike on the left, spin the rear tire to slide it more down hill so I could get the front tire out of the hole, next to the rock wedging it, so that I could use the weight of the bike to coast it away from this gravel lined yellow clay quagmire.
Some how I got it turned around, while dismounted, with out dropping it, and with out grinding gravel into the exhaust on the left side, which I could see cause of the lights. I was able to happily drive out of his (deep) gravel driveway onto pavement where my bike happily sprayed clay and rotten pairs from its wheels.
This moring it sits outside attracting fruit flys waiting for a bath.

Leave the lights off the bike. They don't need them. Anybody that puts them on their bikes, probably puts dingle balls on their mirrors or the dog with the bouncing head in their rear window of their auto.... Let's see what this starts.


Now you guys....that's a different story.... Many of you could use them to brighten up the old dispositions.
Wrap some around your helmets, or make a belt out of them. LED earings for the ladies. Maybe even LED sunglasses for the hmmmm...different types.

You left out the holiday lights wrapped around the tusked elephant and the buhda statue on the rear deck.

if your that concerned about being seen at night,where a reflective vest,or both,they both look equally tacky and ridiculous

I take offense at being called "equally" when I'm clearly superior.

Anyone know the laws for for LEDs on bikes I've got them under my truck and I've heard of cops makin people cut the wires and take them out on the side of the road on cars and trucks

If it doesn't make you go faster or stop shorter it is not needed !!!!!!!

Hmmmm, part of going fast could possibly include been seen and not being splattered on the road by a big cage. But go ahead and keep up the macho facade.

Jim, you really shouldn't make fun of the "Pretty People".
They will lay their vengeance upon you!

I guess so!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!but I don't think lights under the engine will stop me from being run over......