Instrument lights

oddballs61 · L Plate Warrior Joined: 13 Sep 2014 Karma :

I have a 99 bandit 600 and noticed that the instruments aren't too well illuminated at night, can anyone recommend an upgrade bulb for them or will I have to go to HID ?
thanks

Taught2BCauti... · World Chat Champion Joined: 12 Jan 2012 Karma :

HID (High Intensity Discharge) bulbs are usually 35w to 50w and way too big to fit into an instrument cluster - never mind a fag packet sized ballast to power them!

You might find some LED versions, but be aware that they don't give off much light to the sides, so not always good for instrument lighting.

Standard bulbs should be good enough - yours have probably 'silvered' and gone dim over time, so fresh ones should make a difference.
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oddballs61 · L Plate Warrior Joined: 13 Sep 2014 Karma :

Ok thanks will try new bulbs

stinkwheel · Bovine Proctologist Joined: 12 Jul 2004 Karma :

Not usually a problem.

Is it an import? They sometimes have a MPH overlay stuck over the to pof the km/h clocks that doesn't let the light through in the same way.
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bamt · World Chat Champion Joined: 14 Dec 2013 Karma :

I replaced the instrument bulbs on my Divvy 900 with these T10 LEDs. You'd need to check what bulbs yours takes.

It made a big difference to the illumination - admittedly partly because a couple of bulbs had blown, but it is a much clearer light. LEDs also have the potential advantage of lasting longer, which is useful when you have to pull lots of bits of plastic off to get to them to change them. I do say potential, because being cheap Chinese tat I wouldn't bet on them being massively long lasting, and I had a minor issue with one of the bulbs not making good contact.

A couple of things to watch for though - on mine the fuel warning light needs to remain a filament bulb as it is used to load the circuit and won't work properly with an un-ballasted LED. Indicators, neutral etc. were all OK. Also LEDs are polarity sensitive, so you may have to turn them around in the holder if they don't work (they won't be damaged, just won't light up).

oddballs61 · L Plate Warrior Joined: 13 Sep 2014 Karma :

Ok thanks for the suggestions