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Few months ago, I installed a bi-xenon projector on my R1200R, and I would like to share it with you:).

The most important think is to choice a good bi-xenon projector in term of lighting quality and dimensions.

In the web you find a lot of projectors coming from China (DH-gate site for example), with several lens dimensions.
Rule:the higher lens diameter is the higher output light is.
But we have to be careful on two points:
bi-xenon projector mustn't go out the glass of the original headlamp and the most important point, the rear of the bi-xenon modulus must be short to avoid contact with the black plastic external housing.
After few days of research I decided to order the next one (it is available for left and right hand traffic), I chose mini H1 projector 6.0 right hand traffic with mini gatling gun shroud):

without ballast
Mini H1 Bi-xenon projectors 6.0 - Xenon Projectors

with ballast
Bi-xenon Mini Motor Kit - Projector Kits

According to the web site projector 6.0 gives the best output light. I also chose a small diameter shroud to be sure that it doesn't interfere with original reflector.

PS: I also bought a china modulus (2.5 Inch Motorcycle Bi-Xenon HID Projector Lens Headlight HID Xenon Kits | Buy Wholesale On Line Direct from China) but if it is cheap, it is bad and not representative of the pictures shown in the site (very bad light distribution, cut off line has not the centre step, external cover is not chrome plated .....)

So this is the contents of retrofilab kit (no ballast present because I have already a X3 canbus one:

comparison of low beam light output (original headlamp on the left hand side, bi-xenon modulus on the right hand side)
you can note the specific horizontal cut off line for xenon with a gap on the centre (it is asked by regulation, for not blinding opposite drivers)


step 0: check of the dimensions to be sure that it is possible to put modulus inside the headlamp:




now the assembly

step 1: remove the original projector from the bike
- 1 screw fixes the chrome-plated ring under the housing
- 1 screw fixes the headlamp at the top of the housing.
- Then disconnect the wires and the bulbs.

step 2: separate the glass from the reflector: it is the most difficult mission.
Glass is not bonded by a sealant which comes liquid when you heat it. Is it a permanent compound called "Permaseal". (I didn't know it, when I did this work). I put the headlamp in the over ( temperature 100°C) during 30 minuts and impossible to separate the parts. I increased the temperature by steps of 10°C until 150°C (30 minuts) and I managed to separate them by using a plate screw driver (make lever between the glass and the reflector) . but I broke some parts of the flange.






step 3: clean and remove all "Permaseal" on glass and reflector? Keep all broken parts.


step 4: as the thread part of the modulus at the rear is short, it is necessary to cut the next area and drill a hole (10mm diameter) to get high beam wires over (just under the first one):




step 5: setting and fixing the modulus inside the reflector. (it is a recommended option lol)
if you look at well, you will see that the internal face isn't flat. there are several levels of parabolic areas (see green arrows). Then, if we put directly the modulus against theses areas, it will not be in the good direction. The modulus will be tilted down (because of the internal reflector shape) and the high beam of bi-xenon modulus and the high beam of original headlamp won't be in the same direction.
To have exactly the same light output direction I decided to put some shims (aluminium adhesive tape) either on the modulus (like me) either on the reflector (best and easiest solution).







after that you can fix the modulus by tightening the nut (please note that I inserted a washer in order to have a flat contact with the nut,)

be careful, do not tighten a lot! I did that and a crack appeared :(. I stopped it by drilling a small hole


The next photo shows the bi-xenon low beam and the halogen original high beam are in the same direction (good job but very long time necessary do to it):



at this moment setting isn't finished. as we have not rotation stop, it is necessary to adjust it. My solution was:
- to mount the reflector with the modulus on the bike
- put the bike on its centre stand
to switch on xenon low beam and to turn the modulus in order to have an horizontal cut line , like this:



step 6: repair the reflector (for me !)
I glued all small parts of the flange and I reinforced it by lay up wet glass fibre + high temperature resin epoxy.


step 7: weld the wires connector of "high beam" modulus to the original wires:




step 8: drill a hole on the external housing in order to get over all bi-xenon module wires


step 9: put the glass on reflector. connect the original wires to the modulus wires and insert the whole in the black external housing. Screw it, and the chrome-plated ring. Connect external wires to the ballast and drive (in the night) to see if the orientation of the modulus is good, if not remove the glass and adjust the modulus in rotation. If it is ok you can bond the glass to the reflector by a silicone sealant.

it is better to make a real drive test because by running than putting the bike vertically on the dark tunnel

before (left) / after (right)


on the bike:




I really enjoyed doing this work, even if I spend much time and even if I had some issues to solve. the output light quality is very impressive comfortable and the design is fabulous. it seems that it is a brand new R1200R version. :001_tt1:

@all, Please give me your remarks, your feeling, tell me if I have to add something.

@ CLEM, please don't hesitate to correct my sentences if they are not very well understandable (I think you have computing permissions to do it).

thanks
Pierre
 

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Few months ago, I installed a bi-xenon projector on my R1200R, and I would like to share it with you.
Thanks Pierre, that is a very comprehensive and detailed, backed up with photos, well done. I'm all for upgrades on the stock light unit which has been done to my bike. For this upgrade I would definitely need to know when my low beam switch is, for on coming traffic.!
 

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Discussion Starter · #4 ·
thank you very much
@Clem : your French is perfect :clap:
@ mcmonkey mcbean : sorry but what do you mean by "For this upgrade I would definitely need to know when my low beam switch is, for on coming traffic.! " I used reverse translator but it isn't good.


In this topic I didn't show the ballast installation (near the battery for me). I think it is not very complicated and important. If you really want I will show you the way of wires with pleasure.

More important think: is to note that there is not a lot of space between halogen bulb and external housing. With this bi-xenon modulus it is possible that the wires of the H1 xenon bulb touch the bottom of the housing and this doesn't allow you to screw the projector on the housing, because of the interference.
So, I decided to remove the plastic cover of the bulb wires (I win "d" distance : 4 mm). And, now it is perfect when à remove and put back the complet projector I don't feel any interference.


Please, note also that I haven't "sale commission" with retrofitlab, but their products have a great quality and when I contacted team, several times, I always a response a few hours after (very good customer service) :)
 

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Another projector option would be the mini D2S 3.0. It is a little larger but it uses the D2S globe which is more common and produced by a number of manufacturers like phillips and osram. See here for details BI-xenon: Morimoto Mini D2S 3.0 - HID Projectors from The Retrofit Source

I had a custom dual bi-xenon setup on my C that took about a year and lots of money to get right. The lighting was excellent, but in the end I couldn't get the look right so I shelved it and bought some dimmable long range LED lights which I mounted on my crashbars. I got them here Long Range Optimus LED Auxliary light Round

They give me as much light as the bi-xenon on low beam and on high beam they light up the road even better. Plus they don't have a hard cut off so when I turn corners they give me enough light spread to see what is around the corner, something the bi-xenons with their hard cut off didn't do.
 

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Discussion Starter · #8 ·
Another projector option would be the mini D2S 3.0. It is a little larger but it uses the D2S globe which is more common and produced by a number of manufacturers like phillips and osram. See here for details BI-xenon: Morimoto Mini D2S 3.0 - HID Projectors from The Retrofit Source

I had a custom dual bi-xenon setup on my C that took about a year and lots of money to get right. The lighting was excellent, but in the end I couldn't get the look right so I shelved it and bought some dimmable long range LED lights which I mounted on my crashbars. I got them here Long Range Optimus LED Auxliary light Round

They give me as much light as the bi-xenon on low beam and on high beam they light up the road even better. Plus they don't have a hard cut off so when I turn corners they give me enough light spread to see what is around the corner, something the bi-xenons with their hard cut off didn't do.
I have seen the mini D2S 3.0, and I didn't chose this one for three reasons:

1) on the backward, the threated diameter is too big and doesn't go through the existing hole of the reflector (the mini H1 is perfect from this side).
2) the shape of the modulus reflector isn't the lasted with the best light output (according to retrofilab team) Mini DS2 is a "3.0 version". mini H1 is "6.0 version" with a multi elliptic areas reflector.
3) the H1 bulb is cheaper than D2S one's, even if car manufacturers use D2S bulb
 

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I have seen the mini D2S 3.0, and I didn't chose this one for three reasons:

1) on the backward, the threated diameter is too big and doesn't go through the existing hole of the reflector (the mini H1 is perfect from this side).
2) the shape of the modulus reflector isn't the lasted with the best light output (according to retrofilab team) Mini DS2 is a "3.0 version". mini H1 is "6.0 version" with a multi elliptic areas reflector.
3) the H1 bulb is cheaper than D2S one's, even if car manufacturers use D2S bulb
All valid reasons :) Your approach is perfect for people who don't want to make too many changes to the OEM headlight. I'm impressed you managed to fit it all in there.

I like to take a bit more of a custom parts approach which means destroying parts and rebuilding them :) Here are some photos of my attempts.

First off these are the latest incarnation. They are made of metal lamp heads from a desk lamp grafted onto a screw top plastic jar. Internals are plastic chopping boards shaped to fix an FX-R projector.



The shroud is a single serve rice cup



Mounted up with a custom made windshield to hide the ballasts



Here is a you tube video of the bi-xenons in action. You can see what I mean about losing vision around corners with the hard cut off.

Low beam twisties - YouTube

This one is of me testing out the LED lights, you can see the difference.

GP010002Segment100-11-05-00-12-02) - YouTube

A photo of the LED lights



and one showing the detail of them



Oh, no wait...that was Walter sitting in the box. Here are the lights :)

 

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Discussion Starter · #10 ·
... I like to take a bit more of a custom parts approach which means destroying parts and rebuilding them :) Here are some photos of my attempts.

First off these are the latest incarnation. They are made of metal lamp heads from a desk lamp grafted onto a screw top plastic jar. Internals are plastic chopping boards shaped to fix an FX-R projector
I complete agree with you. I wanted to have no visual modifications because French policemen are very aware of them and they give tickets for all which don't answer our regulation ( for example: xenon light, blue light, too many additional led lights, ....) .

your work is very impressive and I like the new front design of the motorbike. :001_tt1:

I have also seen your first video. the cut off is due to the technology used (elliptical reflector + shield + lens) It was the same for cars when this new technology appeared in 1986 with BMW 7-series. During 10 yens it staid like that, but after, it was improved by using rough lens instead of polished lens. the next pictures show the news lens and the softened cut off line:



instead of that:


The very hard cut off line isn't comfortable, you can soften it by moving slightly (+/- 1mm) the shield towards the lens or towards the reflector (in the first case you will see an orange cut off line, in the second case you will see a blue cut off line). If you can open your headlamp, try and tell us if it is better. but note that this method doesn't definitively replace the new rough lens.

The second video is LEDs + original headlamps ( i.e. no xenon). Sorry but I don't like the difference of colour. I prefer your fist video.

beautiful cat !!:), it has a bright idea at this moment?

could you give us the link to by the bi-xenon projector?

In my side I try to find rough lens in spare. But not succeeded at this moment :mad:
 

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I'm sure both 'doc dogg' and 'pierre' have watched the 'Dispicable Me' movie for their minion look a like light inspirations….:)
 

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The very hard cut off line isn't comfortable, you can soften it by moving slightly (+/- 1mm) the shield.
I don't have a video of it, but I made a custom shield with small slots cut into it that gave a soft glow of light in the corners above the cut off. It was enough to see further up the road when cornering. Having dual projectors meant I could aim them for a nice wide beam and still have plenty of light in front of me.

The reason I went back to the original light was because I didn't like the look of the twin headlights and I kept breaking the mount I had made for them. The light from the bi-xenons was great though.

The second video is LEDs + original headlamps ( i.e. no xenon). Sorry but I don't like the difference of colour. I prefer your fist video.
The camera overstates the difference a fair amount, so in real life it is less noticeable. Ideally I would like a Truck Lite Phase 7 LED headlight too, but the headlight bucket is about 20mm to large for the P7.

Although a fellow rider managed to use a Kuryakyn LED Headlight Trim Ring ( PN 7750 ) to mount the P7



Here are some output photos of another bike with the LED headlight. LED head lamp? - Page 2 - Triumph Forum: Triumph Rat Motorcycle Forums

beautiful cat !!:), it has a bright idea at this moment?
Like most cats, he sees a box and he has to sit in it.

could you give us the link to by the bi-xenon projector?
I bought all my bi-xenon parts from the Retro Fit Source The Retrofit Source Inc

My specific projectors were FX-R 3.0s which are a large projector and are found here Bi-xenon: Morimoto FX-R 3.0 - HID Projectors from The Retrofit Source

I think they are too big for a motorbike headlight though, if I try again I'll go a Lexus GS side mount projector for low beam and maybe some sort of LED projector for high beam.

In my side I try to find rough lens in spare. But not succeeded at this moment :mad:
Send an email to the Retro Fit Source and see if they have one, if not try posting a message on here HiDplanet : The Official Automotive Lighting Forum
 

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Discussion Starter · #13 ·
thanks, I have also found some LED projectors from "Speaker", especially the 8700 model:
8700 Evolution - Other - J.W. Speaker Corporation
but I'm not sure it is the best solution because the effective lumen output is 650 (low beam) / 760 (high beam). It is poor.
Xenon bulb produces 3200 lumens. According to HELLA (German manufacturer), the projector with lens gets 52% of the bulb light in low beam, So that you have around 1600 lumens (52%*3200 lm) = 2.5 time more than LED projector.
From another source, BMW has an optional full LED headlamp on its R1200GS LC. And in the French GS forum, lot of people consider that, only white colour is good, the area lightened is not sufficient. Same remark for Europeans cars (Autoplus magazine), Audi A3, BMW 3-series, Seat Ibiza, Peugeot 308, Nissan leaf were tested with and without optional LED lights. magazine concluded that all of them have a poor light with LEDs than halogen or xenon headlamps....
 

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After some searching and reading; it seems "Permaseal" is a thermosetting plastic, i.e. it will not melt, only degrade under heat. However, acetone (nail polish remover) will dissolve it.

Words of caution: Acetone is an excellent solvent so it will dull any part of the headlight it gets on ... or any paint. It is also extremely flammable, and one is well advised to keep any work area very well ventilated.
 

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I'm not sure it is the best solution because the effective lumen output is 650 (low beam) / 760 (high beam).
I agree that HID lamps are superior in the amount of light they put out. However, lumen numbers don't tell the full story as they don't take into account light spread, shape and distance. For example, take the difference between a headlight that just has a plug-and-play HID globe put into it and one in a projector like yours.

The PnP will scatter light everywhere and generally not illuminate as far down the road due to the difference and shape of a HID vs halogen light source. A projector on the other hand will produce a tight focused beam with great width and depth. Same lumen output but one is superior to the other.

The same goes for LED lights, most of the LED auxiliary lights are bright but have poor focusing and the amount of useful light ends about 20m down the road. My long range LED lights are reflector based so they have a tighter focused beam that produces useful light as far as 60m down the road.

magazine concluded that all of them have a poor light with LEDs than halogen or xenon headlamps....
I've driven a Nissan Leaf with LED lights and agree the light output is aweful. However I think that is a design issue as the reflector is very small and they have to consider design rules in many countries that are not suitable for LED headlights. The 8700 and the P7 put out a superior amount of useful light from the photos and videos I've seen, I suspect they don't conform with design rules in many countries though.

My friend Rafal had a bixenon headlight built that conforms with Polish design rules, I'm not sure what projector he used but the output shots look good.



After some searching and reading; it seems "Permaseal" is a thermosetting plastic, i.e. it will not melt, only degrade under heat. However, acetone (nail polish remover) will dissolve it.

Words of caution: Acetone is an excellent solvent so it will dull any part of the headlight it gets on ... or any paint. It is also extremely flammable, and one is well advised to keep any work area very well ventilated.
It is also pretty bad if you get it on your skin, gives you that nice "tickly" feeling in your blood :001_tt2:
 

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Discussion Starter · #16 ·
Hello,

As the cut off line is very hard, no light is coming above this line so that some people told me that I was not very visible by opposite drivers. I decided to mount a day running light + angel eyes.

the day running light (cost 6.77 euros :001_smile: ):
20% Off ! 2*17CM COB LEDs Universal Ultra-thin LED Daytime Running | Buy Wholesale On Line Direct from China

the angel eye (total cost 53 euros :cursing: ):
XB-Led angel eyes - Accessories +
Mini AE shroud - Projector Shrouds



step1: remove the old shroud (fixed by 4 screws).
As I didn't want to remove the whole projector because it was long and difficult to adjust it, I decided to drill 4 holes on the reflector face to the screws.






step2: clean the projector
the specific material of reflector is such as when you drill it creates powder



removing the lens:



you can see that the support has changed of colour and has become very fragile. (a lug broke when I removed the lens, I bonded it with "cyanoacrylate glue). Seeing that, I'm not confident about the good behaviour in the time. I will inform Retrofillab.

step 3: reassembly and drill a small hole (diam. 3mm) for the wire



step 4: mount the shroud.
it is necessary to remove some material because it interferes with the reflector on the lower area:







step 5: bond the strip led on each sides



step 6: connect the wires to the position original wires:
(it becomes a mishmash :) )



some details (way of HID wire, to avoid interference with the external housing)




As I don't like the yellow colour of strop led, I added a masking plastic:


switched on:



conclusion:
- By removing some parts to clean the projector I saw the bad quality of lens support even if modulus wasn't cheap.
- The colour of angle eyes isn't "white 4300K" as promised in the web site. I'm talking with Daan (Retrofilab team) to find a solution because I'm not happy !!
 

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Discussion Starter · #17 · (Edited)
hi,
first of all new pictures:

switched off:


switched on:




Then I discussed with Daan (retorfilab customer service) he agrees to switch my LED angel eye by new other (with good colour) when it will be available (4 weeks) and I showed him the bas quality of lens holder. he will manage to send me another (I hope it will be "gratis")
 

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I'm sure both 'doc dogg' and 'pierre' have watched the 'Dispicable Me' movie for their minion look a like light inspirations….:)
OMG, Erin. That's what I want, my R12 to look like a Minion!!!!!! :) Can you design it? :)
 
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