Simple but kind of cool mod

[NC_John]

A buddy and mine upgraded the headlights on our Harleys to LED. I put our old reflectors on blu today. H4 bulbs fit the factory plug and will even allow me to get brighter bulbs if I want to later (like ultrastars).

I think it looks kind of cool. Lighting should definitely be brighter.







I really want to get a pair of the LED trucklite bulbs (they are unreal and look awesome) but to get a pair would cost around $400.... Maybe later. I am thinking about repainting the headlamp trim but don't know if fresh flat black will make the rest of the old grill look odd.

[swamp rat]

If ya got em use em! Now if you do a relay mod (posted allover the forum) you will get even more light than thru the stock wiring.

[Mister-B]

That's cool. I didn't realize Harley headlights were the same size. I used to have a Night Train, and a Sportster before that, so from one biker to another, two thumbs up.

As for your grille, what are the plans? It has a few dents. Those can be hard to correct. I ended up finding a nice used original grille, and then shined it up and painted it as per factory specs. The headlight bucket trim can be easily painted with Rustoleum semi gloss black spray paint. Just take them off the truck, and hang them from some hooks. Don't forget to paint the screw heads black. As for the chevrolet letters on the grille, I found the best way was to spend $9 on the vinyl adhesive letters that go down inside the stamped letters
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[Lattimer]

Originally Posted by Mister-B

That's cool. I didn't realize Harley headlights were the same size. I used to have a Night Train, and a Sportster before that, so from one biker to another, two thumbs up.

As for your grille, what are the plans? It has a few dents. Those can be hard to correct. I ended up finding a nice used original grille, and then shined it up and painted it as per factory specs. The headlight bucket trim can be easily painted with Rustoleum semi gloss black spray paint. Just take them off the truck, and hang them from some hooks. Don't forget to paint the screw heads black. As for the chevrolet letters on the grille, I found the best way was to spend $9 on the vinyl adhesive letters that go down inside the stamped letters
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I just went to town on a spare grille today with a oven cleaner, then steel wool. Got the biggest of the dents out with a hammer and dolly previously, removed the old finish and what was left of the paint today, and wound up with a brushed aluminum look.

Gonna repaint the black areas and clear the whole thing, then add the vinyl letters. Should look pretty cool when I'm done, and almost zero cost.

[Lattimer]

Originally Posted by NC_John

A buddy and mine upgraded the headlights on our Harleys to LED. I put our old reflectors on blu today. H4 bulbs fit the factory plug and will even allow me to get brighter bulbs if I want to later (like ultrastars).

I think it looks kind of cool. Lighting should definitely be brighter.







I really want to get a pair of the LED trucklite bulbs (they are unreal and look awesome) but to get a pair would cost around $400.... Maybe later. I am thinking about repainting the headlamp trim but don't know if fresh flat black will make the rest of the old grill look odd.

Cool idea. Never would have guessed they would fit.

[Mister-B]

Originally Posted by Lattimer

I just went to town on a spare grille today with a oven cleaner, then steel wool. Got the biggest of the dents out with a hammer and dolly previously, removed the old finish and what was left of the paint today, and wound up with a brushed aluminum look.

Gonna repaint the black areas and clear the whole thing, then add the vinyl letters. Should look pretty cool when I'm done, and almost zero cost.

I'm looking forward to seeing it. That'll make a huge difference in the appearance of your truck
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[Lattimer]

Originally Posted by Mister-B

I'm looking forward to seeing it. That'll make a huge difference in the appearance of your truck
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Ive been planning it since I saw what you did with yours.

[Mister-B]

Originally Posted by Lattimer

Ive been planning it since I saw what you did with yours.

Cool! Glad to help. The black Rustoleum spray paint has held up perfectly. The hand painted chevy letters did not, so I'm glad I found those vinyl letters
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[NC_John]

Originally Posted by swamp rat

If ya got em use em! Now if you do a relay mod (posted allover the forum) you will get even more light than thru the stock wiring.

Yeah, I was thinking about that. Its a pretty easy mod. Kinda reluctant to cut the factory harnesses that have survived this long intact but I can solder and heatshrink everything.

I do have an issue with the lights anyway where sometimes when they light, one will come on really dim- if I wiggle the harness it'll brighten up to normal. Probably a ground. When I tried my hi/lo beam switch Saturday night (on a very dark side road), I hit the hi-beams and the lights went OUT. That got my attention. I hit it again and the lo beams came back on. Then the next time the hi's came on. I kept going back and forth and they started both working properly.

[special-K]

That's a real nice touch. A cool way to get a couple little HD emblems on your truck.

Traditionally,the FL Harleys use 7" lights and FX and XL use 5". There are exceptions in the latest models. 7" is what vehicles with single headlights use and 5" is for dual headlights.

EDIT: I'm sure you have a bad ground

[NC_John]

Originally Posted by Mister-B

That's cool. I didn't realize Harley headlights were the same size. I used to have a Night Train, and a Sportster before that, so from one biker to another, two thumbs up.

As for your grille, what are the plans? It has a few dents. Those can be hard to correct. I ended up finding a nice used original grille, and then shined it up and painted it as per factory specs. The headlight bucket trim can be easily painted with Rustoleum semi gloss black spray paint. Just take them off the truck, and hang them from some hooks. Don't forget to paint the screw heads black. As for the chevrolet letters on the grille, I found the best way was to spend $9 on the vinyl adhesive letters that go down inside the stamped letters
Posted via Mobile Device

I started with a 1200 sportster that I hot-rodded, then went through 2 Kawasaki ZX-9Rs, and then decided I needed to slow down if I didn't want to end up in jail or the ground and got on an electra-glide. That's were the headlight came from, the big bike....

not to hijack my own thread, but since you brought it up....

Here's the first one, the 96 1200. A very cool little bike but just a bar-hopper, it was lousy for long rides.



My need for speed phase (I used to do 160-170 mph once a week just because I could):







and finally my current ride- 05 FLHTCI, currently with a fresh 106" 120 HP, 122 FT-LB mill with some suspension work done to make the big girl handle better (so much for slowing down). This one's got 80K on the clock and been coast to coast 3 times. Lots of iron butt stuff.... (this is a UT pic BTW)- the bike is a bit dirty as it was a few thousand miles into the trip already. A few things on it have been changed now....



back to the truck- I need to see if I can find someone that can straighten out the grille- with all the complaints I have heard about the repro stuff, I am hesitant to get one. The NOS stuff is crazy expensive. I am kinda looking for a clean used one but haven't found it yet.

I'll spray the headlight bucket trim (I don't see repro ones black - did they just do them for 70?). I guess as far as painting the grill I need really good masking to keep the lines tight. It'd be nice to take off the anodizing and then polish and paint it. I've seen the Chevrolet decals and figured that'd be the easiest way to go.... I did place an order with LMC last night including new fasteners for the trim and a new retainer ring (one of mine is missing two of the three tabs).

So...I'd like to find someone that can maybe straighten this one locally first. Plan "b" is to replace it.

[NC_John]

Originally Posted by special-K

That's a real nice touch. A cool way to get a couple little HD emblems on your truck.

Traditionally,the FL Harleys use 7" lights and FX and XL use 5". There are exceptions in the latest models. 7" is what vehicles with single headlights use and 5" is for dual headlights.

EDIT: I'm sure you have a bad ground

I'm pretty sure its a bad ground too. Need to clean them up and start getting dielectric grease on all my connections. My ADD is in full force when I am working on this truck and its all I can do to stay on the task I'm on long enough to get it finished before I start the next.

I actually bought a little dry-erase board and started listing jobs so I can keep focused.

[Lattimer]

Originally Posted by NC_John

I started with a 1200 sportster that I hot-rodded, then went through 2 Kawasaki ZX-9Rs, and then decided I needed to slow down if I didn't want to end up in jail or the ground and got on an electra-glide. That's were the headlight came from, the big bike....

not to hijack my own thread, but since you brought it up....

Here's the first one, the 96 1200. A very cool little bike but just a bar-hopper, it was lousy for long rides.



My need for speed phase (I used to do 160-170 mph once a week just because I could):







and finally my current ride- 05 FLHTCI, currently with a fresh 106" 120 HP, 122 FT-LB mill with some suspension work done to make the big girl handle better (so much for slowing down). This one's got 80K on the clock and been coast to coast 3 times. Lots of iron butt stuff.... (this is a UT pic BTW)- the bike is a bit dirty as it was a few thousand miles into the trip already. A few things on it have been changed now....



back to the truck- I need to see if I can find someone that can straighten out the grille- with all the complaints I have heard about the repro stuff, I am hesitant to get one. The NOS stuff is crazy expensive. I am kinda looking for a clean used one but haven't found it yet.

I'll spray the headlight bucket trim (I don't see repro ones black - did they just do them for 70?). I guess as far as painting the grill I need really good masking to keep the lines tight. It'd be nice to take off the anodizing and then polish and paint it. I've seen the Chevrolet decals and figured that'd be the easiest way to go.... I did place an order with LMC last night including new fasteners for the trim and a new retainer ring (one of mine is missing two of the three tabs).

So...I'd like to find someone that can maybe straighten this one locally first. Plan "b" is to replace it.

Cool stuff. I had 2 Kawasaki's (Mean Streak and Vulcan 2000), now I have a Victory Cross Country.

For good lines when painting I recommend Frog Tape.

I haven't seen repro black headlight buckets either, so mine are getting wire wheeled and repainted.


If you find somebody who can do hammer and dolly work, they can probably straighten that grill out. My truck came with an extra grill, that is better than the one on it but it still had 3 large dents in it. I bought a cheapo hammer and dolly set at Harbor Freight, and watched a bunch of YouTube videos of how to do the work. I got it pretty straight now. Better than my installed grille, and not bad for a driver.

[volksworld]

sounds like a bad hi beam switch on the floor....internal contacts corroded

[NC_John]

Originally Posted by Lattimer

Cool stuff. I had 2 Kawasaki's (Mean Streak and Vulcan 2000), now I have a Victory Cross Country.

For good lines when painting I recommend Frog Tape.

I haven't seen repro black headlight buckets either, so mine are getting wire wheeled and repainted.


If you find somebody who can do hammer and dolly work, they can probably straighten that grill out. My truck came with an extra grill, that is better than the one on it but it still had 3 large dents in it. I bought a cheapo hammer and dolly set at Harbor Freight, and watched a bunch of YouTube videos of how to do the work. I got it pretty straight now. Better than my installed grille, and not bad for a driver.

yeah, I figured there were a few of us on here with bikes!

If I have to get another grill I might try a DIY on this one. As beat up as it is already, what's to lose, right?

[NC_John]

Originally Posted by volksworld

sounds like a bad hi beam switch on the floor....internal contacts corroded

Cycling it a few times corrected it. Probably just dirt or cobwebs... If it acts up again I will clean/repair or replace.

Lots of TLC needed on these old trucks. Gotta keep remembering how old it is and this is why I got it. To tinker.

Thanks.

[Lattimer]

Originally Posted by NC_John

yeah, I figured there were a few of us on here with bikes!

If I have to get another grill I might try a DIY on this one. As beat up as it is already, what's to lose, right?

Thats what I figured. PO threw in an extra grill with the truck, so I decided to see what I could do with it. Repaired and repainted the inner grille and it looks like new (except all black), then started on the outer. I sprayed some clear on it last night to see how it will look, and I like it. But the clear revealed some areas that didn't show up without, so I will probably strip it again and work the finish some more.

[Lattimer]

Originally Posted by Mister-B

Cool! Glad to help. The black Rustoleum spray paint has held up perfectly. The hand painted chevy letters did not, so I'm glad I found those vinyl letters
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I've been Rustoleum-ing everything. My whole engine compartment is Hammered finish black, which looks kinda gray.

[67_C-30]

Cool mod! That's a good looking bike, too! Since this is a self hijacked thread already, I'm gonna post a pic of my baby too!



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[Mister-B]

Originally Posted by NC_John

I started with a 1200 sportster that I hot-rodded, then went through 2 Kawasaki ZX-9Rs, and then decided I needed to slow down if I didn't want to end up in jail or the ground and got on an electra-glide. That's were the headlight came from, the big bike....

not to hijack my own thread, but since you brought it up....

Here's the first one, the 96 1200. A very cool little bike but just a bar-hopper, it was lousy for long rides.



My need for speed phase (I used to do 160-170 mph once a week just because I could):







and finally my current ride- 05 FLHTCI, currently with a fresh 106" 120 HP, 122 FT-LB mill with some suspension work done to make the big girl handle better (so much for slowing down). This one's got 80K on the clock and been coast to coast 3 times. Lots of iron butt stuff.... (this is a UT pic BTW)- the bike is a bit dirty as it was a few thousand miles into the trip already. A few things on it have been changed now....



back to the truck- I need to see if I can find someone that can straighten out the grille- with all the complaints I have heard about the repro stuff, I am hesitant to get one. The NOS stuff is crazy expensive. I am kinda looking for a clean used one but haven't found it yet.

I'll spray the headlight bucket trim (I don't see repro ones black - did they just do them for 70?). I guess as far as painting the grill I need really good masking to keep the lines tight. It'd be nice to take off the anodizing and then polish and paint it. I've seen the Chevrolet decals and figured that'd be the easiest way to go.... I did place an order with LMC last night including new fasteners for the trim and a new retainer ring (one of mine is missing two of the three tabs).

So...I'd like to find someone that can maybe straighten this one locally first. Plan "b" is to replace it.

Very nice! Love the pics

As for the headlight trim buckets on a 69/70, black is factory correct. The repro parts are wrong. They are chrome. I'm guessing they must also fit 71/72, that are supposed to be chrome, so they saved a buck and made one part number for 4 years. At the end of the day, it is wrong for a 69/70, and I think looks way better in black
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[NC_John]

Originally Posted by 67_C-30

Cool mod! That's a good looking bike, too! Since this is a self hijacked thread already, I'm gonna post a pic of my baby too!



Posted via Mobile Device

Cool bike- I'd like to get a springer, maybe a bad-boy to add to the collection of toys.

[special-K]

In 67/68 Chevy used steel headlight doors painted white or polished aluminum on the fancier trucks. In 69/70 they used steel painted black. Then,in 71/72 they used aluminum polished to match the grille. Only the 71/72s are reproduced and fit 69/70s. You have to paint/powdercoat those or use good used ones.

[NC_John]

Originally Posted by special-K

In 67/68 Chevy used steel headlight doors painted white or polished aluminum on the fancier trucks. In 69/70 they used steel painted black. Then,in 71/72 they used aluminum polished to match the grille. Only the 71/72s are reproduced and fit 69/70s. You have to paint/powdercoat those or use good used ones.

Thanks for the info. I am going to repaint mine black. The originals are in good shape, just really faded.

[724wdcopper]

these 55/100 Hella bulbs make nighttime driving AWESOME! just don't forget to hit the dimmer with traffic!

[NC_John]

Originally Posted by 724wdcopper

these 55/100 Hella bulbs make nighttime driving AWESOME! just don't forget to hit the dimmer with traffic!

There is an osram "off-road only" bulb I've used before that works really well too.