R1100S and PIAA mounting - QUESTION

mrbroek · 07-15-2007, 04:27 AM

Anyone have clean install for their PIAA's? I'd like to install them under the headlight, in front of the oil cooler, only because I like the look. I see Cycle Gadgets has a mount for the forks - I'll go there if I have to.

TIA-

Aharon

Flatbutt1 · 07-15-2007, 08:36 AM

I have the fork mounts and they work well but they're kind of a pain to get aimed properly the first time.

Not much room near the oil cooler...remember you don't want to block air flow and its a bit crowded under the nose in terms of travel.

MarkR11S · 07-15-2007, 09:12 AM

Whatever you do, don't mount them hanging from the underside of your fairing above the fender. I made that mistake on my first S. During the install I neglected to think about the fact that there was no weight on the front suspension. Therefore, when I took the bike off it's center stand after the install I rode out of my drive causing the suspension to compress and the lights to crush into the nice carbon fiber fender. Needless to say I was not a happy camper and couldn't believe my ignorance. After that I mounted them on top of the fork brace just using their double sided sticky tape. It was a pretty nice setup and that tape is rock solid. I had them mounted that way for over a year and travelled over 10,000 miles without the tape failing. On my current bike I use Motolights with the caliper mounts. Nice setup but I liked the PIAA lights better because of the way they projected the light (pencil beam). Anyway, sorry I don't have any pics but I'd hate to see you go through the same mess I did.

Guest24 · 11:20 AM

I didn't do it--bought it this way. The illumination is great. The focus is not.

Guest24 · 07-15-2007, 11:16 AM

The problem with fork mount is that every bump in the road flickers the light and that is annoying to me. While the aesthetics may not be optimum on this application, the light is steady and points where the bike is heading. You can aim them out to the side if you want to illuminate curves. The higher attach point gets rid of shadows in the dips in the road.

R111S · R111S's Garage

Hi mrbroek,

Welcome to the Pelican-hood.

I don't have PIAAs but here is my "Hang em High!" solution.

Aux Forward Lighting

Sideshow_S · 07-15-2007, 03:57 PM

mrbroeck, I have your solution. But I need time to get the pics up if you need them.

Basically I bought some U-bolts (look like lightweight versions of leaf spring mounting bolts.) I hung those over the top of the oil cooler, drilled a piece of sheet aluminum to make an adapter, and mounted the PIAAs to the outer end of the aluminum. This gets them to the outside where they won't slam into the fender (uh, been there, done that too, Mark!).

Pics later. It's a setup to be proud of. The u-bolts are pretty much available at any hardware store, and it's important to use nylocks and space out the adapter sheet of aluminum. Also, I suggest at least .100" aluminum to avoid fatigue. .125" is easy to come by.

Guest24 · 07-15-2007, 04:07 PM

Sdeshow_S, what does placing an obstruction in front of the air oil cooler do to the effectiveness of the cooler?

mrbroek · 07-15-2007, 04:30 PM

Everyone-

Thanks so much for the reply's - nice to see such a great board.

Shadow_S - sounds like an interesting set up - thanks for the info - look forward to pics when you have time.

Bubba - I just sold my LT and got a nice 2004 R1100S - it's been years since I had a boxer - it's a blast. Anyway, I had just this set up on my LT - mounted them right on the body. I'm shying away from that option, but I have to say that doesn't look to bad.

thanks again everyone - this is very helpful. I'm considering trying to mount a 2100 series light under the oil cooler, attaching it to the black plastic underneath the two nose/snorkels.

Sideshow_S · 07-15-2007, 04:33 PM

Maybe you misunderstood (or actually my communication is just poor) the adapter plate is all below the oil-cooler, on the bottom side. The only obstructions on the front are the two u-bolts, and as they hang over the top, there are two on the rear, which could also be considered a restriction. I've run the u-bolts for over 40K on one of the bikes that now has 78K and the bike feels like it runs as strongly as the one with 21K on it.

Guest24 · 07-15-2007, 05:27 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by mrbroek
Bubba - I just sold my LT and got a nice 2004 R1100S - it's been years since I had a boxer - it's a blast. Anyway, I had just this set up on my LT - mounted them right on the body. I'm shying away from that option, but I have to say that doesn't look to bad.

I left the heavy metal/plastic after i crashed my RT and went to the Duc ST3 but I really missed the Boxer. I love my S. It gives me all the options I need for sport riding and the cross country bagger. My Pacific Blue S is a long time keeper. My search for a great ride has come to an end for the foreseeable future. It took me a while to get over my OCD about the plastic being scabbed by the lights but their effectiveness in that location is great from a functional point of view. Besides, I can't see them when I'm in the saddle. Welcome to the forum. There is a ton of S experience around this website. I spend more time reading the old threads now. But, the only dumb question is the one you don't ask even it annoys some of the OCD tekno's.

mrbroek · 07-15-2007, 06:57 PM

Bubba-
Bummer about the RT. I grew up with boxers. We had 3 R65/5's in the family. I got an R100RS --> K100LT --> K1100LT --> K1200LTC and now my S. Traded the land yacht in on it - found this one at a local Honda dealership with only 1500 miles on it. It's so fun to have a bike that actually turns and doesn't wallow - I'm having a blast. It vibrates quite a bit around 4-6000 RPM - I thought my feet may go numb on the ride home. Is this normal - I'm assuming it'll be several thousand miles (20,000?!?!) before it's broken in and it may get better.

Sideshow_S · 07-15-2007, 07:33 PM

It will get better with age, but do a valve adjustment and throttle body synch (use the search button for that). They're pretty sensitive to the valve settings. Every time I do mine it seems to vibe in a different range, but always somewhere. But it's always less vibey after the synch.

Guest24 · 07-15-2007, 07:55 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by Sideshow_S
It will get better with age, but do a valve adjustment and throttle body synch (use the search button for that). They're pretty sensitive to the valve settings. Every time I do mine it seems to vibe in a different range, but always somewhere. But it's always less vibey after the synch.

Yeah, the S does vibrate but Sideshow_S has given you some sound advice. I'd change all the fluids if it has been a garage queen since it was placed in service and make sure the tires aren't hard as nails. Run it to 6k miles then do the service again and check the valves and TB's

The S is really a kick in the twisties. You're probably getting the same juice I did when I got back on the boxer. If it doesn't have a Throttlemeister I'd strongly consider pulling the trigger on one.

Let's see some pics.