DIY: Sealed Beam to LED Headlight Conversion
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 24 ม.ค. 2025
- DIY: Sealed Beam to LED Headlight Conversion #vintagemotorcycles #motorcyclerewind #cb77
Hey everyone, welcome back to Motorcycle Rewind! In today's episode, we're stepping into the time machine but with a modern twist. Ever looked at an old Stanley sealed beam headlight and thought, "Man, if only you were brighter"? Well, that's exactly what we're going to tackle today. We're taking that vintage Stanley sealed beam headlight from our iconic SuperHawk and giving it the LED treatment it never knew it needed.
🔧 What You'll Learn:
How to safely remove your old Stanley headlight without causing any damage.
The essentials for choosing the right LED replacement that matches the vibe of your vintage bike.
Step-by-step guide on converting your Stanley sealed beam headlight to a shiny new LED setup.
💡 Why LED?
Well, we love old school as much as the next grease monkey, but let's face it: the original sealed beams were great in their day, but they just can't hold a candle to modern lighting technology. With an LED conversion, the SuperHawk will be beaming brighter than ever before, making those late-night rides and underlit roads a breeze to navigate.
🛠 Tools & Materials:
Your trusty Stanley sealed beam headlight
LED bulb
Screwdrivers, both flat and Phillips
Wire cutters and strippers
Electrical tape and/or heat-shrink tubing
Soldering kit (optional)
So grab your tools and pull up a seat; you won't want to miss this one. We're proving that you can teach an old bike new tricks, and it starts with a simple headlight swap. Ready to shine some light on your ride? Then let's get started!
If you find value in this video, don't forget to hit that like button and consider subscribing for more vintage motorcycle magic. Got questions or tips for headlight conversions? Drop 'em in the comments below!
See you in the garage,
Motorcycle Rewind 🏍️💨
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Dude no way!!! Mine just went out and I was bummed thinking I needed to replace the whole bucket. thanks
Glad I could help! Its super easy.
I just did this for my 85 Nighthawk 450 with great success! Thank you for posting this!!
Cool. Thanks for watching
New skool into old school.
Necessity was the reason for the upgrade. I had the bulb and the light needed bulb😂. And it should be considerably brighter.
ABSOLUTELY SENSATIONAL!!!
This was loads of fun. Thanks for watching.
Great idea for an upgrade. From what I saw when you were testing the new LED, you don't have anything to worry about in terms of light pattern. I like the idea of a much brighter headlight as well as the lesser strain on the alternator. Wish I had one of these back in the day; night rides would have been much easier on the eyes. I upgraded to halogen as quickly as possible once they came along.
This should make it way easier to see at night. The last conversion I did was with a halogen bulb. The LED should be much brighter.
Anybody know if a 6 volt led is available??
Perfect and thank you! Have a family handmedown 1981Honda CM200T Twinstar. Sat for years but patience and the beloved kick-starter fired right up. Your way looks easier to put in an LED than I thought. For one of the other comments, I'm going to try a 9003 bulb.
Glad it helped! Thanks for watching. Enjoy that Twinstar.
Awsome job done. I have been having some problem with my front Light on my enduro bike and I might do this to it as you did on the Honda 🌹👌
It’s super easy. Highly recommend it.
That’s a neat solution. The headlights on my 2003 Suzuki Bandit were like damp candles.
New bulbs for the win!
I wish they had a warmer LED bulb for motorcycle headlights. I don't love bright white headlights on my vintage bikes. I want it to look like a halogen bulb, but pull the amperage of an LED bulb.
That would be cool!
Just find 2700...3000K LED lamp with the appropriate form factor and you've got your warm light
Great ideas. So much of keeping stuff going is just to think outside whatever box you're in. Just put a new led bulb in my 1200 Bandit, now people can see me coming!
Agreed! Being able to see and be seen is paramount.
Good idea! My Dad could fix anything with a wire coat hanger, so I’m impressed.
Great minds think alike. Thanks for watching.
I planning to do the same thing but as i saw your video I'm gonna go ahead with my project . thank you sir
Thanks for watching.
such a great video and so helpful!
Thanks for watching.
Great solution! Do you or anyone on this thread have a LED bulb replacement suggestion for a 12v 35/36.5. It is out of a '86 Honda TLR200 Reflex, 5" diameter, and only a 2 1/2" depth.
You can actually buy approved, road legal LED replacements for the whole sealed beam unit. Which will also remove the oxidation problem.
Thanks for watching
Thanks I’ve got to do same type of project for 78 KZ. 🎉🎉
You’re welcome. Good luck. Thanks for watching.
Brilliant.
Hope it helps you! Thanks for watching
Awesome video...! If you look at companies such as DDM Tuning you can find good quality 4500k or 6000k bulbs in several sizes and they place the LED to mimic halogen optics so anyone following your advice can have a real knockout combination...!
I'm subscribed...!!!
Awesome. Thanks for the tip. Thanks for watching.
thanks for this great video,i do have a 1980 honda express 6 volt system and my tail light bulbs has a 1154 number on it,i was wondering if the connection would be identical if i buy the led bulbs?thank you
I don’t see why not!
How do you determine the bulb's orientation so the light pattern works out right? And do you seal it to keep moisture out?
I see what you're saying...since the bulb doesn't lock into place like it would on a modern bike, you need to make sure the high beam emitter is up, lined up with the top of the old sealed beam enclosure, and then make sure it goes back in the headlight housing that way as well.
@@jefftuckercfii And doesn't rotate over time from vibration.
PS: I thought the high beam was the lower light source reflecting more light upwards off the bottom of the parabolic reflector, rather than the other way around?
Great Job!
Thanks for watching.
Is there orientation specific for the bulb so high and low are in the right place? I wanna do this with my 94 Elite.
There is can’t remember if this one was? Thanks for watching.
I need to do the same on my 2000 SV650 s
Let me know how it turns out!
Have a part number on that LED you used?
Unfortunately, I don’t. I did not buy it. It was in the parts lot that came with a cb750 I bought in pieces.
Awesome! I need to do this on my Kawasaki LTD 440. What brand LED did you use?
Honestly. It came in a bin when I bought a CB750 in pieces. 😂
Where do I find 6v LED headlight bulbs
Here is a link for a bulb that goes 6v - 24v
amzn.to/48zv9R7
Nice! I've looked at LEDs and some come with fans to cool the bulb. Are you worried about over heating?
The one he installed looked like it had a fan in the base.
@@jefftuckercfiiThanks. I didn't see that. 👍
Jeff you’re right it does have a fan.
You robbed us of the gratification of painting the rusty back of the light.
Sorry about that.
For anyone in the UK: from Jan 2023 it is now legal to fit an LED headlight bulb. The rule was back-dated to March 2021 (huh! - it's on the govt website). If you're thinking about it, I'd recommend Phillips or Osram as the Chinese stupid-name-bulbs are very suspect in the beam pattern and will fail your MoT. Currently they're bloody expensive! but I can say from experience that the light provided is somewhere around twice the output of something like an Osram Nightbreaker (which was my previous go-to bulb) and as the wattage is very low in comparison (18-25 watts for the LED vs 60 watts for any halide), it also gives any suspect charging system a fighting chance.
It is still illlegal to fit an HID bulb.
Don't do what's been suggested here. It's completely legal in the U.S. as most states don't have any annual safety test - I've lived there and I was horrified! It will get you an MoT failure because the beam pattern will be utterly wrong and on Historic Vehicle motorcycles can still get you pulled over and possibly fined.
I specialise in motorcycle electrics so I hope(!!) I know what I'm talking about.
Dai, thanks for your input. This is the first time I have used a LED for this. The other time has been Halogen. Maybe I will just stick the Halogen bulb in and avoid any hassle. Thanks again for your input.
@@motorcyclerewind Honestly; given the low output of the alternator on the Honda I'd stick with the LED and see what it looks like at night. Sealed beam cutoff patterns were never much good anyway.
I was yo try to to my 85 honda rebel 250 which uses a 35 watt bulb ,but unfortunatly i dropped the sealed beam and broke the lens bummer
Darn that stinks.
Smart ❤
Thanks for watching.
You need a different lens on there the one you have on now is going to blind everybody there's no cut off plus you're losing a lot of light for yourself you need to remove the lens and put a clear lens on there like a projector that's what I did with my bike and it works perfect
Thanks for the heads up. Do you have a source for them. Thanks for watching.