Signal Light reflectors

[ViperRon]

The reflectors in my square signal lights have gotten to the point where the reflective material is basically gone. This is not a part you can buy but does provides a gain in lighting when it works right. I really do not want to go the route of led lighting as many seem to have other issues as soon as they start down that path.

I have been thinking of getting some mirror film that adheres and is resistant to heat. I had tried paint but all I have tried that reflect well go bad in a short time from light and heat anyone done anything with this other than chroming them?

[bikerphil]

Why not just replace the whole housing unit and lens with a new aftermarket, plenty available from many different sources online. They are exact replica of the square XS11 style.

[crazy steve]

Ahhh, but none of them are 'exact' reproductions. Some of the current repos I've bought don't even have the internal reflector, although the casting is more-or-less the same. The fit-and-finish on most of them leaves something to be desired too...

Those reflectors are just thin stamped aluminum (at least all of mine are) and could be repolished (although the original 'polish' isn't that good either). If you try this, I'd suggest removing all the internal parts from the housing except for the reflector and use the housing for a 'holder' because of the flimsy construction of these. A 3" cotton buff on a die grinder would probably work the best.

Several other options you could try; blast all the corrosion off your originals then paint them white. Delete them and paint the inside of the housing white (high heat header flat white works best). This will change the 'color' of the signals some, making them looker lighter. Or you could fabricate new ones out of sheet aluminum, which would be more of a fiddlin' type job than hard.

[ViperRon]

All good suggestions Steve, mine are the Amber that are set up as running lights and signals so light burns all the time and are close to the reflector. I have tried the gloss white and it turns brown after about a year. The chrome and silver paint turn a dusty gray and if I polish them up nice and spray clear they dull to gray and no reflectivity. I polished them nice and bright and left them plain and they just rusted must be a level of tin in them.

[crazy steve]

The high heat white paint is probably the easiest option....

[bikerphil]

Thanks for clearing that up Steve, I didn't realize the aftermarket units were that shoddy.

[crazy steve]

Phil, they're not really terrible; if you don't have good OEM units, these are much better than nothing. I bought some NOS 'branded' repo units (can't recall the brand) that were sold in the 80s as replacements that aren't too bad, but most of the rest have issues. Missing reflectors, no lens gaskets are common issues, but the biggy is the stem hole is only cast, not machined like the OEM units so fit on the stems is poor. They have a reputation for breaking at the stem because of this. The fix is careful work with a die grinder inside the hole so they don't have the as-supplied taper in the hole, but it can be finicky to get a decent fit. The housings/lenses aren't quite the same size/fit either, so interchange fit between the repos and OEM isn't so hot. Cheap sockets and wiring too. The upside is all that I've bought have nice chrome on them... LOL. I think the main problem is somebody made their own molds for these 'back in the day' that were pretty decent to start out with, but the molds have changed hands and become worn, or there's been copies of the copies built and the tolerance stack is starting add up...

So you can't just pull them out of the packaging and install them, they really need to be 'finessed' some before use...

[jwhughes3]

Could you not take the new "guts" of a repro unit and install it in place of the old reflector?

John

[ViperRon]

The issue as stated by Steve is the Reproduction units are made differently and some have no reflector so they give off less light than the originals. And ones I bought and returned 3 years ago would have needed a bit of modifying just to fit and were flimsy plastic that I am sure would break the first dump over or bump. Now if you could see what you are buying well maybe you could swap parts but its put together and you can not see till you buy one. You can also get one in better shape maybe from Andreas. I am going to try a heat resistant reflective coating and see if it will hold up and let everyone know.
My main thought is getting more light from the signal lights is important for safety and on these bikes you have to do a bit of changing to put in bright LED lights.

[TopCatGr58]

Hey Ron,

I haven't tried it, but "tin" foil or what it really is...Aluminum is quite heat resistant, and has both a dull and shiny side! I know it can krinkle so you might need to cut it into narrower strips to line the inside of the reflector chamber without having it krinkle up as much. You would probably need to use some RTV to secure it....think hot glue wouldn't hold up to the bulb heat.

JAT!...Ooooh, another thought, that shiney aluminum DUCT TAPE, I think it can work in heat as well as cold. Good luck!

T.C.

[crazy steve]

JAT!...Ooooh, another thought, that shiney aluminum DUCT TAPE, I think it can work in heat as well as cold. Good luck!

T.C.

Great idea!