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'FLASH'! New signals on my GS

KEITH KRAUSE

Forum Guru
Past Site Supporter
TGSR Superstar
Charter Member
I restored my '79GS1000EN. Have done a few appearance changes and I never cared for huge sig's. Finally found some I like. From White Bros., called aluminum mini-stalk lights, P/N 51-196,$20/pair,1 left,1 rt per pkg,w/amber lens,23watt,sgl filament.(dual avail.) Not DOT approved 'cause the lens face is not large enough? But they are easily visible night/day,I would'nt install 'em or recommend 'em if they were dim. And I can't believe police would stop anyone. Check my w/page, you can see 'em. Anyway, Lockhart Phillips apparently makes same unit and may be easier to find, in addition, they offer clear and smoked lenses. I can't vouch for visibility of smoked. Both Co's are on web. The finish is 'brushed aluminum' and they ARE aluminum not plastic. I used 'oo fine' steel wool to easily strip clearcoat off and then used semi-chrome to buff up to match my other polish work.(about 20 min. ea). If interested, I'll describe an easy way to make a factory looking installation. I make it sound kinda spread-out but it's basically... Get can of paint,primer,4 washers, approx. 3''x3''x3/8''sheet rubber,or find thinner sheet to 'double-layer', as long as it's equals 3/8''or a bit less, about 4''x4''sheet of this, a sharp blade and some red male&female connectors, (Radio-Shack)and crimper and drill/ dr-bits or small rat-tail file. You then modify washers,pri/paint,make your rubber grommets, slip everything on and wire up. The following applies to '78,'79 1000's but I believe many other GS with similar 'ears' apply. The new signals stalk is smaller in dia. and won't cover square hole in exist' grommet (that you leave in). And you must make your own grommet 'fillers' or lights may loosen/rotate with vibration. The edges of exist' groms' may be flaking, but as long as grom' is still together it will be fine, maybe buy new? If working w/3/8'' rubber,drill 4 holes the size of new threaded stem, space them to allow you to cut approx' 3/4'' squares around these holes,(measure the square holes in groms' on bike first), if working thinner rubber,make 8 groms,try to make no more than 3/8'' total thickness so everything will 'sandwich' down. You now have 4 to 8 square groms' that should fit nicely into squares on bike with a hole big enough for threaded stem to pass. Now get 4 flatwashers roughly 1 1/8 outer dia. Try to get with hole big enough for threaded stem but not much bigger. If smaller than stem then ream out w/file or secure and drill. These will be used as the 'back' washers,the ones you won't see. The 'front' washers will be the ones that came off back of your groms', they cover outside of grom' exactly, this way you don't have to shop for 'exact' outer size washers. You will have to ream hole larger to fit stem. Clean/pri/paint washers to match your bike. You should do washers a couple days in advance to allow to dry. Spray enamels take a good 30-45 days to cure, some say you can cure in oven,400*,1hr. hung on a hook but if careful in assembly they'll be 'ok'. Make sure everything fits right so you don't have to fight with it. Put 'filler' groms' into square holes, place 'front' washer on signal, slip wires thru groms', slip 'back'washer/lockwas'/nut up wires, hold all 3 w/holes aligned up against rear of grom', feed in stem and snug up all. Hold signal steady so it won't rotate and cut up fresh paint and tighten, not TOO tight, bad for rubber. Wiring for front sig's,you cut off male ends(too small)and put on red males.New signal wires are bit smaller so you can 'double over' before placing into connectors. Black wire hot, Black w/white stripe ground. Route to headlight housing,plug in. Rear wiring ,again ,cut/replace males on new,'doubling up'wire. Now if you want to access females they're probably under tailpiece and can be more work. If you do, just plug in. If no access, then cut wires on bike long as possible,put on red females,Black to Black.. hide excess under tail. By the way, put some protective spray on rubber groms' before assembly to help last. Now stand back and admire! My wife said they make bike look much cleaner/sleeker, but her first words were 'It looks like it got a haircut'!????? Hope this was worth your time. KK.
Here's a shot of what they look like.

site1038.jpg
 
Bumping this up before it slips into oblivion.
Also added a pic' to show those interested in these. Funny reading your own writing 3 years later. I left it alone mostly. :roll:
 
Thank you very much for bumping this one back up. I really like the look of those signals!
 
...and knowing Keith's handiwork I'll bet they STILL look better than when they came out of the box! :lol: :wink:

So when are you going to come up to Chicagoland and "gussy up" our bikes? There's dinner and drink in it for you!! :lol: :lol: :lol: :wink:

Looks good as always, Keith!

Regards,
Steve 8)
 
Planecrazy said:
...and knowing Keith's handiwork I'll bet they STILL look better than when they came out of the box! :lol: :wink:

So when are you going to come up to Chicagoland and "gussy up" our bikes? There's dinner and drink in it for you!! :lol: :lol: :lol: :wink:

Looks good as always, Keith!

Regards,
Steve 8)
Before I bought 'em I could see through the package and tell they weren't shiny enough to match the other parts. They call it "brushed aluminum".
But I knew they'd shine up well with a buffer and unlike the black plastic will look good forever.
You'll have to make a better offer to visit Chicagoland. I've got dinner and a drink about to be delivered. :)
 
KEITH KRAUSE said:
Planecrazy said:
...and knowing Keith's handiwork I'll bet they STILL look better than when they came out of the box! :lol: :wink:

So when are you going to come up to Chicagoland and "gussy up" our bikes? There's dinner and drink in it for you!! :lol: :lol: :lol: :wink:

Looks good as always, Keith!

Regards,
Steve 8)
Before I bought 'em I could see through the package and tell they weren't shiny enough to match the other parts. They call it "brushed aluminum".
But I knew they'd shine up well with a buffer and unlike the black plastic will look good forever.
You'll have to make a better offer to visit Chicagoland. I've got dinner and a drink about to be delivered. :)

Keith, that's dinner and a drink at EACH location (there are a bunch of us hoping to benefit from the Keith Krause magic, after all)!! :lol: :wink:

Steve 8)
 
Thanks for the info Keith. I have been looking for replacements for my original degraded signals and like the look of these. Think I'll try them. Ray
 
just what the doc ordered

just what the doc ordered

With all the different styles out there I still couldn't find a set I liked but that problem has just been solved! Bought a cheap pair of fake carbon fibre lights just to get by till I found a decent set ,never even hooked them up. Will be ordering a set tonight.
 
Glad to help. I just want to emphasize in my post that Lockhart Phillips makes the identical aluminum mini-stalk. I mention this because the LP seem to be easier to find and they come in a variety of lens choices (smoked/clear/amber) where as the White Bros. offered only amber as of 3 years ago when I made this topic.
PS: I personally don't think the smoked lens is bright enough ON ANY mini-signal.
 
I'm so glad you bumped this thread. it's exactly what I was looking for when I saw your bike last month.

ordering tonight.

Oh, and I'm sponsored by LP.

-K
 
outofcontrol said:
I'm so glad you bumped this thread. it's exactly what I was looking for when I saw your bike last month.

ordering tonight.

Oh, and I'm sponsored by LP.

-K
Glad to help. :) They look good on your model 1100. Seen em'.
 
Just bumping this up because of the recent signal discussions. Easier than trying to remember how to post a pic'.:oops:
 
Hey Keith, I put these same signals on my 550, but I got the ones with the smoke colored lenses and there is no way I could polish anything as good as you, so I left the finish they came with which isn't bad at all. These were a direct bolt-on, just a little wire soldering required and you can use the same flasher relay. You can sort of see them in THESE pictures.
 
Keith,
Did I miss it being discussed already? What if anything have you done with the rear signals?
 
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