Right Hand Headlight Socket melted from those pretty bright bulbs

[majicmaker]

I was replacing the headlights and noticed that the right hand socket is melted. Stealer said it's an assembly at $600+ for a new harness. He told me clip the wires and bring it in and maybe they can find me one that'll fit.

I'm throwing this out to the collective just to see if anyone in the same situation has found one that works on this bike. I am NOT an electrician but, I have spliced many, many wires successfully. Please chime in with your experiences.

TIA.

 

[Ignacio]

The socket as in where the bulb physically resides or the wiring part that attaches to and powers the bulb? If the latter....< $5.00 from an autoparts store with a new connector if it melted there. If it melted the wiring harness at some other place....more research and then replace that portion.

 

[RossKean]

https://www.fjrforum.com/forum//index.php/topic/164471-toasted-headlight-socket/?hl=%2B%2Bheadlight+%2B%2Bsocket

Just the connector. No problem with the bucket or harness (other than the socket). Cheap replacement from auto parts store.

 

[majicmaker]

The connector with the three wires.

The socket as in where the bulb physically resides or the wiring part that attaches to and powers the bulb? If the latter....< $5.00 from an autoparts store with a new connector if it melted there. If it melted the wiring harness at some other place....more research and then replace that portion.

The connector with the three wires providing the power.

 

[majicmaker]

https://www.fjrforum.com/forum//index.php/topic/164471-toasted-headlight-socket/?hl=%2B%2Bheadlight+%2B%2Bsocket
Just the connector. No problem with the bucket or harness (other than the socket). Cheap replacement from auto parts store.

Thanks, Ross. That looks like something I can do. I'll spend tomorrow morning finding one.

 

[erixun]

Just curious, what bulbs were you using? I was going to change out my headlights to something a bit better than stock, but was worried about something like this so I ended up putting on aftermarket LED's by my mirrors.

 

[majicmaker]

They were 55/65 watt xenon bulbs. Super bright but, it looks like our connectors can't handle the heat. I'm going back to OEM.

 

[PhilJet09]

Good grief Vic, I hope this is the last of your electrical problems.

 

[Mr_Canoehead]

They were 55/65 watt xenon bulbs. Super bright but, it looks like our connectors can't handle the heat. I'm going back to OEM.

55w is 55w. Whether it is a superbright or an OEM bulb, the heat produced will be the same. I could see heat being an issue if you had a 100w bulb in there. I think that the Yamaha wiring is generally undersized (or at best barely adequate) for the loads. It could be that some corrosion in there caused the circuit to overheat (similar to the ground spider issue).

You might want to get an Eastern Beaver relay kit to take care of the load. Definitely check the other side connector for signs of failure.

 

[majicmaker]

Good grief Vic, I hope this is the last of your electrical problems.

I Know, Right? Just got home from procuring everything I need to put a new one in. RossKean enlightened me with a brief conversation and his killer thread about when it happened to him. I Got This!!

 

[majicmaker]

They were 55/65 watt xenon bulbs. Super bright but, it looks like our connectors can't handle the heat. I'm going back to OEM.

55w is 55w. Whether it is a superbright or an OEM bulb, the heat produced will be the same. I could see heat being an issue if you had a 100w bulb in there. I think that the Yamaha wiring is generally undersized (or at best barely adequate) for the loads. It could be that some corrosion in there caused the circuit to overheat (similar to the ground spider issue).

You might want to get an Eastern Beaver relay kit to take care of the load. Definitely check the other side connector for signs of failure.

I had my spare bulbs in an old container, Mt Conoehead. That wasn't the package that the super brights came in. I forgot the manufacturer but, the bulb in question was putting out 5,000 lumens. that I remember.

 

[ionbeam]

Watts and lumens are not necessarily directly connected.

Majic may have had bulbs that ran hotter to produce more light with the same 55 watts and probably got reduced bulb life for the effort.

You can run 55 watts through a #8 wire and get no lumens at all and you can run 55 watts through a #38 wire and get lots of lumens (for a very, very short time). Then you can encase a #38 wire made of unobtanium encased in a glass envelope filled with an exotic gas which prevents the filament from burning (rapidly oxidizing) and get both more lumens and more heat.

Then again, as was previously mentioned, it may have just been a poor electrical connection between the bulb's pins and the socket. I'd blame this before blaming a higher output bulb.

 

[Fred W]

They were 55/65 watt xenon bulbs. Super bright but, it looks like our connectors can't handle the heat. I'm going back to OEM.

55w is 55w. Whether it is a superbright or an OEM bulb, the heat produced will be the same.

Not necessarily. Both 55W bulbs will draw 55 watts of power, for sure. But what it does with that electrical power can vary by design. The power consumed will create both light energy and heat. It's possible that these superbright bulbs actually are just a different color of light, and not any more light power, in which case they could be running hotter.

I see that ionbeam has just said about the same thing. I agree the most likely thing was just a corroded electrical connection that heated up the plastic connector. They can't take all that much heat.

 

[mcatrophy]

NEPRT material. A 55 watt conventional lamp will put out more heat than a super-bright 55 watt lamp because the latter converts more of the electrical energy to light, less to heat.

However, the filament runs hotter, so possibly conducts more of its heat to the connector.

IMHO, it's all to do with corrosion on the pin(s) of the lamp or the socket(s) they plug in to. As indicated above, this leads to a vicious circle of corrosion causing (relatively) high resistance causing raised connector temperature causing more corrosion.

Nothing to do with wire gauge, or all our bikes would be afflicted.

 

[eflyguy]

IMHO, it's all to do with corrosion on the pin(s) of the lamp or the socket(s) they plug in to. As indicated above, this leads to a vicious circle of corrosion causing (relatively) high resistance causing raised connector temperature causing more corrosion.

This - corrosion causes heat at the connector, which is why it melted. It's not the bulb.

 

[LKLD]

Helping with photo:

 

[majicmaker]

My soldering skills from A&P school kicked in. That's for the help, RossKean.

 

[majicmaker]

Wow! I just read all your helpful posts. Corrosion could've been the problem but, I didn't see any through the melted plastic. I'll keep an eye on it. I'll water proof the hell out of the connection now. Thanks!

 

[N4HHE]

Don't have any other to compare but ride with another FJR whose lights are so bright during the day that I can't see his turn signals. He insists he is on low beams. But is mute about the bulbs.