DIY LED XR650L blinkers, brake and headlight build

So I think this would work for glowing blinkers. It depends on having the individual current control at the blinker as the ones I've installed already have - which means I just might test this out if I get bored at work again. Haha. There's a diode to keep this circuit from filtering back into the rest of the bike, and two more to keep the blinkers from cross-feeding into each other. Theoretically, this should allow all four blinkers to glow at the same brightness as the taillight whenever the headlight circuit is on. When you activate a turn signal, that side then receives full power through the normal system, and blinks normally. I believe that the opposite side will remain glowing.

If used with the LED blinker setup I've used here, I think you'd want more heatsinking on the LED's, because the little corner bracket might not cut it for continuous operation, even at reduced power. I'm perfectly happy with the amount of heatsink given that as blinkers, they seem to only be on at about a 30% duty cycle, and that only when I'm turning a corner or changing lanes.

If this works with LED's, it should also work with normal bulbs, though the resistor would have to be adjusted to allow more current, as the 50mA current this is set at would not do a whole lot for regular bulbs, I don't think, and you'd probably want to heatsink the MOSFET as a precaution. Keep in mind each set of bulbs will get whatever current it's set at since they're configured in parallel.

I just stumbled across this thread. Really clever and well thought out stuff PNG-A-G. You'd be a force to reckon with in the DS conversion business. Looks like you are quite a few years ahead of the competition already. Well done!

Thanks Kamala. From previous discussions, I know you're just down the street - literally. We really should meet up at some point before I head across the pond. I'm really happy with how the blinkers and brake are performing. I've noticed that cars stop just a little further back at lights, which is good enough for me. Those LED's are frickin' annoyingly bright from straight behind. Which is exactly what I was going for, of course. Instant response, longer life, and lower power draw are just bonus points. A living biker is a happy biker.

I need to attach a heat sink to my regulator/rectifier on my '89 Honda VTR250 (Honda did not provide a heat sink enclosure for some reason). I've seen owners use thermal paste between the two but you still need to keep the heat sink fastened to the reg./rec. (using zip-ties). You mentioned thermal epoxy when you bonded the LEDs to the heat sink (for the tail light).

Could you tell me what thermal epoxy you used and where you sourced it? Thanks.

Arctic Silver Alumina Thermal Adhesive
I got it from newegg.

Thanks!

hey everyone so i just put led lights for my blinkers and they worked great....... UNTIL i put the last LED in and now all 4 flashers flash. what is causing this and does anyone know how i can fix it???? thanks.

I see Mr. Spud over on the XRL thread answered your question. If anyone else comes here looking for that answer, turns out the light bulb indicator on the "dash" of the XR650L creates a short circuit between left and right, causing all four blinkers to go when you initially install LED flashers.

I've got my indicator bulb out for this reason, but you can also wire diodes in line to remedy the situation if you need the dash indicator. I find that I see my blinkers reflecting off everything, so don't really need the dash anyway.

Though, this did just give me an idea that I could wire a switch to have hazards...

The blinkers and brake light have been on the bike for a year+ now, and just wanted to report that they're performing flawlessly. If I were to do it again, the only change I would make would be to use two parallel strings of 5 LED's for the brake instead of 6. The cost would be lower, and the light output actually higher because of the power draw.

I had my first failure with one of the blinkers this week. Pretty minor, but wanted to share anyway. I don't know exactly how many miles since I started using them, but 2 years anyway. The red circle shows which solder joint failed. If I were making these today, to reduce a failure point, I would use a spade lug or similar under the screw to make the connection instead. I resoldered the joint and it's working great again.

I'm looking to do something similar to add an additional tail / brake light to my Knappa top case. How many of those Avago LEDs do you think I should purchase?

like this? I'm having trouble with Droid, could only paste link in subject,

Yes, but without the turn signals. Just brake / tail.