New Baja Designs Squadron LED Motorcycle Light

[traveltoad]

Tell the truth... you were drinking when you took that video!

[Yellow Pig]

How about some pictures of the back side of the light and of how they mount to the bike.

Thanks

[Baja Trent]

Here is an image of the backside of the Squadron Motorcycle light.

[traveltoad]

I can't wait...

[MJS]

Got any photometric charts on this light? I'd be real interested in one to replace the stocker on my Husky 310. I'm just not convinced that the LED is equal to an 8" race light.

Lots of LED light manufacturers claim high lumen output but lumens don't tell the whole story. Lumens are only a measure of the total brightness of a lamp or emitter. They do not tell us anything about beam shape or distribution of the light out of the fixture. The light could be coming out the back of the fixture and the lumens would still count . And cameras tend to auto adjust to the available light level so I'm not convinced by a picture either. Pictures looking into a light are even worse (as lots of LED vendors seem to do). Call me skeptical. I would love to see light manufacturers include candlepower distribution curves or something along the lines of ANSI E9.1 so we could make some comparisons between fixtures of all types.

I know LEDs are getting better and better every day. I deal with lighting manufacturers in the architectural and entertainment business. They are all trying to develop a LED spotlight that has good throw distance and has a controlled beam pattern. Wash lights (wide flood pattern) are out there but not a good, usable working spot. So convince me that you have something that a company like Phillips has not yet achieved. I want to believe. And I would buy one if I was convinced.

PS, I have a lot more faith in BD than those no-name, big hype vendors.

PPS, this would be awesome with a PWM dimmer to run as a high/low setup.

Cheers,

[Baja Trent]

Originally Posted by MJS

Got any photometric charts on this light? I'd be real interested in one to replace the stocker on my Husky 310. I'm just not convinced that the LED is equal to an 8" race light.

Lots of LED light manufacturers claim high lumen output but lumens don't tell the whole story. Lumens are only a measure of the total brightness of a lamp or emitter. They do not tell us anything about beam shape or distribution of the light out of the fixture. The light could be coming out the back of the fixture and the lumens would still count . And cameras tend to auto adjust to the available light level so I'm not convinced by a picture either. Pictures looking into a light are even worse (as lots of LED vendors seem to do). Call me skeptical. I would love to see light manufacturers include candlepower distribution curves or something along the lines of ANSI E9.1 so we could make some comparisons between fixtures of all types.

I know LEDs are getting better and better every day. I deal with lighting manufacturers in the architectural and entertainment business. They are all trying to develop a LED spotlight that has good throw distance and has a controlled beam pattern. Wash lights (wide flood pattern) are out there but not a good, usable working spot. So convince me that you have something that a company like Phillips has not yet achieved. I want to believe. And I would buy one if I was convinced.

PS, I have a lot more faith in BD than those no-name, big hype vendors.

PPS, this would be awesome with a PWM dimmer to run as a high/low setup.

Cheers,

Unfortunately we don't have any photometric charts on our Squadron motorcycle light. Tell you what though, how about I send you a complete light to test for say 25-30 days. This way you can test the light and provide us with rider feedback. If this is something you would be interested in please feel free to give me a call to discuss the details.

[islano]

+1

Bright and Dim please!

[BikePilot]

That looks like a great setup and really isn't a bad price at all for quality LEDs - compare to Rigid etc. truck lights and its very competitive.

MJS, if you'd go to a desert race you'd see a ton of good LED lights on TTs - Rigid has "spot" LED lights that throw light a really long way. I think maybe your info is old or inapplicable to motorsports lights.

[MJS]

I think maybe your info is old or inapplicable to motorsports lights

Not so much old, maybe inapplicable.

Unfortunately, LED is the new buzz word. There are many benefits to LEDs but they are not always the most efficient light source. There are many applications where the efficiency of a quartz fixture is better than that of an LED fixture. A HID fixture can be even more efficient. A large part of fixture design is making maximum use of all of the visible light coming from a lamp or emitter. That is a function of the fixture design especially the reflector and lens system (if any). There are accepted ways to measure the usable light of a fixture. No automotive light manufacturer that I know of uses or publishes the results these measurements. Closest may be Hella who generally show a chart on the beam spread and throw of their fixtures. Until manufacturers actually publish that type of data, I'm going to be skeptical of the marketing hype.

I am not picking on BD. They are probably the best off road lights out there. I talked with Trent yesterday about these lights. His feeling was that the 8" race light was still better due to the reflector and lens assembly.

The 35 watt race light is approximately the same current draw (due to the ballast) as the 44 watt LED. But the Squadron may have more appeal if you don't want to hang a big old racelight on your bike (which in this case, I don't).

Trent is going to send me a squadron to evaluate. I intend to compare it to the BD 8" HID race light and a Hella 4000 quartz along with maybe a cheap HID driving beam. Those are the fixtures I have access to. My testing will not be scientific as I do not own the proper test equipment but I will attempt to equalize it across fixtures. I intend to setup an indoor test stand where I can get a rough idea of beam pattern and fC. Then a trip to a desert road, preferably on a moonless night, for some real world comparison. And maybe some pictures using a camera with manual settings to make sure the exposure is the same for the different fixtures.

And I'd like to thank Trent for taking the time to answer my questions. BD is obviously a company that believes in their products and cares about customer satisfaction. That is worth a lot in my book.

Cheers,

[Yellow Pig]

When you get the light see if there is a way to make it passable for road use. ie tilting it down on the fly or running some tape on the lens to reduce head-on glare.

Thanks

[MKJ]

Will this light operate on an AC stator, ' 05 KTM 525 EXC, or does it need DC power to operate correctly?

[Baja Diego]

Originally Posted by MKJ

Will this light operate on an AC stator, ' 05 KTM 525 EXC, or does it need DC power to operate correctly?

it will only operate in DC power. So you will have to modify the stator on the KTM 525 EXC.

[reidinitaly]

Originally Posted by Baja Diego

it will only operate in DC power. So you will have to modify the stator on the KTM 525 EXC.

Is there any plan on producing a retroactive kit to have them mount up to stock KTM head lights (plug and play)?

[Baja Diego]

Originally Posted by reidinitaly

Is there any plan on producing a retroactive kit to have them mount up to stock KTM head lights (plug and play)?

BINGO!!! that is in the works as we type reidinitaly

[MKJ]

Originally Posted by Baja Diego

it will only operate in DC power. So you will have to modify the stator on the KTM 525 EXC.

Got it.