Equipping your Café Racer with LED headlights: Why? How much does it cost ?

The idea of ​​combining LED technology and Café racer may, at first glance, seem incongruous. However, equipping your retro motorcycle with new generation lighting instead of a classic headlight is far from incompatible, quite the contrary.

In the 1960s, the objective was to transform motorcycles to increase their power and give them a personal aesthetic touch in order to differentiate them from production models. In fact, improving performance by installing lighting that is both ultra-efficient and less energy-consuming fits perfectly into the logic of a vintage motorcycle. This is why Blackpines invites you to discover the advantages of equipping a Café racer with Full LED optics .

LED technology at the service of vintage

The aesthetics of the headlight is an important criterion in the realization of a Café racer. It clearly underlines the character of the motorcycle. The "look" of a Café racer accentuates its identity and must, moreover, be efficient .

A vintage motorcycle headlight on a retro motorcycle , it goes without saying. But when it comes to lighting, we are all in a good position to admit that its effectiveness remains really limited. A lighting quite insufficient compared to what the technological advances at our disposal offer today. It does not allow you to benefit from the security offered by modern optics.

LED technology brings a much better visibility , it is undeniable. Equipping your Café racer with full LED optics or even dual LED optics means enjoying bright lighting, while being seen more quickly by other users, without dazzling them.

Rest assured, in terms of appearance, the many existing models provide as many opportunities to assert the character of your Café racer. You will thus find in our shop optics of different aspects (if you want a reference not present in our catalog, we undertake to find it for you as soon as possible).

Motorcycle LED headlights: what sizes are available?

The majority of motorcycle manufacturers mainly use two sizes: 5”75 and 7”. These are the standard dimensions for custom motorcycle headlights.

For example, the Sportster range of Harley Davidson uses 5”75 optics and the replacement is done in the simplest way in the world in the casing of the original headlight: 2 screws, a socket and you're done!

And for the 7”, fitted to most brands ( Royal Enfield , Honda, Suzuki, Triumph, etc.), it will be no different. Screws (or staples depending on the model), a single socket to plug in and all you have to do is enjoy the excellence of your new lighting.

Changing the original headlight with LED optics will not pose any difficulties for you, whatever your level of handyman. Simply measure the optical part of your headlight to know its diameter (5”75 = 14.6 cm & 7” = 17.78 cm).

Installation video of the HIGHSIDER Typ8 optics: (in German but self-explanatory)

Namely : it may happen that you are brought, or that you wish to modify the original casing. In this case, you will easily find different models of universal casings in these two diameters, very simple to install.

Forget the notion of watt to choose your LED lighting. What prevails now is the lumen (lm), the unit of measurement of luminous flux. The higher the lumen value, the more intense the light generated .

Why equip your neo-retro motorcycle with LED lighting?

Riding at night with traditional halogen lighting for most motorcycles is far from a panacea. This is all the more true on the national ones and we are not talking about the adventures offered by the departmental ones. For lovers of night walks on a scrambler , off the roads therefore, the full led optics will quickly prove to be an essential accessory.

A Café racer, in most cases, is basically a motorcycle of a certain age which, in fact, has a somewhat low view. As a result, old-fashioned lighting, if it brings a certain charm to a photo, it very quickly becomes a little less fun at 2 a.m. on the road to the Ballons d'Alsace crests! ( Note Blackpines: a trip worth the detour! )

Namely : unlike conventional or halogen bulbs, LEDs emit very little heat . So, if you replace the bulb with an LED, you may face humidity problems. This will not be the case with LED optics, which are perfectly sealed (IP 67, IP 68).

Today, LED motorcycle headlights are essential on new generations of motorcycles, so why deprive yourself of them? The LED optics for Café racer offer exceptional luminosity while preserving the vintage spirit. You can check it through our selection of full led headlights . Chrome or black, number and layout of the cells, so many opportunities to add a personalized touch without harming the appearance of the motorcycle and on the contrary asserting its neo-retro look.

You will see better, and the multiplicity of the light source (diodes) will consequently reduce the glare of other users. Let's take a closer look at the different advantages of motorcycle led lights :

The advantages of LED optics for motorcycles

LEDs (Light Emitting Diod) emit daytime (white) light that is more suitable for the human eye than other lighting systems. An LED bulb is made up of one or more diodes . The higher their number, the stronger the light intensity .

In comparison with halogen, in addition to low energy consumption, the light from a motorcycle led headlight is brighter and has better distribution. Here are the different advantages of LED lighting:

• it consumes little energy and thus preserves the electrical circuit of the motorcycle;
• its operating time is equivalent to that of the motorcycle ( you will not come to the end of it! );
• its ignition is immediate;
• its lighting is vastly superior to conventional or halogen bulbs;
• it offers natural light, shades of color equivalent to daytime lighting, for better visibility;
• it does not dazzle other users;
• its light beam is stable;
• it generates less flickering effects;
• it provides access to color LEDs;
• it is resistant to shocks and vibrations ( perfect for a scrambler );
• it does not emit ultraviolet or infrared rays.

Other interesting features are offered depending on the model:

led optical motorcycle headlight with integrated indicators

directional motorcycle headlight 

Good to know : LED bulbs are guaranteed mercury-free and lead-free.

Which full LED optical headlight to choose, at what price?

Even if it means improving the lighting of your Café racer, switching to LED will completely change the situation, it's obvious: you won't regret it .

The question arises whether simply replacing your lamp with an LED bulb will suffice. If the dimensions of your headlight allow it and if it is waterproof , this remains a solution that will provide an undeniable advantage to your visibility, but without however achieving the performance of Full LED optics .

As a reminder, the solidity of this lighting makes it ideal equipment for a motorcycle mixing road and off-road such as a scrambler .

With the same rigor that we bring to the selection of all our products, we take care to offer you products accessible to all budgets.

From 5”75 or 7” diameter optics starting at €49.90 up to the Koso Thunderbolt LED headlight at €299 , each of the headlights in our catalog offers a different design, functions, layouts and number of cells. different to better satisfy you. As a reminder, if you are looking for a specific model, simply send us your request via our contact form. We will respond as soon as possible.

For further

If you want to learn more about the kelvin and lumens:

The color of light: the Kelvin

A concept to know when talking about LED lighting is the kelvin (K), the unit of thermodynamic temperature . For information: 0 K = -273.15°C, i.e. absolute zero. Absolute zero being the thermodynamic temperature equivalent of the limit represented by the speed of light for a physical system.

The kelvin measures the heat given off by light, which can be distributed as follows:

• warm white: between 1000K and 3500K;
• neutral white: between 3,500 K and 5,000 K;
• cool white (daylight): 5000K and above.

Good to know : LED optics with a capacity of 5000 K to 6000 K will be amply satisfactory to ensure optimal visibility.

Light output: lumen versus watt

It can be complicated to choose the best LED lighting for the use of your motorcycle. As mentioned above, we forget the watt and we are now talking here about lumen . It is no longer a question of referring to the power of the bulb but to the intensity of the luminous flux .

For example, a 20 Watt LED lamp generates a luminous flux (lumen) of 2000 lm; a 100 W LED lamp equals 10,000 lm.

Example of watt / lumen correspondence:

LED bulb power (Watt)	LED bulb luminous flux (lumen)	Incandescent bulb (Watt)
20w	2000lm	150w

To obtain a luminous flux of around 2,000 lm, an LED bulb consumes 20 W, which is the equivalent of a conventional 150 W bulb.

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