By Pop Rivet from Austin, TX on 08/07/2008
Pros: - Solid Construction, great components
- Excellent instructions, no ambiguity about wiring
- Small and easy to find mounting
- Easy to turn off/on and change modes
- Big increase in visibility
- Minimal tools required
Cons: - It would be a buzzkill to wire this thing wrong, even with good instructions and a clear diagram, you HAVE to be clear about your bike's wiring.
- Some of the connectors are crimp on. These work great if properly done, but can slip right out if poorly crimped. Soldering is an option, but not for everyone. Care must be taken to crimp effectively.
- The unit has an adhesive pad which is supposed to be permanent. I didn't trust it and wasn't positive that I would want my first mounting permanent, so I used zip ties instead.
I'm riding a 1995 KLR-250 for a street commute after years of not riding at all. In the years since I last rode, cell phones have now become part of the driving experience. As a result, I've decided to do everything possible to increase my visibility. After reading up on the topic of headlight modulators, I took the plunge. The Signal Dynamics modulator got good reviews and was priced right.
Installation was very straightforward. Access to the high and low beam hot-wires, one of the horn wires and a good ground are required. The clips are two piece; one goes on your wire and provides a clip-on female spade socket, the other piece is a crimp-on male spade piece. Crimping can be more frustrating than folks might imagine if they haven't done it before, be careful to really capture the wires with the metal and preferably fold some wire back over the crimp as you slide the shield over the spade.
With due caution, the entire installation took about 30 minutes. It could go quicker, but I triple checked all my wiring against the shop manual for my bike. Be VERY confident that you are selecting the correct wires. The unit will install two of the female connectors side by side on your wire and you will cut in-between them (this inserts the modulator unit electrically in the circuit.) Measure twice, cut once.
There are more modes than I'd expected (two blink rates and a special horn blink combo as well as no blink,) but the horn button and the high/low beam switch handle all the variations. Once I was sitting on the bike, switching between the options was intuitive. There is a small photocell to mount somewhere on the bike that disables the unit at night (or even dusk as it turns out for me,) per legal requirements. This cell is in a threaded tube that you can drill somewhere to mount (I found a good place to wedge it for now, they recommend trying different locations to get the best effect.)
From the standpoint of conspicuity, I'm very happy. The headlight (my new PIAA Super Plasma GT-X) flashes enough that it catches the eye. Human vision responds to changes (motion, flicker, etc.) even more than pattern. Blinking lights catch people's eye. What I really wanted was something to give me a bit more edge when approaching intersections, to keep from getting creamed by some inattentive driver on a cell phone. Obviously this unit cannot assure that, but it ups the odds on my side. All in all I'm very happy with the investment.
As a side note, I have driven past 4 police cruisers since I installed the modulator and none have stopped me. I wear a lot a armor, so it's clear I'm going for max protection, but even though the manufacturer provides a copy of the letter detailing the legality in all 50 states, local ordinances or the attitude of individual law enforcement officials may vary.
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