Modern Buddy

Hi -

Got a new headlamp and also, what the heck, figured I'd change all the bulbs, so I got the 1156A ST Silverstars for the DOT blinkers- what a difference! I then put another set in for the taillights...... much brighter. I then moved onto my scoot and saw that there were different bulbs in the front DOT blinkers- smaller ones. They're stamped on the side 12v 10 watt....

Shouldn't the blinkers, both front and back, be the 1156 bulbs- 12v 21 watt? Just checking, don't want to use the wrong bulbs....

-Danny

they are the same.

Thanks Kurzer..... I wonder why the smaller bulbs? And it was funny, 'cuz I took the bulbs off my scoot, but changed them on my wife's first, so thinking they were smaller bulbs in the front, I only bought 4 bulbs instead of 8. Oh well- safety and visibility is worth the price....

I left the old ones on my scoot so my wife could see the difference before I told her how much the bulbs cost.....

The DOT require a larger bulb, they have a "rate" which they want the blinkers to blink to be legal. With larger bulbs as the DOT signals, they pull more current and slow the rate down to what they want it to be. The original OEM signals front and back use smaller ones, less current, so it blinks much faster.

what jfrost2 said... standard bulbs will blink much slower and LED bulbs will blink so fast they are just contantly on, I tried it already The smaller size has me dumbfounded also, maybe it's just what was left in the parts bin and they ran with it? Either way, any 1156 should work as long as it fits inside the housing.

Thanks guys!! One more question- hopefully you check this thread again......

When I pull the front end off to change the headlight and rewire the deadlights to the DOT blinkers, can I change the small OEM deadlight bulbs? I figure while I'm in there I could do it, but what size are those bulbs and are there aftermarket silverstar like bulbs that fit (ie- brighter...)

Thanks!

Same bulbs that fit the DOT signals will fit the OEM, same plug, just a more powerful bulb in the DOTS.

Flash rate has more to do with the flasher relay than the ammount the actual bulb draws. The reason LEDs won't blink is the realy is supposed to stop blinking if it thinks a light bulb is out, and the ammount of current an LED draws tricks the relay into thinking you have a bulb out. That's why you can either add a resistor inline with the LED to create the same draw or replce the relay with one that doesn't care about the ammount of draw on it. I have LEDs front and rear on my Rattler... learned out of necessity.

So the back of the bike blinkers use the 1156a or 1157 or 1156?

From what I understand, by DOT, you mean on the handlebars? And they use the same 11XX bulbs as the back

An 1157 has a running light feature and a "on" feature. An 1156 just has the on feature. They both fit in the same light socket.

Nissanman- Are you saying the 1157 will fit and stay on all the time, dim, and then blink bright when activated? Is that draw too much to have 6 bulbs (DOT front and back and deadlights) on all the time? Thanks. -Danny

Any idea on how much I can expect to pay for a Silverstar 1156 bulb for the blinkers?

about 11 bucks plus or minus depending on location.

Bruce-

$11.99 for 2 of them packaged together,at Autozone

Hi,

I just bought a 2008 Buddy 125 and the service tech told me not to allow the turn signal to stay on after completing a turn, it will drain the battery even while the motor is running. He states that the charging system of the Buddy is weak and cannot take the turn signals being left on. Therefore, any configuration that causes the turn signals and or OEM lights to stay on may drain your battery. FYI. Also, the mounting pins of the front bulbs is different from the rear bulbs, as well as the wattage. The front are offset by 30 degrees and are 21w while the rear lay in a straight line or 180 degrees and are 10w.