Sunday, October 29

Queenie’s blazing rear


The new turn signals look fabulous. Initially, I desired signals fleshed against each side of the bike. Thankfully, the shop realized this wouldn’t work because my saddlebags would conceal them. Instead, we opted for the pricier stock signals. The wait is over--everything is now in place. Here’s how the lights operate: The Priority Lights are added to the turn signals and they transform the lights into running lights. Just as the headlight is always on when riding, the rear lights are now always “on.” When I apply the brakes, the turn signals are rewired to behave as additional brake lights. Exactly how this works differs by the type of wiring done. Some systems just light up, no fancy light work, like flashing, pulsating, or rotating. On my bike, the wiring is set so that the lights flash when the brakes are applied. If I hold the brake, the flashing eventually stops and the glow remains static. A tap on the brakes will reactivate the dynamic flashing mode. Mind you, this is beyond a simple flash. It’s a bright (LED) blinking that seems to say, “Back away from the bike buster!” I realize that clueless drivers still might claim not to see me, but I have an increased sense of safety knowing that I’ve maximized rear end conspicuity.

Didn’t think to take a short video of the bike in its flashing mode and share that—perhaps later.



Now for the luxurious bar end mirrors. I love them! Looking into them puts my head and glance at a more natural angle than the original mirrors, which required a distinct head movement that had me looking up and off to the side. These are snazzy and about as much chrome as I'll ever want on a bike! Notice the different mirror positions I've set. As I've said before, one of the best features is the ability to fold down the mirrors and tuck them out of sight, behind the handlebars. Hopefully, this feature will reduce the likelihood that some pea brain will walk by and pull on the mirrors just for the sport of it. Still wanting some way to rig the bike up with electricity for just such people.