Good topic! good info guys!

BTW, i don't read anywhere STSACER is requesting $$ for info. am i missing something? if he is requesting $$ you can hit the thumb facing down in the corner of his post requesting $$ and the Moderators will dump him.

anyways! i think SportsmanEE made a very good point - "Things to keep in mind when using higher than stock wattage bulbs:* The headlight enclosures were validated with 27W bulbs. Higher wattage means more heat, which can lead to warping, melting and sealing issues with the headlight enclosures.* The contacts in the handlebar headlight switch are rated for 10A. Two 50W low beam bulbs put you very close to 10A during low battery conditions.
* Increased bulb wattages can cause charging system deficiencies which can lead to a dead battery, especially if you spend extended periods of time at idle. "


i might add that a set of jumper cables might be a good idea as well! LOL! (no recoil back-up!LOL)

~MT[img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-smile.gif[/img]

 

There was a thread previously started by STSACER asking for $1.00 for info on which bulbs to get. It was deleted.

 

You will not have any problems running two 55 watt lights through your stock Polaris headlight switch. I have done it for years on many different Polaris ATV's.

You are correct that you may have battery problems if you idle a lot.

That is one reason I don't run 55 watt low beam lights. The stock lower lights are just fine in tight woods at slower speeds.

Out in the open and at higher speeds I put my switch on high beam and use the two 55 watt driving lights I mounted on the front rack.

The stock upper handlebar mounted light is worthless if you carry stuff on your front rack so I just unhook it and run my aftermarket driving lights on high beam.

 

That is a very good idea!

 

Well I ended up putting a set of these on my sportsman for more light when i want it. They are actually fairly decent lights for the money. The mounting brackets are cheap but a set could be made easy enough. I liked them because they are a low profile, they dont stick out or take much space. More info here!

 

Check my Pictures to see what they look like. I Know I know dont run them all at the same time or I will kill Battery.

 

This is my first post, so please bear with me. I just purchased a new 08' Sportsman 800 in Mossy Oak which now comes with a 500W alternator. The low beams are now 37W and the single high beam is 50W. I hope to do some work clearing property (woods) at night. Do you think if I do the 3-light mod, it will drain the battery if I leave the 800 idling for extended periods using the lights to work?

Also, has anyone considered switching to HID low beam bulbs? These put out WAY MORE LIGHT, yet only have the draw of about 35W apiece. I've been looking for an HID equivalent, but have come up short thus far. I plan to pull the bulb and go to my local Advanced Auto Parts store in a couple days to see if I can find an equivalent bulb to match the GE 394 bulbs that are currently in place. If successful, I then may be able to find an HID equivalent option to produce more light with less draw than stock.

Ideas? Suggestions?

Tom
Bryson City, NC

 

Has anyone tried these??

http://www.motosportsinc.com/e...0.HEADLIGHT_BULBS.htm


John

 

Polaris makes an upgraded bulbs for the newer style Sportsman and Rangers. Its part number P2876464, 98% Xenon gas, 12v, 50 w. They work in my 2006 for both the pod and the low beams and they are bright!I paid $26.00 for a set of 2 of them. Hope that this helps anyone wanting to upgrade.

 

I went to my local Advanced Auto Parts store last night with a low beam headlight bulb from the 08' Sportsman. My bad, it isn't a GE 394 bulb, but an 894 bulb. They carry Sylvania 894 bulbs in stock for $7.88. This is a direct replacement. I looked them over and they are identical.

Can't find an HID equivalent yet, may have to figure this out some more. I looked at those Pure Polaris bulbs at the link above ... it looks as though they are rated for 50W which should improve the light output, but I am disappointed at the blue coating they have on the bulbs. This gives them a whiter light, yet decreases the actual lumens from the light which minimizes the advantage of a brighter 50W bulb over the stock 37.5W bulbs. For someone who is very "watt" conscious, I would look for a 50W bulb WITHOUT the blue coating to extract every watt from the bulb.

For the record, they also had some LED taillight/brake light bulbs, but I didn't buy any as I hadn't pulled out a taillight bulb yet and didn't know if the new Sportsman comes with a "blade-type" bulb or the traditional "double-pin socket-type" bulb. I got home, pulled a taillight bulb, and found they have the blade-type bulbs. I will pick up a set of LED bulbs tomorrow and see how they fit, and compare their brightness with the stock bulbs. As the stock 08' taillights are 8W each, and the brake light filaments are 26W each, having LED bulbs should drop power consumption to < 3W total saving 13W with the taillights on, providing more available power for the headlights.

Also, while I was at Advanced Auto Parts, I picked up a male 12V cigarette lighter plug and wired it to a Battery Tender Jr. in the hopes of being able to simply plug it into the 12V outlet on the left side of the high-beam headlight pod to keep the battery topped off between outings. No such luck... the 12V outlet is only energized with the key turned on. With the key off, it is de-energized. I'm currently looking for an 08' wiring schematic (anyone know where to find one??) to see how hard it will be to convert the outlet to a constant-hot 12V. If it will be too hard, or if I can't find the schematic, I'll just run a fused hot-wire from the positive battery terminal to the 12V outlet and keep it hot. That way accessories will work whenever plugged in, whether the ignition key is on or not, and I can also simply plug in the Battery Tender Jr. and keep the battery topped off between rides.

Tom
Bryson City, NC