How do you normally aim the beams on fog and spot lights?

[mr_magicfingers]

Just bought a light bar with spots and fogs from a member here. Wondering how you usually set the beam for fog lights, do you match the top cut off line with the one for the dipped beam?

On spots, do you tend to aim them to a point at a certain distance ahead? I have Hids on both dip and main beams so looking to just punch that bit further down the road for the winter. I'll be converting the spots to hid at some point.

 

[Packer]

Your fogs will be auxilliary dip beams so yes, keep the cut off at or below the dip beam itself. If it was mine I'd set them to widen the available light spread to help with relatively low speed cornering.

Re the spots I'd set these up to cross around the bottom of the high beam patch on the road so that you get a wider spread of light than the head beam alone. I raised the head beam relative to the dip on my 1150 (a simple case of turning the screws around the headbeam glass) so that it is virtually parallel to the ground and gives maximum distance illumination. Your spots would fill in nicely below that.

 

[Tim Cullis]

Yes, set them up with the fogs as wide-angle close-up fill-ins, with the spots for longer distance. Aim the right-hand spot at the middle distant left-hand kerb, the left-hand spot far distance straight ahead or slightly to the right.

If you ever do offroading you'll want to switch the fogs/spots off otherwise the repeated restarts of the engine and relatively low charging rates will flatten your battery. So I would use two switches and three relays.

One switch for the fogs, with a relay from the dip beam. Second switch for the spots, with two relays--one from the dip, one from the main. This way when the spot switch is on the left kerb is lit all the time and the second spot comes on when you go to main beam.

Tim

 

[Surrey Yeoman]

Similar advice to that already given.

I have day running lights and additional main beams on my 1150 ADV.

The running lights (Ring Illuminator fog lights with bulbs reduced to 35w from 55w) I set by parking the bike on the centrestand facing my garage door and set the beams so they were just below the line of the dipped beam. Nobody's flashed me yet, so they can't be too far out.

The additional main beams (ok, I'll call them spots!) I set by going out to a straight bit of country road one night with a couple of tea towels and a 10mm spanner. I sat on the bike with the fixing bolts for the spots lose enough to be able to move the lamps and covered each one in turn, along with the standard main and dipped beams, while I adjusted the other so the beam went where I wanted it - as far down the road as possible! - then tightened up my bolts and Bob was me uncle.

Set up works for me and looks like this..........

Running lights on top and spots underneath.

 

[Myke Rocks]

Aiming foglights?

How do you aim a foglight, when it has no beam to aim. All a foglight does is provide a bright, useless spread of light which illuminates the road 2 metres in front of you, plus the kerb.

Anyway, I would not ride a bike in fog or falling snow, which is when their use is permitted.

Myke

 

[illustratedman]

How do you aim a foglight, when it has no beam to aim. All a foglight does is provide a bright, useless spread of light which illuminates the road 2 metres in front of you, plus the kerb.

Anyway, I would not ride a bike in fog or falling snow, which is when their use is permitted.

Myke

It also makes you more visible, fills in the dead zone of light blocked by the beak on the gs and for those of us that do ride in fog or falling snow are actually quite useful. Anyway each to their own.

 

[steve'o]

Aim the left one to improve the spread of light and the right one to point straight at the blind moron driving towards you

 

[Micky]

Wherever suits YOU best

Come on Tarka where are you?

 

[mr_magicfingers]

Thanks for all the advice. I'd already wired them in with a relay and switch per pair, will do a bit of aiming this weekend.

Cheers.