Lighting System

[jared8783]

Hello everybody
My name is Jared

I am preparing to mount a four stroke on a cruiser and I am looking to install fully functional headlight, tail light, brake light, and turn signals. I do not want to have to charge batteries i just want them to rely on the motor just like a moped. I also want to stay away from 6 volt since parts can be harder to come by. I was thinking about hooking up one or two of those old school bicycle generators to a small moped battery but I do not know if they make those in 12 volt. That is the only idea i can come up with so far.

If anyone can give me ant tips/suggestions/or even a new idea that would be really cool.

Thanx

[Cabinfever1977]

mopeds have a generator(altanator) and a battery and are probally 6 volts.
bike generators are 6 volts and will put out more voltage at higher speeds and may blow a bulb.
youre going to need a battery and charger if you want a lot of lights(go with a cordless power tool battery and charger or scooter battery and charger.
you can run a headlight and tailight with the bike engine maybe more if you use leds.
i have a 18v cordless tool battery$18 and 1hour charger$20 (walmart)
and i have 2 12 volt car lights hooked together in series to = 24volts that way the lights wont blow out.
or you could put a 6volt bike generator and battery and use 6 volt lights sold at all car stores and anywhere boat lights are sold like walmart.

[Outrunner]

I would stay away from the bicycle generators, because they are not
built to withstand the high rpm and constant high speed that our MB's
create. They will self destruct for sure, you can count on it. I've been
using a 12 volt 4 1/2 amp alarm system battery with a VERY bright
WalMart tractor light for $12.00 and a led tail light $16.00. I only have
to charge the battery once a week, as long as I don't turn on the
Head light. It's very simple to charge. I unplug the wire coming out
of the battery box that is mounted just below my seat and attach
a cheap trickle charger to it over night,no problem!

[jared8783]

sounds good but i am definetly looking for 100% gasoline reliant like a moped

[civlized]

Maybe you could mount a sprocket to the head of a generator and drive it off the chain instead of the tire to reduce the rpm? I have thought about it myself but haven't experimented any, yet.

[jared8783]

like a bicycle generator or do you have something else in mind

[civlized]

I am sure that I have seen 12 volt bicycle generators. Something bigger may put a little strain on the poor engine. Surely this can be done.

[Cabinfever1977]

and the moped is not just gasloline reliant,it has a generator(for charging) and a battery.

update: they do make a 12 volt bike generator and lights
GENERATOR SET BICYCLE NEW 12 VOLT CHROME W/HARDWARE - eBay (item 260308447773 end time May-28-09 14:35:12 PDT)

12 Volt Generator with Bulb #6676-1 by Bike Gear at HardwareAndTools.com

look at this for more info on diy bike generators and other cool stuff:
Bicycle Pedal Power Generator FAQ Frequently Asked Questions

[matt167]

6v parts are not hard to come by... a trip to TSC and you'll find every lightbulb you need in 6v, and a trip to an autostore and you'll get every light socket you need... 6v or 12v, it doesn't matter as the light sockets are the same... auto parts stores can get 6v bulbs also, but you need a good counter person to look them up.. at that point you could use old motorcycle lights with a moped generator.

the lighting kit for the TSC mini baja minibikes would likely work too, as there run off of engine power, which is also 6v A/C... tho they may run a rectifier on it to make D/C

[jared8783]

Originally Posted by Cabinfever1977

and the moped is not just gasloline reliant,it has a generator(for charging) and a battery.

even though they have generators for charging the battery they are still completely gasoline reliant since they use the gas to turn them

do u see what i am saying?