Indicator Lense Reflector DIY upgrade

[Jacksnipe]

May be old hat to some perhaps not to all, as per the Glee the Veek has no reflector in the indicators, today I have sorted same by use of Mirror Finish tape to cover black hole of the inside cover with a vastly improved surface. Difference between before and after is literally light and day. Worth doing for bit of an effort an hour ? Makes indicator flash more visible in all light conditions for little outlay.

[Rich:-)]

Thanks for the head up.
I have done the number plate lights on my camper and all the lights on my trailer board but had no idea the indicators on a strom suffered the same bad design.

[tallpaul]

I did the same but used the foil trays from some Mr Kiplings apple pies...nom!

[Phil254]

 

[MartinW]

I just used tin foil in mine

[Hondaman]

I think I'll have a go at this - good idea re the tape, I have a bit of foil duct tape knocking about

[bosnjo]

Done that when I had Glee, then on the first day of ownership on Vee2. It makes big difference. Now I have Suzuki LED indicators.

[Steve T]

Great tip 

I've done it on several bikes in the past, and as said, it does make a difference.

Steve T

 

[Rich:-)]

I did one... and then one-did it..

I found that although it made it look brighter when viewed 'off axis' it didn't make much of a difference when looking directly at the indicator.
What it did do though was to make the indicator look more orange when not lit. Presumably it is reflecting more incidental light back out and thus lighting up the orange lens more, I didn't like this so pulled the alloy reflective tape out to return it to standard.

[Jacksnipe]

Rich, In fairness it is not really an upgrade for the aesthetics point of view, naturally when you look at the centre of the bulb when lit it will not alter even if you place behind it the most highly polished precision mirror off the Hubble! it will naturally overwhelm your eye  so you will only see amber coloured light not much else,but from another  road users point of view, who will not be bulb staring but looking at said vehicle, the flash on the upgraded indicator will register more strongly than original and that is the only point of it.

Hope to have thrown some light on this most illuminating and enlightening ray of wisdom !!

[Rich:-)]

from another  road users point of view, who will not be bulb staring but looking at said vehicle, the flash on the upgraded indicator will register more strongly than original and that is the only point of it.

Yes, that is the point I was making. Other road users will mostly be looking at your bike from directly in front or directly behind you. The small refraction lenses in the indicator lens do a pretty good job off throwing most of the light outward in that direction.
Putting reflective tape around the housing doesn't seem to help because of the small size & shape of said housing. There is no room to form a meaningful parabola so all the reflective tape does is increase the off-axis scatter.

I'm not saying it doesn't improve it, there will be occasions where they will appear slightly brighter to other road users, on roundabouts for example. I just decided the upgrade wasn't worth it it as it detracted from the bike aesthetically.

Maybe reflective tape in conjunction with the 'clear lens & orange bulb' upgrade would be best for me.

[bosnjo]

To avoid orange effect of indicator lens when not lit, I used Philips Silver Vision bulbs. I still have them on my car, front and rear. When not lit, those bulbs are white.

[Rich:-)]

To avoid orange effect of indicator lens when not lit, I used Philips Silver Vision bulbs. When not lit, those bulbs are white.

I think that would only work with clear lenses, in the VW world we call clear lenses with orange bulbs the 'fried egg effect'.

[bosnjo]

Yes... I had white lenses on my Glee and had to remove yellow bulbs. On Vee2, again the same. As I said above, I have Suzuki LED indicators now.
Ah, and I own 2012 Ford Focus and had to remove yellow bulbs front and rear, to avoid that 'fried egg effect'