Piaa 1100 Bulb Life

[RTNewbie]

With approximately 140 hours use, one of my PIAA 1100 bulbs has worn itself out. Seems a little short for a $39 bulb.

Anyone have experience with this product?

[bikerfish1100]

i have a pair on 2 different bikes. all 4 bulbs died within a few months of one another- about 4 years usage (no idea in hours). give or take- 45,000 miles on each bike with PIAAs, linked to hi-beams.
i found a good replacement from bulbs.com for about $11 per. not an exact match, but at 1/4 teh price, its a good deal.
i've posted that info before- maybe you an search to find it. i'll repost later tonite when i'm home iff'n you still need it.

[OfficerImpersonator]

I can't tell you how many HOURS I have on my PIAA 1100 lamps, but I can tell you how many MILES I've gone without a failure (I have them on ALL THE TIME): 10,000+ and still going strong!

[RTNewbie]

I can't tell you how many HOURS I have on my PIAA 1100 lamps, but I can tell you how many MILES I've gone without a failure (I have them on ALL THE TIME): 10,000+ and still going strong!

Thats a little better than mine in terms of mileage. Where are they mounted? I ran about 7000 miles with them on all the time, mounted on the fork sliders before one blew yesterday.

I like them so much for conspicuity, I bought the replacement bulbs... This time. Next time I may replace them with something less labor intensive and more cost effective.

[RTNewbie]

i have a pair on 2 different bikes. all 4 bulbs died within a few months of one another- about 4 years usage (no idea in hours). give or take- 45,000 miles on each bike with PIAAs, linked to hi-beams.
i found a good replacement from bulbs.com for about $11 per. not an exact match, but at 1/4 teh price, its a good deal.
i've posted that info before- maybe you an search to find it. i'll repost later tonite when i'm home iff'n you still need it.

I'd be thrilled to get that much life out of those bulbs. Did you run them all the time like i do? Where are they mounted? Maybe vibration is killing them on the forks.

[OfficerImpersonator]

Thats a little better than mine in terms of mileage. Where are they mounted? I ran about 7000 miles with them on all the time, mounted on the fork sliders before one blew yesterday.

I like them so much for conspicuity, I bought the replacement bulbs... This time. Next time I may replace them with something less labor intensive and more cost effective.

The 1100's are on my crash bars. If I didn't have crash bars, I'd mount them under the oil cooler with the ubiquitous PIAA RT mounts.

http://dvandkq.net/images/20080328-002.jpg

I have PIAA 910 lamps where the police strobes are supposed to go. I don't dare turn those on unless I'm all alone on a dark and empty road. They'll melt the paint off the car in front of me.

http://dvandkq.net/images/20080223-002.jpg

[bikerfish1100]

this bulb:
http://www.bulbs.com/Category-/results.aspx?Ntk=all&Ntt=w-18004&Ntx=mode+matchallpartial&Nty=1
with this o-ring (shaped differently than the PIAA, but works fine):
http://www1.mscdirect.com/CGI/GSDRVSM?PACACHE=000000053010135 (bag of 25, last ya nearly forever)
will look like this, using the Martins Fabrications bracket:
http://i132.photobucket.com/albums/q13/bikerfish1100/StwinlakesIndependencePass.jpg

[chasman]

I have the Piaa 1100s mounted on my '02 K1200RS. I'll burn out 2-3 per riding season. Save your sales receipt as Piaa guarantees the bulb for 1 year. Contact Piaa for free replacement. Some dealers will even replace at no charge if you have your receipt.


Riding Like the Wind...

CHASMAN

[OfficerImpersonator]

I have the Piaa 1100s mounted on my '02 K1200RS. I'll burn out 2-3 per riding season. Save your sales receipt as Piaa guarantees the bulb for 1 year. Contact Piaa for free replacement. Some dealers will even replace at no charge if you have your receipt.


Riding Like the Wind...

CHASMAN

If only my transmission input shaft splines lasted as long as my PIAA 1100 bulbs.

[alien_hitchhiker]

I've been running a set of PIAA knock-offs I bought through Martin Fabrications about a year ago (really cheapo).

For replacement bulbs I've been using 12v 50w Phillips halogens stocked by the local Lowes. Home Depot also carries them. They are intended for indoor, low voltage canister style lighting - they look just like the bulbs in Bikerfish's link.

A 3 pack is about $10 (IIRC). They come in both flood and spot styles. I use the spot, though they may throw a wider pattern than the proprietary PIAA bulbs.

I've replaced one so far (not counting the dead bulb that one of the lamps was delivered with).