John Diakonis Posted May 19, 2007 Share Posted May 19, 2007 Is anyone using these flashing thingies? Are they easy to install and can you override them,depending what state you're in? Good brands? I had one years ago and never gave it much thought recently. Are they a worthwhile addition? I'm definitly doing an led tail light. Link to comment
E30TECH Posted May 19, 2007 Share Posted May 19, 2007 http://bmwsporttouring.com/ubbthreads/showflat.php/Cat/0/Number/855983/page/0/fpart/1/vc/1 Link to comment
Davis Posted May 19, 2007 Share Posted May 19, 2007 NO, not again!! A thread on modulators with over 100 responses just ended 3 days ago. See it here To answer the specifics, they are easily installed, only modulate one beam so you can override them by dipping your headlight, some (Signal Dynamics as an example) also have a switch so you can override them and still use both beams of the headlight normally. Kriss, Kisan, and Signal Dynamics are the brands that come to mind right off. They are legal in all states so overriding them is a function of evaluation of risk vs annoyance at the time, not of laws in an area. As far as their worth, that's the main focus of the previous thread and hopefully won't need to be repeated. Link to comment
John Diakonis Posted May 19, 2007 Author Share Posted May 19, 2007 MAN am I sorry for opening up THAT can of worms.Don't shoot me! I won't need any more responses.That's what I get for not searching first. Thanks. Link to comment
steve.foote Posted May 20, 2007 Share Posted May 20, 2007 MAN am I sorry for opening up THAT can of worms.Don't shoot me! I won't need any more responses.That's what I get for not searching first. Thanks. Don't panic, John! Slowly and carefully take your hands off the keyboard and mouse. Maintain eye-contact with your monitor and quietly move away from your computer. I think you'll be safe, but YMMV. Link to comment
Scarver Posted May 20, 2007 Share Posted May 20, 2007 .... They are legal in all states so overriding them is a function of evaluation of risk vs annoyance at the time, not of laws in an area. .... We were stopped by Arkansas LEO last year because headlight modulator on my friend's ST1300 was considered illegal. Got off with a warning. So be advised that you may have to explain that 'legality' at some point. Link to comment
ESokoloff Posted May 20, 2007 Share Posted May 20, 2007 .... They are legal in all states so overriding them is a function of evaluation of risk vs annoyance at the time, not of laws in an area. .... We were stopped by Arkansas LEO last year because headlight modulator on my friend's ST1300 was considered illegal. Got off with a warning. So be advised that you may have to explain that 'legality' at some point. This should help. Print & keep a copy on the bike. Link to comment
Scarver Posted May 20, 2007 Share Posted May 20, 2007 .... They are legal in all states so overriding them is a function of evaluation of risk vs annoyance at the time, not of laws in an area. .... We were stopped by Arkansas LEO last year because headlight modulator on my friend's ST1300 was considered illegal. Got off with a warning. So be advised that you may have to explain that 'legality' at some point. This should help. Print & keep a copy on the bike. Yep, we did that but officer refused to read it claiming that he was following the state law as he understood it. So here we were in the middle of nowhere, tired after a long day of riding the twisties, facing a clean-cut young officer who had just come on duty and was ready to write a ticket. Not the time or place to explain the law to a lawman... Link to comment
Baba_ORiley Posted May 21, 2007 Share Posted May 21, 2007 .... They are legal in all states so overriding them is a function of evaluation of risk vs annoyance at the time, not of laws in an area. .... We were stopped by Arkansas LEO last year because headlight modulator on my friend's ST1300 was considered illegal. Got off with a warning. So be advised that you may have to explain that 'legality' at some point. This should help. Print & keep a copy on the bike. Yep, we did that but officer refused to read it claiming that he was following the state law as he understood it. So here we were in the middle of nowhere, tired after a long day of riding the twisties, facing a clean-cut young officer who had just come on duty and was ready to write a ticket. Not the time or place to explain the law to a lawman... Well, it's easy to think that you shouldn't have to explain the concept of federal law "Preemption" to a "lawman". It's based upon the Supremacy Clause (Article VI, section 2) in the US Constitution which states that the laws of the United States shall be the supreme Laws of the land. So when there is some sort of conflict between a state law and federal law (e.g. feds say headlight modulators are totally legal), the federal law always trumps ("preempts") the state law. Of course, the LEO on the side of the road may not be a constitutional scholar. . Link to comment
smiller Posted May 21, 2007 Share Posted May 21, 2007 Yep, we did that but officer refused to read it claiming that he was following the state law as he understood it. Well a lighting violation is just a 'fix-it' ticket, and usually these can be taken care of by submitting proof of correction to the court by mail. I would just send in the ticket along with a copy of the law as proof of correction. Hopefully the court won't 'refuse to read it'... Link to comment
NoHeat Posted May 21, 2007 Share Posted May 21, 2007 FWIW, you can stop your modulator from modulating by darkening the photo sensor. If you've got duct tape along on your bike, cover it with that. It should be very easy to do, because you would mount your sensor so that it is pointed at the sky, and that means it will be easily accessible. So if you are stopped, as an alternative to teaching the LEO some law, you could offer to tape over the photosensor until you are in the next state. Don't know if it would satisfy every LEO, but it would be quick, and it would be easy to demonstrate to the LEO that the modulation has been stopped. Link to comment
Wyn Posted May 21, 2007 Share Posted May 21, 2007 So here we were in the middle of nowhere, tired after a long day of riding the twisties, facing a clean-cut young officer who had just come on duty and was ready to write a ticket. Not the time or place to explain the law to a lawman... O yeah, that's the time when you say "Yes sir, sorry we were ignorent of the law. We'll take care of it right now." ISYHTRAH Link to comment
chrisz Posted May 21, 2007 Share Posted May 21, 2007 I was stopped in Montreal last year while at the Jazz festival by police. He asked me if 'that blinking' thing was legal. I told him 'yes officer and also it comes as standard equipment on the new BMW motorcycles'. He replied that its probably a good idea and went his own way. I did have a piece of paper (in English and French explaining the legality), in my bags just in case he pressed the issue. Link to comment
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