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[Big Ace]

Morgan and I were riding last night, and he asked if my headlamp was loose, because the beam was vibrating as I was following him. To him it looked like my headlight was flickering slightly.

I could not find any excessive looseness anywhere, and it seemed to have the same characteristics as his, trying to move it around.

Any suggestions what might be causing this?

TIA

[crow57]

Actually it might not be a bad thing...  Makes your headlight a little more noticeable, like the headlight oscillators do.

[Morgan Buchanan]

It's annoying to HIM riding in the dark... it's actually a visible effect for the rider. 

[hipshot]

Did you check the exterior only, or did you look for loose internal components also?

[Big Ace]

I haven't had a chance to take it apart yet... we mainly checked to see if it could be moved around by hand, or if there was anything else obvious.

I fired it up at lunch and did some observation. It can bee seen while idling, though I think that what Morgan saw was it being amplified by moving at highway speeds. It is more noticeable with lowbeam than highbeam.

I am wondering if it might be a loose filament in the bulb. Does that sound too far-fetched?

[Luckys Lover]

I've seen this on my bike, too. I "think" (working without tools) that the newer headlights are "beamier". That is they shine in a narrower vertical range. Think Laser beam, not floodlight. And some of the bouncing is actually due to the front of the bike and the overhung headlight working together on the bumps.

Like it was stated earlier, if it's annoying to a riding partner, at least it attracts attention TO you. And that's a good thing. Just lead more often. 

[Morgan Buchanan]

I wasn't clear.  It didn't bother me (riding partner) at all.  It's annoying to the guy sitting behind the head light because it's putting out "goofy" light.  IE, it's actually distracting to the rider.  NOT a good thing.

[hipshot]

Yeah, it didn't bother me at all

[Crewsn]

they all do it to a degree. just make sure nothing is physically loose or broke on the mounting bracket. then check internally to make sure the retaining clip is still in place and holding the lamp. good luck and ride safe.

[Morgan Buchanan]

I'm going to take a look at it tomorrow.  I've ridden with maybe 50 different VTX's and I've never seen a headlight do this.  Just didn't have time to look last night.

[RedDragon]

I'm going to take a look at it tomorrow.  I've ridden with maybe 50 different VTX's and I've never seen a headlight do this.  Just didn't have time to look last night.

Ive seen several 1300s do it. There is even a fix for it on bareass's site. http://bareasschoppers.com/headlightrattle

[Swampfox]

Mine does that too let me know if you find the fix 

[RedDragon]

Mine does that too let me know if you find the fix 

http://bareasschoppers.com/headlightrattle Yes yours is one of the one's I was talking about. Rex's does it too.

[Morgan Buchanan]

No, not the rattle. 

The LIGHT BEAM bounces.  As in, it strobes.  As in it LOOKS like it's on a REALLY REALLY fast modulation.  It's VISIBLE in its annoyance, not audible.

[BigNasdy]

forks may be too stiff, tire pressure may be too high.....either one will do it.
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