Roy Poynting column
The term ‘reflection luminosity’ must mean something technical, to someone. Though one doesn’t imagine it used in the Lucas or Wipac factories.
Irecently received what was termed a ‘Motorcycle Modification Recall’ for one of my modern machines – a 2017 Yamaha X-Max. Such recalls almost invariably concern matters where something has gone wrong during manufacture, so are ignored at the owner’s peril; especially when they are (in bold print) ‘conducted in accordance with the Code of Practice on action concerning motorcycle safety defects, as agreed between the Department for Transport and the Motorcycle Industry Association…’
What was this safety problem? Bearings? Brakes? Fuelling? No, none of these, it had been discovered that (more bold print) ‘the Rear Reflector does not meet standards specified by UN-ECE for reflection luminosity.’ And to save you looking it up, those initials appear to stand for United Nations and Economic Commission for Europe, two concerns you’d think would be considering weightier matters than motorcycle rear reflectors!
Anyway, all I had to do was present myself at an authorised dealer and my machine would be fitted with a quaintly named ‘counter-measure part’ (even more emboldened text).
Well, the visit went okay, and it wasn’t long before
I was riding away with shiny new rear light units. But the whole thing was, and is, a mystery to me on several levels. For one thing, although ‘reflection luminosity’ obviously means how brightly a light is reflected, it appears not to be an accepted scientific term, so I don’t know how some jobsworth in an anonymous committee decided it was inadequate on my Yamaha. In any case, it was the lamp units that were changed, while the actual reflector – a separate piece of plastic – was untouched. Lastly, and most mystifyingly, since it is impossible to ride any modern bike fitted with lights without them being illuminated, reflective qualities would seem pretty much irrelevant!
I wonder what the boffins in the old Lucas and
Wipac factories would have made of it all? That’s if there actually were boffins, and it wasn’t just a case of: ‘Do you think this looks bright enough, Bert?’ Riders weren’t going to be too critical, as lights of any kind were a luxury until the Second World War, and many unlit vehicles were still used as everyday transport afterwards. In that era, bikes and cars were often parked on narrow, unlit streets at night, so a reflector was obviously a sensible addition, although it can’t have been the complete answer, as I remember a parking light being made mandatory. Some lightweights with direct lighting made a nod to this rule with small torch batteries connected to the side lights, although they were clearly inadequate for the job.
As with much of the home industry, development of rear lights proceeded at a pedestrian pace, and over three decades or so amounted to little more than enlarging what had gone before. So circular pin pricks gave way to brick-shaped devices, and – to be fair to the manufacturers – their usefulness was supplemented by in-built reflectors of increasing size and (if the advertisements were to be believed) increasing effectiveness. Basically, they involved casting inverted pyramid shapes into the interior face of the lenses so they would reflect light coming at any angle, and they were efficient enough to be given pseudo-scientific names, even if their ‘reflective luminosity’ wasn’t quoted!
The standard bulb ratings were six watts for the riding light, and 18W for the stop light. These were usually combined in a twin filament bulb, but sometimes separate bulbs were used, and occasionally the taillights were doubled up, either to balance the design, or to allow for a blown bulb; a fairly common occurrence with vibration and poor voltage regulation. In recent years, incandescent filaments have given way to light emitting diodes which must have thrown the ratings out of the window – an 18W LED would serve the Eddystone lighthouse! This doubtless necessitated wholesale rewriting of the regulations and provided hours of wellpaid work for committees in the UN-ECE or wherever.
But fear not, none of this need worry us. My experience shows that if we run a modern bike the powers that be will look after us, even if weren’t aware there was a problem. Sub 40-year-old classics still need MoT certificates of course, but the requirements are little more than ensuring the light (if fitted) and reflector are present and in reasonable condition. And if you are brave enough to take an older classic out after dark, replacing the rear bulb with a high-output LED won’t change its appearance, and as a bonus, will give the dynamo an easier time, too.
“Riders weren’t too critical, as any kind of motorcycle lights were a kind of luxury until the Second World War.”