B&M Toplight Line Plus standlight stopped working

[eeksll]

I have a Busch + Müller Toplight Line Plus LED the stand light recently stopped working. After I turned the bike upside down and did a clean with a hose ...

long shot but, anyone had this and fixed it? replacing capacitor or something similar?

cheers.

[find_bruce]

Oops. Fortunately the circuit is reportedly very simple


That posts lists the components as

R1 220 Ohm R2 100 Ohm
C1 1 F, 5.5V
D1, D2, D3 1N4001 etc
Rectifier B80 1500R etc
LED1, LED2, LED3 superbright LED, 3000 mcd, 5 mm, ca. 1.6v, 20 mA

Am I right in thinking that each of the LEDs in the tail light still work, it is just the standlight that has stopped ? If so the capacitor looks likely. A 1F 5.5V capacitor is pretty easy to get hold of, eg jaycar or RS-online. Each of these are about 20mm in diameter x 6mm thick, so you would need to check the dimensions of the part you are replacing to make sure it will fit.

[eeksll]

thanks find_bruce, I was not really expecting any replies . Not really very electronic-y myself, but i think I know enough to unsolder and re-solder.

i think all the leds are still working, I'll check that later tonight. ill probably get to it on the weekend and post back.

warning for everyone: dont wash your bike!!! first time i wash the bike in years and this happens. haha

[warthog1]

Just use baby wipes, a rag and mr sheen. No need to use water to wash the bike

[il padrone]

Washing is fine, just keep the bike upright and don't spray from underneath. It's the "upside down" bit that has probably caused the problems. All the B&M literature (certainly for the headlights) states that the lights are not waterproof but designed to be rain-proof, and not to mount them upside down.

[find_bruce]

thanks find_bruce, I was not really expecting any replies . Not really very electronic-y myself, but i think I know enough to unsolder and re-solder.

i think all the leds are still working, I'll check that later tonight. ill probably get to it on the weekend and post back.

warning for everyone: dont wash your bike!!! first time i wash the bike in years and this happens. haha

Sometimes you just get lucky - I have been reading way too much lately about standlight circuits & had come across that pic.

If it were me, the thing I would be checking first is that I hadn't switched the standlight off, but I am sure a smart bloke like you has already checked that

[Crawf]

Does it have the coin cell (cache) battery, replaceable?

[eeksll]

not sure about the battery.

So i get home tonight and the standlight is working !!!

so maybe water short circuiting the capacitor, draining its charge ... and now the water is gone, its working?

wandering if its worth opening up to have a poke or just leave it alone now.

[wqlava1]

The most productive task remaining is to change the word "stopped" in the thread title to "restarted". Lucky. Unlike phones dropped in water which have a battery that keeps supplying power to keep electrolysis happening, the standlight capacitor's charge is depleted relatively quickly

[eeksll]

leaving as is, decided fiddling was asking for trouble. Quick check most times i stop now.

[Leaf T]

thanks find_bruce, I was not really expecting any replies . Not really very electronic-y myself, but i think I know enough to unsolder and re-solder.

i think all the leds are still working, I'll check that later tonight. ill probably get to it on the weekend and post back.

warning for everyone: dont wash your bike!!! first time i wash the bike in years and this happens. haha

Sometimes you just get lucky - I have been reading way too much lately about standlight circuits & had come across that pic.

If it were me, the thing I would be checking first is that I hadn't switched the standlight off, but I am sure a smart bloke like you has already checked that

I know this thread is a bit long in the tooth but I was just wondering how you and the OP got along with your standlights?
I have a couple of topline tail lights which had the stand light feature but it stopped working. They were only a few months old in 2011 so I contacted B+M who replaced them and told me the first run of this light had some with faulty caps. I mounted one of the tail lights tonight on a bike and was thinking I'll look into replacing the caps soon. Did you determine the cap dimensions? I suspect the light is glued together but if not I'll have a go at replacing it.

Andy

[eeksll]

after mine started working again I decided not to touch it. Hasn't missed a beat yet, touch wood, but i probably haven't washed my bike since then too

If you do go down that route, I'd be keen to see pictures, just in case.

If I was in your shoes, I would leave it until it broke, but you are probably handier with the electronics than me. Although if I had 2 ... hmmmm. If its not broke it can be made better

[find_bruce]

Hi Andy, my standlights are going very well thank you for asking. I don't have a toplight though - I built my own, hence my interest in various circuits. In so doing I have a collection of super capacitors so if you find the dimensions I can point you to something to match.

The light may not be glued together - the other alternative is those pesky internal plastic clips.

[Leaf T]

Thanks fellas. It will be a while but I'll let you know if I do it and how it goes.

Cheers,
A