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Delaware has been getting kinda pissy lately with reflectors and lighting. A couple friends have been given some crap abijt missing detectors and insufficient turn signal spacing. One had to make special brackets tonadd his back in temporarily.
Just replaced my license mount yesterday with the curved one on my SGS. Really don't mind the look of the reflector and was almost to point of leaving it off for a cleaner look, till I read the instructions and it stated it was law to have a reflector, so I put it on. Plus I don't consider it a rolling visibility item, as much as a parked item. When the bike is parked, those reflectors are its only defense of being seen. And if they offer just a tiny bit of visibility while riding, Ill take it.
Removed mine and replaced all my lights with LEDs. If someone doesn't see my LEDs, the reflector wasn't going to make a difference. I try to avoid traffic at night anyways, I love riding alone in the dark.
On my '03 the reflectors are integrated nicely. If I had a Rushmore, I would take those cheap, tacky strips off.
I avoid night riding because of deer, and ride like I'm invisible anyway.
I left my reflectors on my 2003 RKC until one day, a few years ago, I noticed one of the red rear "crash" bar reflectors was loose. I took it of and liked the look better so I took the other one off the other "crash" bar. I never thought much about taking of the front side reflectors that were located on the frame down tubes. Last week I noticed that the right front a amber reflector on the right frame down tube was loose and also melted a bit. I had never noticed this before but i had fecently had a new front motor mount installed by the local Harley dealer and I wondered if the engine might have been a bit to close the exhaust pipe when they removed the old mount. This I do not know, but I decided to remove the front reflectors. That's when I learned about the black reflective tape made by 3M. I may have learned about it on this forum. I will post a pic of the bike with the factor amber reflector and the now installed tape without a beam of light on it and with a beam of light. I am happy so far with the way it turned out.
I used to refuse to turn my headlights on because it wasn't cool. Now things like that just don't matter anymore. I leave the reflectors on and the headlights come on automatically.
Really don't understand the deal of wanting to take reflectors off your bike. I see lots of posts from guys who buy a brand new bike, and first thing they do is "take those reflectors off." I've left mine on every bike I've ever owned, and that's over 50 since 1968, and they've never bothered me in the least. Also, no one has ever asked me why I haven't taken them off. IMHO, to each his own, but mine are staying on.
Well, for one thing, it looks more "old school". I'm old enough to remember when bikes didn't have all that stuff.
Second, I always figured reflectors were more to make your vehicle visible when parked along the road at night with the lights off. With the lights on, I can't see that they add much.
I leave them on. Some people won't see you if you were as bright as the sun in front of their faces. However, if the reflector can prevent just one cager from running me over, that is more than enough for me.
We have joggers in my neighborhood who like to run alongside the road at night. Sometimes all I see is the reflective stripe in the back of their shoes as I approach them, but it is enough to catch my attention and for me to give them their space. If a reflector can do that for me then I will keep it.
One thing for sure, some of the reflectors are brighter than that puny little running light that some motorcyclists put on their rear. I know it looks cool.... but seriously?
