Topic: Headlight Question

[seaweb11]

My manual says 12V-40/50w

I have a spare that came off one of my bikes that says 12V-50/40W that worked on my K8 before I switched it out with a different one.

Now the question .....My Tracy has a lightened alt.
When I built the bike I used used a 12V60/55W. Not sure why, but I ran into all sorts of drained battery days so I disconnected it entirely. Never had a dead battery again, so this seems to have been the issue.

Can someone far smarter than me explain the codes of these bulbs regarding power requirements? Is my lightened alt/the cause of some of this charging headlight issue?
12V          I get 
40/50W ?
50/40W ?
60/55W ?

[Deltarider]

Try to find Philips 'fuel-efficient' halogen bulb, the EcoVision. Philips claims it uses 20% less electricity. So you'll have the light of a 55/60 halogen and it will consume no more power than an ordinary 40/45 bulb.

[Gordon]

Not so sure I'm smarter than you , but the 40/50, etc. is the wattage the bulb uses in low/high beam setting.  I'm not surprised that completely disconnecting the headlight alleviated the symptom of your charging issue, but that doesn't necessarily mean that the headlight was the cause of the problem, though.