The lightcurves of non-magnetic X-ray binaries are usually modelled using standard techniques developed for ordinary double stars plus some assumptions about the geometry and temperature distribution of the accretion disk. The analyses of the observed optical lightcurves of systems suggest that the disks must have extremely large rims (H/R ~ 0.3) in order to produce the variable obscuration needed to reproduce the often asymmetric lightcurves. However, even models with large rims have problems explaining the X-ray absorption seen in systems with smaller inclinations. We discuss two phenomena which show that non-standard effects in X-ray binaries can play major roles in the determination of the lightcurves: the “spray” caused by the passage of the accretion stream through the “bow-shock” at the outer rim of the disk; and the effects of soft X-ray illumination of the secondary star.