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Which Light Bar to Choose and How to Install it?


AlabamaDan
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3 hours ago, RainGoat said:

Hawairish, as always, great write up. You clearly are avoiding some other job or project. Seriously though, this should get stickied or put into an electrical thread. I’m going to want to read it again later & others might want to see it too. Can we see if an Admin can fix it.

 

Thanks, Kent!  Frankly, I have too many projects in mind.  Electrical projects tend to exhaust me the most, though.

 

35 minutes ago, AlabamaDan said:

That was a great post.  Thank you.  I like the look of this one and thanks to that you tube video I sorta understand what he's done there.  I like the way it is built to allow wires to go to it later for switches and accessory hot wires.   I wonder how you could put it in a box or something under the hood to protect it from elements.

 

6_Relay_Panel.jpg

 

Thanks, and no problem.  There are actually a lot of enclosures available that can be used for stuff like this.  This particular example consumes a lot of space (I'd put that panel around 8" x 12"), more useful for a trailer or camper.  That Bussman panel is a good overall solution because it uses the mATC fuses, has smaller relays, and all of the connections on the backside include waterproof plugs (the case itself also has a sealing gasket).  

 

32 minutes ago, AlabamaDan said:

I think part of our projects is the fun in building stuff right, whether it is the car or the distribution block?  :)

 

True.  But, in terms of electrical projects, there's nothing fun about later having to troubleshoot shoddy wiring work or otherwise undoing rats nests.

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I've been researching and found a few features that should be reviewed in considering which light bar to choose.

 

4D - Basically 4D means there is a little fish eye lens over the LED beneath the overall cover.  Not only does this lens supposedly improve the performance of the led, but it provides another layer of protection.

 

Moisture Evap Valve - We all want a waterproof light bar, right?  But little is truly "waterproof" so what do you do when some condensation occurs?  Perhaps choosing a light with some evaporation valve helps solve that issue.

 

Wiring - If it comes with wiring, what does the wiring look like?  It is a heavy enough gauge or not.  A nice heavy gauge will help the light be brighter and more reliable.  Are the wires protected from the weather and other condition sufficiently?  What does it look like where the wires inter the housing?  Are the connections solid?  How long are the wires?

 

Metal Finish - Is it anodized, painted, or powder coated.

 

Mounting Brackets - are the mounting brackets good an solid?  Are the screws stainless and of high quality?  Personally I'm looking for something with standard bolt heads and not an allen head screw.  Do the bolts and screws have good deep threads?

 

Water Resistance - I'll say resistance vs proof.  Proof is a big word.  Is it just hot glued or super glued?  Does it have rubber seals?

 

 

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I got these off Amazon for 50$ total they work really well and they seem pretty water proof, I've taking them through a couple of bigger puddles and mud.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B07BM2XBLS/ref=sspa_mw_detail_0?ie=UTF8&psc=1 I'll post some pics up in a lil

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Reviews look alright. I'd want to have a poke at it and make sure it's actually sealed right before mounting it, given the price point, but sometimes the cheap stuff is good. I got some really cheap round lights for a lawn tractor (and as bed lights for a pickup) and those have held up just fine.

The translations on this stuff are always amusing. I get what they were going for with "Strong Penetration," but I'm more confused by the "subversive spot and flood optic system." Then there's the claim that they're "non-padiaton." I assume they meant "non-radiation," given the radioactivity symbol, but why spec that? I mean, they're gluten free, too, but...

 

I bought something a while ago (forgot what) that came with some kind of warranty/review card. The back had a picture of a girl with her hands over her face, palms forward, with "help me" written across them and a five-star rating next to her head. I'm still not entirely sure what they were going for with that. :blink:

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This is interesting, a fuse relay combo.  What do y'all think about this?

 

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07CF7T5SY/ref=psdc_15733511_t3_B075M4PRG2

 

This is it on eBay for less than $2

https://www.ebay.com/itm/12V-30A-Car-4-Pin-Normally-Open-Contacts-Fused-Relay-On-Off-With-Metal-Bracket/282731994828?hash=item41d423decc:g:aEgAAOSwO2lbdjfL

 

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That Mictuning relay box is slick.  Haven't seen it before.  You'll still need to distribute power in one way or another before the box since there's not a common rail.  But still, get some proper crimpers and wire, and that's clean setup. 

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+1 on that fuse box! I might have to snag one of those.

 

I like the idea of the relays with fuses built in, but with no cover over the fuses, I'd worry about dust or water getting into the relays or screwing up the fuse contacts. I've bought relays with those same clip-together plugs on them (for my overkill trailer light converter) and ended up ditching them and just wired the relays with standard spades. Those plastic plugs took up as much space as the relays did, and seemed like more trouble than they were worth for what I was doing.

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On 9/15/2018 at 12:54 AM, hawairish said:

That Mictuning relay box is slick.  Haven't seen it before.  You'll still need to distribute power in one way or another before the box since there's not a common rail.  But still, get some proper crimpers and wire, and that's clean setup. 

 

Maybe we can use a little strip like the guy int he video did?

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Back to shopping for the bar itself.  I've been looking for the amber/white combo.  Some have a remote control to change the color which doesn't seem like something you'd want.  This one however is controlled by turning the switch on and off multiple times.

 

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Curved-42Inch-3024W-OSRAM-LED-Work-Light-Bar-Amber-Flood-Spot-Flash-Truck-Fog-4X/302835017552?hash=item46825fa750:g:IxsAAOSwPxVbaXew

 

I think I've about decided to go with this one.  The choices are so numerous, but so many of them are probably from the same factory in China or wherever.   I think the things I want are curved, amber/white combo, 42".  Worst case scenario I'm out $53 bucks, right?

 

 

 

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After a lot of deliberation I pulled the trigger and ordered a 42" straight light bar.  I decided that the lines of the truck are more straight than curved, from the hood, to the windshield line, to the roof rack bars, and everything.  It should be here next week and I can begin my installation.

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  • 2 weeks later...

I received the light bar.  Here are some initial thoughts.  The boxing for shipping was disappointing.  It looks like they basically pulled it off the shelf and stuck a mailing label on it.  They taped the wiring harness box just to the light bar box and shipped.  Definitely not Amazon.

 

C499DE9E-256F-483B-A95B-D7E8DFEFD54C_zps

 

Within the box it was bubble wrapped and thankfully, unharmed.

C499DE9E-256F-483B-A95B-D7E8DFEFD54C_zps

 

Here's a close up  of the light bar.  I was hoping that each individual led would have a lens, but it doesn't.  I guess it's ok.

5C41D1EA-1148-4D67-B7B6-379DF9195146_zps

 

It came with some hardware and brackets.

FB9A945B-9D9D-485B-B227-203EDA13CF10_zps

54F10445-7ED6-458E-934B-541D7ECED824_zps

 

There were no installation instructions, but I assumed these bolts are for the sides of the brackets to attach to the light bar.  It's an unusual bolt head and uses a special Allen wrench, which was included.

965EB20E-0CB4-4259-B6CD-26C77C242CFB_zps

 

One thing I like about this is that I could turn the brackets around backwards and mount them underneath.  The holes for mounting came up at just an inch too much to fit the existing rails.  Too bad.

0D104535-035E-4DA6-8A00-6748CF989FEC_zps

 

It came with a harness.  I tried hooking the the wires of the light bar directly to a 12v battery without this special harness. When I did so all I had was on and off with a white light.

7E90D8E9-BAC9-4B5E-89CE-795CA8A6AEBF_zps

 

Three wires from the red control box toward the light bar are around 6 1/2 feet long.  It is in a loom and has female spade ends for connections.

F467194E-F579-4E5B-BF60-7415FAEC42D0_zps

 

I was disappointed to find the wires from the led light bar was pretty short and did not have any male connectors to match the wiring harness.

7272110B-C924-4F93-BFCB-8CE50C24E26C_zps

 

The wires from the red control box to the battery are only a foot and a half long, but do have good little rings to connect to the battery.  This short wire means that the control box will have to be mounted close to the battery.

2066D3A7-2421-48F9-87E8-0A59A80E4719_zps

 

The red wire from the control box to the battery has a 20amp fuse.

3A9A03C9-18BA-446F-A4F0-0D385ABE5836_zps

 

The red control box is connected to this little remote control, which it appears could be put on a key ring or attached someplace with the 3M pad.  I don't think it would hold up long as a key fob.

E7A3A2E3-32ED-4F8B-9555-FF7151FA43E8_zps

 

instructions for mounting were not included, but the wiring harness had some.

F54231EC-E01F-47F8-BA2B-C3CB9384C08E_zps

 

There ya go, my initial thoughts on my purchase.  I can't wait to play with it a little.  I've got to figure out how and where to run the wires and mount it.  I am going to need some new brackets to mount it to the stock roof rails.

 

 

 

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You could just use some extenders to make the footing of the bracket reach the rails. I did this with a Yakima basketcase & it lasted about 14 years. Just took it off this week but n preparation for my new rack.

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38 minutes ago, RainGoat said:

You could just use some extenders to make the footing of the bracket reach the rails. I did this with a Yakima basketcase & it lasted about 14 years. Just took it off this week but n preparation for my new rack.

 

That's one option i thought of.    The other option is to make a new bracket with a longer foot.  Either requires equipment I don't have.  :(  But someone may be able to help.

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I used 4 sets of these (you would need only 2). Mostly all stainless steel & bought as is from Ace, Lowes &/or Home Depot. (I was living in an apartment in PHX with very few tools or resources). This is what they look like after 14 years. c6f301bf02116f6fefae336b217b665a.jpg

 

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