100 watt bumper mounted driving lights

[Wild and Free]

It becomes a whole different world when you are driving on a bed of coal in a pit in the dead of night, there are no amount of halogens that will compare to the quality of light output the new LEDS have, coal absorbs light and LEDS have the ability to put out a quality of light that works far better than halogens in these conditions but it is hard to describe unless you experience it. Not to mention the amount of lights that are required on the large equipment would require a gen set to run them all versus the low power needs of LEDS. One needs to figure in our environment of having a couple hundred pieces of equipment to maintain as well that halogens are pretty high maintenance items and down time to troubleshoot bulbs wiring burned up connectors and labor expenses and tons of alternators going bad sooner from the high amperage draws the need for excellent grounds to help lessen current draws ect the list goes on and on against halogens when you look at it from my standpoint of having 40 dollar and hour mechanics replacing bulbs versus doing more technical jobs.

All I need to say right here in the video below, we run these on our mine equipment and have yet to see one die which is unheard of, in over 2 years of using them. We are experimenting with ABL and Nordic lights as well but they are a bit higher in price than Rigid but cater to the mining industry needs.

http://www.rigidindustries.com/galleries/photo-video-galleries#video-tab

Edited January 10, 2014 by Wild and Free

[hex0rz]

 

I think I seen these at my local Big R! Those sure take a beating! They are spendy lights, but now the proof is in the puddin'! One think that stuck out the most for me was the fact he hit that light with that .223 and they came back ON!

 

...how many lights did they destroy to prove a point? Should have just donated them, to me!

 

Some of the ones I was looking at, unbelievable how many lumens they put out for such a small light!

[Wild and Free]

The new LEDS we are putting on are way brighter than the aircraft landing light halogens that we have been running for years, operators of other equipment in the area are complaining of them being too bright as well as operators of the equp with the lights on it saying they are so bright that it hurts their eyes so we are going to amber or different colors which is what most LED mfgs are doing because they are becoming so bright to make it easier on the eyes.

Edited January 11, 2014 by Wild and Free

[jdeng]

I used to most of my farming at night, back when I was ambitious.  I found that the **** Cepek Baja Lasers (discontinued, but still available on eBay) were a great value.  I put 100-watt bulbs in them, slathered silicone all over the place to keep the dust at bay, rubber-mounted them, and they worked great.  Put a big, bright spot out there about a quarter of a mile.  I filled in all the other area with a pair of ABL trapezoid pattern lights (55 watt bulbs swapped for 100w), and replaced the 4 sealed-beams that were stock on the fenders with Deere Halogen replacements.

 

Got a lot of questions from neighbors about that setup. 

 

The Baja Lasers with the sealing job lasted 4 or 5 years before the reflectors got dim.  The chrome housings were pitted by then, also.  Without the sealing, they were full of dust in a few weeks.

 

Odd thing--I tried the 130 watt bulbs, one at a time, and could see absolutely no difference in the light output.  They burned out pretty quickly, too.

 

Big wires and good relays were a key part of the system also.  The Baja Lasers looked just like the ones that KC used to sell, and just like the cheap ones that Walmart and O'Reilly sell. 

[Rogan]

Well, I got 2 55 watt Hella driving lights. They are only 2.84" deep, but insufficient room behind the grill for 4 lights due to the number of cooling units. I could get 2 back there. But then there is the OEM grill that has a horizontal faux bar running right through the middle, which would impede light from behind. So I'm going to mount 2 driving lights and 2 fog lights on the bumper. Ive spent quite a bit of time reading about relays. I understand them now and also understand the concepts behind Michael's driving/fog wiring design. I've also verified that the connection points in the power distribution box supplies power as described. Should work great! Thanks!

I mounted mine in the grill with some homemade brackets and supports.  I'll try to find a picture..