Creature Comfort Gadgets

[4x4junkie]

Home-made 12-volt LED Clip Lights

Can home-brewed items be included here? :Wow1:

I have several of these handy little clip lights I made using some LED MR16 lamps (usually used for low-voltage indoor tracklighting) and attaching them with a little swivel bracket to a spring clip. I then soldered a length of wire with a cigarette lighter plug into the lamp.

Clip it to whatever's nearby (tree branch, overhead canopy, part of the vehicle, etc.), plug it in, swivel it around, and let the area be flooded with light.
Or clip it to the handle of a portable battery pack unit and you'll have a portable floodlight lantern that'll run for at least a couple days straight even on a small unit.

Each is 4 watts (about 0.35 amp), yet is as bright as a 20 watt halogen bulb (I've seen 10 watt ones available as well). They also have a softer, more natural color light than what a lot of LED gadgets have.

A little drilling, some minor fabbing a bracket, a couple screws, a bit of soldering, and you'll have a versatile clip light for only a small ($25-35) dent in the wallet (or in my case I found the lamps at a surplus electronics store for $8 ea).




Here are a couple lamps similar to what I used (the ones I used seem to be discontinued)

http://www.homedepot.com/Electrical...splay?catalogId=10053&langId=-1&storeId=10051 (10 watt 415lm)(Philips AmbientLED #414960 in case the link breaks)
http://www.homedepot.com/Electrical...splay?catalogId=10053&langId=-1&storeId=10051 (6 watt 295lm)(EcoSmart #ECS 16 WW FL)

Clip:
http://www.homedepot.com/h_d1/N-5yc...langId=-1&keyword=spring clamps&storeId=10051

Wire:
http://www.radioshack.com/product/index.jsp?productId=2102499 (good up to 10 feet length each light)
http://www.homedepot.com/h_d1/N-25e...eaker wire&storeId=10051&superSkuId=202895694 (for longer lengths or to make an extension cord for it)

Lighter plug:
http://www.radioshack.com/product/index.jsp?productId=3806057


Those who are savvy with electronics should be able to easily find cheaper/better alternatives for the wire & plug, mostly I put the above just to give some idea of the parts needed.


(sorry for a crappy driveway picture lol, I don't seem to have any good camping shots with it in use)

 

[scarydriver]

I have several of these handy little clip lights I made...

That's too cool! Thanks for the info!

 

[4x4junkie]

I figured there might be at least a few on here that are handy with a soldering iron. :ylsmoke:

 

[piffey263]

Those of you with older vehicles, metal dash boards, get a 4 inch magnetic tray.(harbor freight)

Works great for those small objects like keys, flashlight, bolt ext. or change they have high enough sides

 

[oldestof11]

Snap-on Cordless 1/2"-Drive Impact Wrench

http://buy1.snapon.com/catalog/item...roup_ID=682064&store=snapon-store&dir=catalog

This one is an honorable mention since its price tag is way up there. However, the times I've needed it, it's been inescapably handy. It cost me a week and a half's pay when I bought one 5 years ago, but for all the times I've been working on a vehicle away from electricity or an air compressor, it's been worth its weight in gold.

I prefer my 19.2v Craftsman. Definitely handy and a slightly cheaper alternative. Many times I have broken stubborn lug nuts loose in a parking lot.

 

[Ridge Runner]

I prefer my 19.2v Craftsman. Definitely handy and a slightly cheaper alternative. Many times I have broken stubborn lug nuts loose in a parking lot.

Aye. For most jobs a regular cordless impact will work. I got mine for working on old stuff and crawling around junk yards since it has enough torque to break most bolts that it can't bust loose.

 

[alexfm]

All Weather Powered USB Port

Linky.

USB 12 Volt All Weather Power Outlet and Charger - $19.99 + shipping (Plus whatever other neat stuff you find on the site, loads of great stuff to buy. )

I bought one of these late last year for my XJ. I haven't mounted it yet, so I can't attest to its performance yet but it is a stout little gadget. Come's with a little mounting bracket and fairly long wires. I plan on using it to charge my iPod and cell phone whenever I get it wired in.

 

[mep1811]

Creature comforts

I got this metal over the door hook at Walmart.

I have found that carrying a hook like this very helpful when using public restrooms. Most times there is not a hook to put your coat, shirt, bag.

 

[Mc Taco]

Solar powered Christmas lights (white). They make for a pleasant low light around camp/tent. Recharge during the day's travels. No pictures or links. Find them usually at the big box retailers like Target or Wal-Mart during the holiday madness. Pretty cheap, under $10 for 10-15 foot length. Usually sell out pretty quick too.

 

[Jeff@QuadShop]

I took this nifty little 140w power inverter and flush mounted it into the dash. It has one 110 outlet and one USB outlet. It's great for a laptop or iPad...






It even has a little built in fan...

 

[GlennA]

That is great. I'm impressed.

I took this nifty little 140w power inverter and flush mounted it into the dash. It has one 110 outlet and one USB outlet. It's great for a laptop or iPad...


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It even has a little built in fan...

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[atavuss]

Another nice gadget I use while on trips to recharge my ipod a 12v USB port.
You can find them at Wal-Mart also cost around $6.99

This should also work to recharge Go-Pro batteries. I recharge the batteries in the battery backpac instead of when they are in the camera..............

I have several of these (they are Blue Point from Snap on though) one is a 24 light and the other is a 48 light one, they both use batteries. I have used them for back up lights behind my Bantam 1/4 ton trailer
http://www.autotoolworld.com/Ullman-Devices-Corp-RT-2LT-Rotating-Magnetic-LED-Work-Light_p_118288.html

 

[Jeff@QuadShop]

So I was looking around trying to find some kind of LED flood light that I can shine out the back of my topper that I could easily point anywhere that's needed. I found a couple of ones on line but they were over $45.
We sell bulbs where I work so I started looking around and found a 12v LED MR16 that I figured that I could do something with. I went to Home Depot and found this flexible gas line that would do exactly what I was wanting for $9.

Solder the wires to the posts...

Heat shrink...

The bulbs plastic base will actually thread itself into the end of the fitting very nicely...

This thing is super bright and uses almost no power. You can bend this in any shape needed and it will stay there nice and steady untill your ready to move it back out of the way or into a different position. I'll post pics next week showing how I mounted it and some night shots...

I used a couple of 1/2" pipe clamps to mount it to the topper...

 

[the Rewster]

Cool!

 

[nwoods]

Magnetic LED worklight

I love these small (child's hand sized) magnetic LED worklights. They are awesome on the trail at night under your rig....
You can find them anywhere, for about $15 or less. I get mine at NAPA, or Autozone