LED off road lights

[Little Red]

Not sure if this is the right thread to post this under but I am looking for some LED spot lights / work lights to mount on my roof rack.

I want to use LED lights so I can leave them on for hours without the engine running, for when I am camping or park my car at an accident scene. (I am a volunteer fire fighter/EMT)

Does anyone here use LED spot/work lights? And where could I buy them?
I have seen some that are made in china but look like they are poor quality.
Is there a company that makes these in the US?

Thanks for your input.

 

[Marcie's Disco]

There's a couple of threads on LED Worklamps here on ExPo. I drug these links from one of the threads.

http://www.rigidindustries.com/category_s/90.htm
http://www.truck-lite.com/webapp/wc...0001&storeId=10001&categoryId=10328&langId=-1
http://www.grote.com/product.php?product_number=63871-5

Here are some offerings from Ridgid, Truck-lite and Grote. All are respected names in industry. A Google search reveals lots of off brand imports from China becoming available. Keep us posted on your selection and impressions. I like the stingey power draws of LED but don't like the harshness of the light on most of the white lights. I would like to have an LED worklight but want to make sure it is on the reasonably warm end of the spectrum.

`

 

[corax]

Really depends on your budget, intended use and how much light you need. Generally, the brighter the light, the more you'll pay. If you're looking for something that'll let you see in a smaller area without ruining your night vision, maybe try a set of cheap (<$20/pr at most parts stores) riced out driving lights.

If you're looking for something that will light up a larger area, these run ~$50 each.

I've been playing around flexible LED strips and found them to a low cost solution for smaller areas and interior spaces

 

[Hilldweller]

I'm waiting for a set of Truck-Lite LED spots to arrive; I'm going to wire them to come on with my JW Speaker #8700 LED headlights.
I'll do a review on them in the general vehicle mods section afterward. I've already begun a 7" round headlight shoot-out there.

Both Truck-Lite and JW Speaker make a huge selection of very rugged lights; I can give you contact info for tech people at either company if you want.
Cheap lights won't save lives...

Be mindful of your battery. Even LEDs will suck juice. Might want a dual battery set-up.
A pair of Yellow-Tops would be perfect.

 

[Little Red]

LED lights

Thanks for the posts so far, I have been looking at some different manufacturers and these are closest to what I am looking for.

Grote LED WhiteLight&#8482; Work Lamp

And I actually found out Hella makes LED work lights too:

Hella 70mm LED Work Lamp

Now what I want to know is how much AMPS these lights draw and the price.
Going to make some phone calls tomorrow and find out.

There are a lot of odd shaped LED lights that could be used for spot light as well (the long bar lights and very thin round one's) but I just don't like the shape of them and they don't look very strong.

So is there anyone that is actually using LED work / spot lights on their vehicle?
I am interested to know how the light output is; usually LED lights are bright but do not reach very far or spread out.

 

[1leglance]

If your goal is a great LED light made in the USA then Rigid LED Lights is the way to go.
http://www.rigidindustries.com/Off-Road-LED-Lights-s/89.htm
I love mine and I have never heard anything bad about them, watch this video to see them beating the crap out of a light
[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CZPDQrrZLWY&feature=player_embedded"]YouTube - Rigid Industries E-series testing[/ame]

I have visited their shop and they really care about the enduser.

Scott Brady has the small 2x2 bulb work light on the Overland JK and it throws plenty of task light. I use 6" lights on the sides and rear of my roof rack which is 10 feet off the ground and they allow me to see side trails or everyone in my group to set up camp if we arrive late.

 

[Little Red]

If your goal is a great LED light made in the USA then Rigid LED Lights is the way to go.
http://www.rigidindustries.com/Off-Road-LED-Lights-s/89.htm

I agree their lights appear to be very tough but it also comes with a $234.99 price tag for just one light.

Rigid industries 4" "E" Series LED Light Bar

The Hella 70 LED work light that I mentioned before costs around $145
The Grote work light light I mentioned before costs between $88 and $100 depending on the lens you select.

 

[Hilldweller]

So is there anyone that is actually using LED work / spot lights on their vehicle?
I am interested to know how the light output is; usually LED lights are bright but do not reach very far or spread out.

Here is the light produced by a set of Truck-Lite 7" LED headlights that were fed 14+ volts; they have a flood version of this as well:

Lowbeam

Highbeam

I'm waiting for a set of their "spot" pattern lights to test as well. I cosider these the most robust of the offroad lights made.

Rigid Industries has their Dually 3" cubes (claimed ~1200lm) for $190/pair from 4WheelParts; nice lights at a nice price. Might be a winner for you, actually.
They also have their new Dually D2, same size, and ~3600 claimed lm. Wowser.

Right now I'm running JW Speaker #8700 LED headlights.

Lowbeam, aimed incorrectly (too low)

Highbeam, also aimed poorly

Speaker makes amazing LED products and represents the best of what is available in automotive LED lighting right now.

Ryan or John at JW Speaker or Jerry at Truck-Lite can help you out and give you actual amperage numbers that aren't wishful thinking.

 

[willtel]

And I actually found out Hella makes LED work lights too:

Hella 70mm LED Work Lamp

Now what I want to know is how much AMPS these lights draw and the price.
Going to make some phone calls tomorrow and find out.

I have one of the Hella LED lights on the back of my Bronco. It is bright and the lens stays cool to the touch.


IMG_4415 by willtel, on Flickr


IMG_4380 by willtel, on Flickr


IMG_4379 by willtel, on Flickr

 

[teotwaki]

Are those Hella 70s really $300-ish a pair?

 

[willtel]

Are those Hella 70s really $300-ish a pair?

It seems so. I'm sure you could get a lot more light for you dollar but I wanted something that had low draw, stainless hardware, vibration resistant, and had a housing small enough to fit through the center bore of my spare.

 

[teotwaki]

......a housing small enough to fit through the center bore of my spare.

I did note that location in your picture and that was a nice spot to give the light some height

 

[Little Red]

Are those Hella 70s really $300-ish a pair?

they are $150 on [ame="http://www.amazon.com/Hella-996176721-9V-33V-Multi-Voltage-Close/dp/B0030YWLKA"]Amazon.com [/ame]with free shipping.

 

[Little Red]

LED Headlights

Right now I'm running JW Speaker #8700 LED headlights.

LED technology has came a long ways, those lights look very bright.
Also I would like to hear about the floodlights you plan on testing.
And nice Jeep BTW!

Willtel thanks for the pictures, nice to see someone is using these Hella lights.
I am going to ask them how much AMPS these lights draw and I think I might be buying a set of these for on the back of my roof rack.

Thanks to everyone for all the posts and keep them coming...

 

[450 DUDE]

I have one of the Grote PAR 36 ? led worklamps, its a flood pattern puts out good amount of light but not sun bright. Its made in the US and I believe it will last forever.

ken