Debating An Offroading Lighting Idea

[tommudd]

Oh forgot and a center brace as well
I think it looks good to have the lights at different heights
2 outside little lower than two centers
Had these Hellas sit up that way

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[jeeplib05]

Oh forgot and a center brace as well
I think it looks good to have the lights at different heights
2 outside little lower than two centers
Had these Hellas sit up that way

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Love the look without the front bumper
Just wish there was one that would make it look that way!
Even without one it still looks good the way you have it but I'd want to have SOMETHING there
It makes the lift look huge

 

[tommudd]

Love the look without the front bumper
Just wish there was one that would make it look that way!
Even without one it still looks good the way you have it but I'd want to have SOMETHING there
It makes the lift look huge

There is something there LOL

 

[profdlp]

Ordered a bunch of brackets and two small lights for the rear. I'm hoping they do the job. If so, the next step will be to come up with a wiring solution. I'm pretty confident about the wiring part (I worked for a Master Electrician for four years, though not strictly as an electrician), but the connectors on the military lights are...different. It should be fun.

 

[tommudd]

Can you get inside of the lights?

 

[TwoBobsKJ]

Ordered a bunch of brackets and two small lights for the rear. I'm hoping they do the job. If so, the next step will be to come up with a wiring solution. I'm pretty confident about the wiring part (I worked for a Master Electrician for four years, though not strictly as an electrician), but the connectors on the military lights are...different. It should be fun.

I can take pics of how I did the rear lights on mine - including the rocker switch and cover I got from OTRATTW. Let me know and I'll PM ya.


Bob

 

[profdlp]

Can you get inside of the lights?

Yes. There is a housing bolt every ninety degrees around the lens cover. (They are the bumps on the sides.)

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The connectors are visible here in the black rings:

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The bulbs are actually Hi/Lo beam. (They will be replaced as they are infrared currently). The two connectors you see are for Hi and Lo and the common ground is made through the mounting bolt.

I'd like to find a connector made for them but the MilSpec stuff can be outrageously expensive. They look like a reverse of the banana plugs like you'd use in an ohmmeter. (i.e., a female version. Oooohhhh!)

I can take pics of how I did the rear lights on mine - including the rocker switch and cover I got from OTRATTW. Let me know and I'll PM ya.

I "think" I have a clear idea of what I want to do, but I am very open to suggestions!

 

[uss2defiant]

you just need an IR camera instead

 

[tommudd]

Yes. There is a housing bolt every ninety degrees around the lens cover. (They are the bumps on the sides.)

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The connectors are visible here in the black rings:

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The bulbs are actually Hi/Lo beam. (They will be replaced as they are infrared currently). The two connectors you see are for Hi and Lo and the common ground is made through the mounting bolt.

I'd like to find a connector made for them but the MilSpec stuff can be outrageously expensive. They look like a reverse of the banana plugs like you'd use in an ohmmeter. (i.e., a female version. Oooohhhh!)


I "think" I have a clear idea of what I want to do, but I am very open to suggestions!

OK yes should not be an issue at all really , stop by a ARMY-NAVY surplus store and see if they have any wiring for the lights, just need the connectors of course. Or an old time electrical supply place
BUT, what if you remove the 3 phillips head screws that hold the connector on? bet you can get in behind and change those connectors to something else

 

[profdlp]

Dissected one of the lights so I could go to the hardware store and try to find some electrical fittings, etc.

Before surgery:

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The discoloration is only really visible in the pictures. In real life you don't see it. I think it might be a light anti-rust film:

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Side view. The black do-hickey is one of the electrical fittings:

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The back, with a better view of the electrical fittings. The black part is a semi-soft rubber and the contact is a thick metal pin (barely visible) in the middle:

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The bottom, with a good look at the mounting bolt:

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The bottom again, with the mounting hardware removed:

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[profdlp]

These are actually listed as fog lights for the Humvee. This is a variation of what I have and are mounted to the outside:

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I'm thinking they bolt down into a slot, as I hope to show in the next few pictures. There is a large concave washer:

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And there is another somewhat smaller piece which looks like two concave washers welded back-to-back. Think "Lost in Space" Jupiter II:

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The way the two pieces (the big concave washer and the smaller double-washer) fit together allow them to rotate in any direction and at any angle.

 

[profdlp]

Here is the front lens cover removed:

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And the light itself without the lens cover:

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The lens cover, mounting ring, and front cover ring:

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Another view:

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There are several small touches, like retaining c-rings for most of the screws. If you had to change a bulb on the battlefield you wouldn't want to lose any screws!

 

[profdlp]

The insides. You can see the heavy gauge wire. Two wires lead to the black fittings on the back for Hi and Low beams and the ground wire goes straight to the mounting bolt:

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The back of the bulb showing the MilSpec (MS) number:

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The inside with the bulb removed:

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The light, reassembled without the infrared lens cover. I would leave it this way but there is enough of a gap between the bulb and the housing at the front that I'm afraid I'd get serious wind noise, especially with four of them up there:

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My job now is the following:

• Find clear replacement lens covers
• Replace the 28V lights with 12V versions
• Find a way to get the lights wired up

The first two shouldn't be too difficult. As for the wiring, I'm definitely looking at Tom's suggestion of ditching the weirdo military plugs and just wiring something straight in. I am also weighing the advantages of keeping them Hi/Low beam or just sticking with one or the other. I'm leaning toward keeping both and having a separate switch for each. Then I could have Hi, Low, or both at the same time. I don't know how much juice these would draw, but I could even put the two options on separate relays just in case.

 

[profdlp]

On to the mounting bracket. There was no way I was going to pay the ridiculous prices (some over $40 each) I've seen at some places for simple mounting brackets. I would find a good welder and have a custom mounting bar made first - and might save money.

Then I found these online for $15 a pair including shipping:

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The housing is aluminum and the two pairs of split pieces are different sized rubber inserts so you get a good clamp on the bar. I was worried they would be too big for my roof basket bars but the larger set fits perfectly, as in I really have to crank down with the screwdriver to compress the rubber inserts.

 

[profdlp]

And just to round things out, I bought some inexpensive LED lights to use as work lights on the rear of the cargo rack:

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I did this on the spur of the moment right after I ordered a set of four brackets for the front (military) lights. Then I raced back and ordered another pair of brackets for these. Good old UPS says that all six brackets (three pair) have been delivered but I only have four (two pair) of them. The company says they shipped both orders, so...

 

[uss2defiant]

i think for the lens, look for a replace lens for a spot light or buy a cheap spot light that has a larger diameter than yours then cut it to size.

This is going to be tough to do w/ this custom job.
I'm still figuring out how to route my wires to my aux reverse light that will be mounted on the roof from the trailer 7 pin hitch connector.

 

[profdlp]

Well, after a year* of searching for replacement lenses for the IR one the lights came with, I am about to give up. There were several guys on another (non-Jeep) forum who claimed they had no trouble finding them, but none of them could be arsed enough to answer me when I asked them where. I have the bulbs and wiring connector issues all worked out and have already bought the mounting brackets, so this is a shame.

Unless I get a brilliant idea on how to do this I will be going another route.

*It was not quite a full year as I spent a few weekends here and there helping OJ look for the real killer.

 

[tommudd]

What size again?
Looked at aviation sites ?

 

[tommudd]

And just to round things out, I bought some inexpensive LED lights to use as work lights on the rear of the cargo rack:

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I did this on the spur of the moment right after I ordered a set of four brackets for the front (military) lights. Then I raced back and ordered another pair of brackets for these. Good old UPS says that all six brackets (three pair) have been delivered but I only have four (two pair) of them. The company says they shipped both orders, so...

I had two sets of them given to me by a company to test, ended up selling on set to TwoBobs and the other tossed in a box somewhere with the other various LEDs I have that were tested :happy175:

work for backups, did you get the beam pattern or the fog pattern ?

 

[profdlp]

What size again?
Looked at aviation sites ?

4-3/8" diameter, which is the outside measurement. There is a flange just inside of that which is designed to help with the waterproof seal so the part that is visible inside the mounting ring is 3-3/4". I think I could make anything from 4" up to 4-3/8" work.

When I say I have looked everywhere, it has included some in-person stuff (they mostly give me dumb looks), lots of Internet searches (lots of close-but-no-cigar), and a lot of phone calls (You want WHAT? >click<).

So, yeah... :Insane: