How To: Mount a 42" curved LED light bar to your KJ

[NWGIX]

Where do you run the switch to turn it on/off? I can't seem to find any holes in the fire wall

 

[Myke]

Where do you run the switch to turn it on/off? I can't seem to find any holes in the fire wall

There is a hole if you look under the pedals.

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[NWGIX]

There is a hole if you look under the pedals.

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Thanks, I'll have to check it out tomorrow when this storm passes

 

[Aztimer2]

Hey everyone! With some help/ideas from jeeplib05 I wanted to show you what exactly it took to get my 42" curved LED light bar mounted just above the top of my windshield. I am not a mechanic, I am not a professional, but sometimes I can figure stuff out. :weld:



Tools Required:

Philips head screwdriver

Drill with 3/16 or smaller bit

Allen Key (Most light bars come with one to tighten bolt that goes through the mount into the light bar)

Tape Measure

Marker

Loctite





Parts Required:

99-06 Chevy Silverado/GMC Sierra 52" curved light bar mounts by OMotor (Yes 52" is correct for the mounts but the KJ will only fit a 42" curved bar) - $20.99

Auxbeam 42" 5D Curved LED Lightbar 240w - $129.99

1/4" width 1/2" length sheet metal screws (Quantity 6) I went to my local fastenal and they had these in packs of 3 for ~$2.50





About the light bar and why I purchased this specific one.

Light bars range in price from less than $100 all the way up and over $1000. If you have the cash and want a top of the line bar Rigid Industries seems to be the go to company. If you're spending less than $400-500 you'll notice all of the light bars from Amazon to Ebay look nearly identical. I believe they are all produced over sees (China) by a handful of factories unbranded. Then Auxbeam, Autofeel, Eyourlife, RigidHorse, etc slaps their logo on it and calls it a day. Not trusting Amazon reviews I waited until I spoke with someone who actually owned a bar and got their thoughts on it. jeeplib05 was that someone, but don't go blaming him/me if you get a dud. Auxbeam does have their own site they sell from but the prices were better on Amazon, with Prime I don't have to pay shipping, and I trust Amazon's customer service to help me out if I have any issues within the first year (length of warranty from nearly all the cheaper light bar sellers).





1) Where to put the mounts

I measured 0.5" back from the top of the windshield top weatherstripping, held up the gmc mount and marked the holes with my marker. I then drilled 3 pilot holes ~1/4" deep.



The gmc mounts come with a "gasket" that sticks to the side of the mount that goes against the vehicle. You don't need to worry about leaks because this is drilled into the rail and not the roof itself. I still put it on as sort of a spacer.



Use 3 of the sheet metal screws per mount. I put loctite on them and hand tightened them with a philips screw driver.



That it's for the mounts.

You must be registered for see images attach

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Now to add the light bar itself to the mounts. There is one bolt that goes through the mount into the light bar itself. This bolt came with my light bar (one for each side). The bolt itself is slightly too long with the GMC mounts so I used the rubber gasket that is supposed to be used with the mounts that come with the bar and stuck it between the gmc mount and the light bar. You can see this in the pic below

You must be registered for see images

I will be replacing this rubber with something stiffer. Since it is so soft you need to really crank the bolts down for the bar to not tilt up/down by itself. I will update this post once I take care of this on my next day off.



What about wiring it up?

This light bar came with a wiring harness, 40amp relay, 30 watt inline fuse, and a switch with an led that is red while off and green while on. The red led stays on even if you turn your car off but it draws such a minuscule amount of power you don't need to worry about it. I tucked the wire from the bar into the gap between the a pillar and windshield. You can see this in the picture above. You can probably pull out the cowl and tuck the wire under it and go into the engine compartment but I just went over the cowl and under the hood for now. I will be running running the wiring for the switch through the firewall on my next day off. Right now I just run the switch wire out of the drivers side cowl and through the door jam temporarily. See pics below.

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The wiring is 14-16awg. I left it on for a bit and none of the wires got warm to the touch. This bar claims to draw 240w@12v which is 20 amps. I will be upgrading the wiring to 10 or 12awg wire with a cooler looking switch :emotions34:



Additional Pictures:

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Why the tape over the cooling fins?



The tape is a temporary fix to what I can only describe as an EVIL sound! While doing research before purchasing a light bar I would see people complaining about their light bar "whistling". No big deal I thought it's probably just the wind hitting the flat front surface of the bar. Oh boy was I wrong. This is exactly what it sounded like every time I went over 40mph.

Light bar "Whistle" https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sSvjCxJCa4w



Apparently the wind going under the bar causes these fins to act like the devils harmonica. At night here it's between 30 - 45 degrees so my light bar is always cold so I'm not worried about overheating the LED drivers. I will be removing the tape and placing some silicon between the fins to prevent it from over heating come spring/summer.

That's some scary sounding noise. Would that happen on the high dollar lights?



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[jeeplib05]

Doesn't matter what brand, it's the way it's mounted that causes the noise
The more expensive ones are no different than the cheaper ones, just use their "high quality" LEDs, sealant, lenses, etc and slap their name on it to sell it for a way higher price
I saw a comparison video of a cheap eBay one and a $400 one and the cheaper one had better spread and better useable light
Auxbeam is a great brand for auxiliary lighting, they're the only company I have used and the only one I would use

 

[Myke]

The sound will happen to all of them in that position. There are kits with stuff to put over the fins that will prevent it but I just used gorilla tape.

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[dchadjohnson]

started to look into the possibility of adding a lightbar to my roof and/or bumper/grill but then got scared off by reading stories of people failing VA inspection due to illegal lights...anybody have experience with this?

 

[Myke]

started to look into the possibility of adding a lightbar to my roof and/or bumper/grill but then got scared off by reading stories of people failing VA inspection due to illegal lights...anybody have experience with this?

I ended up soldering in a quick disconnect for the wiring. I can just unplug it and remove 2 bolts to take it out. Can't fail you for just having the mounts.

Sent from my SM-N910V using Tapatalk

 

[tommudd]

started to look into the possibility of adding a lightbar to my roof and/or bumper/grill but then got scared off by reading stories of people failing VA inspection due to illegal lights...anybody have experience with this?

Virginia is one of those states which are very strict on adding a lot of extra lights. Many others are as well.
Others need to as well to get the Bro trucks to stop running LEDs on the cab, bumper etc all day long, stupid !

 

[tommudd]

I ended up soldering in a quick disconnect for the wiring. I can just unplug it and remove 2 bolts to take it out. Can't fail you for just having the mounts.

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But if you do something else, i.e. speed, illegal turn or anything else, then they have you for what you did plus the lights.

 

[Myke]

But if you do something else, i.e. speed, illegal turn or anything else, then they have you for what you did plus the lights.

Ah I didn't know you could be ticketed for it.

I would look into a light bar cover.

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[2023matt]

Hey everyone! With some help/ideas from jeeplib05 I wanted to show you what exactly it took to get my 42" curved LED light bar mounted just above the top of my windshield. I am not a mechanic, I am not a professional, but sometimes I can figure stuff out. :weld:



Tools Required:

Philips head screwdriver

Drill with 3/16 or smaller bit

Allen Key (Most light bars come with one to tighten bolt that goes through the mount into the light bar)

Tape Measure

Marker

Loctite





Parts Required:

99-06 Chevy Silverado/GMC Sierra 52" curved light bar mounts by OMotor (Yes 52" is correct for the mounts but the KJ will only fit a 42" curved bar) - $20.99

Auxbeam 42" 5D Curved LED Lightbar 240w - $129.99

1/4" width 1/2" length sheet metal screws (Quantity 6) I went to my local fastenal and they had these in packs of 3 for ~$2.50





About the light bar and why I purchased this specific one.

Light bars range in price from less than $100 all the way up and over $1000. If you have the cash and want a top of the line bar Rigid Industries seems to be the go to company. If you're spending less than $400-500 you'll notice all of the light bars from Amazon to Ebay look nearly identical. I believe they are all produced over sees (China) by a handful of factories unbranded. Then Auxbeam, Autofeel, Eyourlife, RigidHorse, etc slaps their logo on it and calls it a day. Not trusting Amazon reviews I waited until I spoke with someone who actually owned a bar and got their thoughts on it. jeeplib05 was that someone, but don't go blaming him/me if you get a dud. Auxbeam does have their own site they sell from but the prices were better on Amazon, with Prime I don't have to pay shipping, and I trust Amazon's customer service to help me out if I have any issues within the first year (length of warranty from nearly all the cheaper light bar sellers).





1) Where to put the mounts

I measured 0.5" back from the top of the windshield top weatherstripping, held up the gmc mount and marked the holes with my marker. I then drilled 3 pilot holes ~1/4" deep.



The gmc mounts come with a "gasket" that sticks to the side of the mount that goes against the vehicle. You don't need to worry about leaks because this is drilled into the rail and not the roof itself. I still put it on as sort of a spacer.



Use 3 of the sheet metal screws per mount. I put loctite on them and hand tightened them with a philips screw driver.



That it's for the mounts.

You must be registered for see images attach

You must be registered for see images attach

Now to add the light bar itself to the mounts. There is one bolt that goes through the mount into the light bar itself. This bolt came with my light bar (one for each side). The bolt itself is slightly too long with the GMC mounts so I used the rubber gasket that is supposed to be used with the mounts that come with the bar and stuck it between the gmc mount and the light bar. You can see this in the pic below

You must be registered for see images

I will be replacing this rubber with something stiffer. Since it is so soft you need to really crank the bolts down for the bar to not tilt up/down by itself. I will update this post once I take care of this on my next day off.



What about wiring it up?

This light bar came with a wiring harness, 40amp relay, 30 watt inline fuse, and a switch with an led that is red while off and green while on. The red led stays on even if you turn your car off but it draws such a minuscule amount of power you don't need to worry about it. I tucked the wire from the bar into the gap between the a pillar and windshield. You can see this in the picture above. You can probably pull out the cowl and tuck the wire under it and go into the engine compartment but I just went over the cowl and under the hood for now. I will be running running the wiring for the switch through the firewall on my next day off. Right now I just run the switch wire out of the drivers side cowl and through the door jam temporarily. See pics below.

You must be registered for see images attach

You must be registered for see images

The wiring is 14-16awg. I left it on for a bit and none of the wires got warm to the touch. This bar claims to draw 240w@12v which is 20 amps. I will be upgrading the wiring to 10 or 12awg wire with a cooler looking switch :emotions34:



Additional Pictures:

You must be registered for see images

You must be registered for see images attach

You must be registered for see images attach

You must be registered for see images attach

You must be registered for see images

Why the tape over the cooling fins?



The tape is a temporary fix to what I can only describe as an EVIL sound! While doing research before purchasing a light bar I would see people complaining about their light bar "whistling". No big deal I thought it's probably just the wind hitting the flat front surface of the bar. Oh boy was I wrong. This is exactly what it sounded like every time I went over 40mph.

Light bar "Whistle" https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sSvjCxJCa4w



Apparently the wind going under the bar causes these fins to act like the devils harmonica. At night here it's between 30 - 45 degrees so my light bar is always cold so I'm not worried about overheating the LED drivers. I will be removing the tape and placing some silicon between the fins to prevent it from over heating come spring/summer.

Would it matter if I had a sunroof? I don't want to drill into any thing that would break it.


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[Myke]

Would it matter if I had a sunroof? I don't want to drill into any thing that would break it.


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I don't have one but maybe someone else who does can answer if there is anything there I think the sunroof sits farther back though.

 

[uss2defiant]

i would say depends on how long the screws are since the drain hose would be around that region.

 

[Aceofspades]

Any ideas on light bars since this was made?

https://rover.ebay.com/rover/0/0/0?mpre=https://www.ebay.com/ulk/itm/273057715216

“8D” lens , remote switch / less wiring , lumiled chips etc

So many brands styles designs - just want something solid

 

[jeeplib05]

“8D” ..
Well I can assure you that it surely isn’t an “8D” lense setup considering there is no such thing, especially since it has what looks like flashlight reflectors

Now, if you want reasonably priced light bars that are built and work great, then checkout https://www.auxbeam.com/led-light-bars/32-49-inch-led-light-bars/32-42.9-inch-offroad/70023818

They offer the 5D lense which is a real setup for the most light output
I’ve personally had their 23” 5D lightbar for almost 2 years now and it still works and looks brand new- their 42” for over a year as well I believe and same thing

 

[Aceofspades]

Interesting.... was also seeing some use a remote and some use a button.
Thanks for advice. Looks like you can’t always trust those eBay descriptions

 

[Myke]

Interesting.... was also seeing some use a remote and some use a button.
Thanks for advice. Looks like you can’t always trust those eBay descriptions

I only seen one wireless light bar and it stopped working while we were wheeling.

I have 2 auxbeam lightbars and they work great. Just don't use their cheap relays. Spend a few bucks and either make your own wiring harness (14awg copper wire and a 40amp water proof relay) or buy a quality wiring harness.

 

[Aceofspades]

Ok point taken. I was looking at lights similar to what I posted thinking it was something new that was being offered and possibly easier install having a remote fob for the light

 

[Kerry]

Believe it or not I got that horrible whistling noise at bay by installing weatherstripping from lowes on the back fins. It disrupted the airflow enough to make the whistling stop. On my bar the little white plastic teeth actually fit snugly in the slats of the bar and it stays without any tape or adhesive. Maybe it will work on your application!

This is a picture of the specific type I used:

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I had the same light bar on my last truck. I cured the wind noise by extending the bottom (rear) fin. I did this with a flat piece of aluminium 50mmx3mm thick, and slotted it inbetween the 2 lower fins into a bed of silicone.
Of course it is curved, so I did it in 3 sections.

The glare throught the windscreen onto the dash is another issue, I used the rest of the aluminium I had left over to attach to the bottom front of the light bar to guide the light upward. Worked a treat. Looks a bit ugly tho.
I sold the truck or would attach a decent photo, the ones I have dont show it that clearly.