David K
Honored Nomad
Posts: 64854
Registered: 8-30-2002
Location: San Diego County
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Mood: Have Baja Fever
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My Light Bar has been modified for 4 lights!
Originally, Josh (of Stewart's Raceworks, Santee, CA) made my '05 Tacoma a custom light bar for my two HID lights... they cracked (the plastic
housing) after on Baja trip with lots of washboard roads.
Josh repaired them with fiberglass, but then I got a pair of Hella 4000 metal lamps (100 watt pencil beams) and installed them on my bar... The '05
was changed to the '10, and the light bar was moved onto the new truck... The place the bar mounted had changed slightly and it wiggled a lot...
Today, Josh modified the mounting locartion to stop the shaking and changed the two tabs to four... then did a great job with the wires and new light
switches.
Stewart's raceworks is where Baja and desert racers get built, modified, repaired and ready... Custom 'luxury' 4WD pre-runners like the Ford Raptor
truck are also made there!
Okay, back to my Tacoma and the modified light bar!
Easy to see the difference between a halogen (yellow-white) light and an HID (blue-white) light output color.
Later tonight...
STOCK TACOMA HIGH BEAMS:
ADD 7" HID EURO BEAM Kragens:
ADD 8" HELLA 4000 100 watt halogen Pencil Beams:
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racheldarlin
Junior Nomad
Posts: 69
Registered: 9-30-2010
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Very nice looking mod. The pics clearly show the difference in illumination but I'm sure they don't do justice to the reality.
I saw a rig like yours yesterday. Had a stinger on the front, canopy w/rack, and looked like 33" tires. Said Baja all over it!!
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David K
Honored Nomad
Posts: 64854
Registered: 8-30-2002
Location: San Diego County
Member Is Offline
Mood: Have Baja Fever
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That lights working photo set was by my house, I may need to aim them more, but need a big field or long road... I just wanted to show the difference
last night with the new set up working.
You can surely see the amount of light difference between stock, legal headights and HIDs added, and how they benefit ones vision at night in the
desert. The third photo shows how the pencil beams throw their light way far down the road. The three photos were taken from inside the truck.
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racheldarlin
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Registered: 9-30-2010
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David
I wasn't being critical. I can clearly see the difference. I was just saying the photos probably cannot do justice the real enhanced illumination
so.......
When you get it out in the boonies it will be interesting to hear how far down the road your set up (by measurement) will throw light at each stage.
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David K
Honored Nomad
Posts: 64854
Registered: 8-30-2002
Location: San Diego County
Member Is Offline
Mood: Have Baja Fever
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Quote: | Originally posted by racheldarlin
David
I wasn't being critical. I can clearly see the difference. I was just saying the photos probably cannot do justice the real enhanced illumination
so.......
When you get it out in the boonies it will be interesting to hear how far down the road your set up (by measurement) will throw light at each stage.
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I didn't take it as critical... no worries!
When I get out of town to a big field or long road, I will shoot more photos at night to see the various lights working.
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Barry A.
Select Nomad
Posts: 10007
Registered: 11-30-2003
Location: Redding, Northern CA
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Mood: optimistic
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2 comments/concerns-------
I thought we were not supposed to drive in Baja at night?
I am wondering if the configuration of your lights interferes with air flow to the radiator to such an extent that you may have overheating problems?
(I had that problem once)
Barry
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David K
Honored Nomad
Posts: 64854
Registered: 8-30-2002
Location: San Diego County
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Mood: Have Baja Fever
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I see many vehicles with full light bars like this... so I am not worried... If that does happen, I can simply remove them in a couple minutes!
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Baja12valve
Nomad
Posts: 185
Registered: 7-12-2006
Location: Oak View
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I put airplane landing lights on my truck. I can tell if a dime is heads or tails from 150'.
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Barry A.
Select Nomad
Posts: 10007
Registered: 11-30-2003
Location: Redding, Northern CA
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Mood: optimistic
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Quote: | Originally posted by Baja12valve
I put airplane landing lights on my truck. I can tell if a dime is heads or tails from 150'. |
Ha!!!! I did the same thing about 40 years ago--------worked super, but they do draw a LOT of amps. A bigger alternator solved that problem.
Landing lights were free from a wrecked airplane.
Fun, fun!!! Not to many serious off-road lights seen in those days.
I still have a couple mounted on a Yakima roof bar-----but only use in Baja.
barry
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TheBajaKid
Junior Nomad
Posts: 80
Registered: 1-27-2011
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Looks nice David k. Did you mess up your light bar this weekend in the snow? One of your pics from this lats weekend looked like one light was
mounted different ? or was it just me?
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Baja12valve
Nomad
Posts: 185
Registered: 7-12-2006
Location: Oak View
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Draw lots of amps, they do, but you don't get something for nothing! I used to work in Special Effects, they had bins of the bulbs and they were
getting rid of them. I still have a bunch in reserve. I too have had them for decades. Love 'em.
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David K
Honored Nomad
Posts: 64854
Registered: 8-30-2002
Location: San Diego County
Member Is Offline
Mood: Have Baja Fever
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Quote: | Originally posted by whistler
Racedezert website has video of Stewart's Raceworks build of the Raptor.Awesome fabrication.Wish my welds looked half as good as theirs.
Looks good,David. |
That first video of the Raptor project mostly featured Keith doing the work... Keith was at the shop for a bit yesterday. Josh (Baja Angel's son) will
be featured a lot in Part 4 of that series as he did most of the interior work, wiring, etc..
Only Part 1 is on You Tube, so far... It was very well done. Can you see how much Josh's boss (Craig) looks like Ivan Stewart?
Have a look... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e94KR97acTQ&feature=playe...
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David K
Honored Nomad
Posts: 64854
Registered: 8-30-2002
Location: San Diego County
Member Is Offline
Mood: Have Baja Fever
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Quote: | Originally posted by TheBajaKid
Looks nice David k. Did you mess up your light bar this weekend in the snow? One of your pics from this lats weekend looked like one light was
mounted different ? or was it just me? |
No, nothing messed in the snow at all..
One of the metal tabs for the Hella lamp cracked a while ago, so I put a temporary clamp on mount from KC Lights company. Good eyes!
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