P500 Cheap aux. light power consumption.

[bigbore]

I picked up another set of 6 LED 18 watt lights, these were 30 degree spots. There seems to be a wide range of prices on these style of lights. I'm experimenting so I went cheap. They are supposed to be IP67 rated.

2x 4inch 18W CREE LED LIGHT BAR WORK FLOOD/SPOT LAMP OFFROAD BOAT UTE CAR TRUCK

(Edited to describe topic) I noticed these lights required 4 amps of available power to start at 12 volts. If started with less than 4 amps, the lights started and ran at just under 9 volts. Simple watt calc. indicated less efficiency too.

http://vid1211.photobucket.com/albums/cc433/bigb0r3/MVI_3313_zpst7z5v7y4.mp4


These look promising to augment the OEM headlights. I'll run some tests in the field in the future comparing the 30 degree against the 60s.

 

[Admin]

 

[joeymt33]

Cool equipment you got there. That's interesting that the light needs 4 amps to start.

What happens if you start the light at 4 amps and then pull power away?

What happens if you give the light 13 volts to mimic a running vehicle? Do you have a light meter to measure the difference?

Cool stuff man, keep it up.


Sent from my iPhone 10s

 

[bigbore]

Cool equipment you got there. That's interesting that the light needs 4 amps to start.

What happens if you start the light at 4 amps and then pull power away?

What happens if you give the light 13 volts to mimic a running vehicle? Do you have a light meter to measure the difference?

Cool stuff man, keep it up.


Sent from my iPhone 10s

They need 4 amps to start at 12 volts. When they run at 8.9 they draw more amps which translates into almost the same wattage - a different way to do the same work - but it is about 15% less efficient at 8.9 volts IIRC. You can watch the clip and do the math.

13 volts was the same as 12. I still have everything hooked up so I dialed it down while they were running. As expected they'll dim at certain levels but they dropped the voltage draw when I went below 2.1 amps. Your amperage really shouldn't drop below 5 on most of these circuits though.

No light meter. I've played around with the voltage and amperage feed and while you can see differences in light output, I don't have a way to quantify so I didn't post my opinion.

One of the things it does is cast a big cloud of doubt about how well these BIG lightbars are performing. Food for thought, but in all honesty I'm messing with the lightbar folks.

That is a $100 bench power supply, nothing fancy really.

BTW, for $18 these look like they are going to work really well; I mean significantly supplement the EOM lights, which I'm actually happy with. I'll try to mount them and do a few tests in the yard by next Sunday.

 

[ehart814]

I am planning on buying these exact lights, and using one as a rear facing work light. Looking forward to your evaluation. For $18 I really don't expect the world out of them... I've had pretty good luck with the cheapie amazon light bars. I've used 3 different ones and have no complaints at all.

I agree that the OEM lights are not that bad. My dad has a 2014 ranger 570 crew and the OEM lights are so bad it's hilarious. The Pioneer 500's lights are much, much better when compared to his.

I put a 20" light bar on it so now he can see. That thing hurts my eyes from a half mile away...

 

[joeymt33]

I have used these lights a lot on several different vehicles, I would continue to buy them again as they are bright.

On my pioneer 1000 I have the Honda pod lights that retail over $200 for repair. One of these cheap lights is brighter than both of the Honda pod lights!

Here's just the oem headlights



Here's the Amazon cheapy lights facing to the sides and the head lights are still on.



They seem to get water in them pretty easy, I've had three so far get water in them. I take both end caps off and use some silicone to reseal it.



Sent from my iPhone 10s

 

[bigbore]

I have used these lights a lot on several different vehicles, I would continue to buy them again as they are bright.

On my pioneer 1000 I have the Honda pod lights that retail over $200 for repair. One of these cheap lights is brighter than both of the Honda pod lights!

Here's just the oem headlights

View attachment 13347

Here's the Amazon cheapy lights facing to the sides and the head lights are still on.

View attachment 13348

They seem to get water in them pretty easy, I've had three so far get water in them. I take both end caps off and use some silicone to reseal it.



Sent from my iPhone 10s

Thanks for the photos in the field!

These claim to be IP67 rated which should make them water proof to at least 1 meter if I'm not mistaken.

 

[joeymt33]

The water rating is a lie for sure. I had two pods and a 20" bar get water in it. After drying them and sealing them, they were great.


Sent from my iPhone 10s

 

[bigbore]

The water rating is a lie for sure. I had two pods and a 20" bar get water in it. After drying them and sealing them, they were great.


Sent from my iPhone 10s

I suspected that the claim was bogus at this price but thanks for confirming. That is the kind of information that makes forums like this a real asset.

 

[Montecresto]

Haven't had water get into my Auxbeam yet.