LED strip and driving lights

Hairy,

Some 7" LED driving lights in latest Autopro catalogue. $279 ea. Doesn't say how many lumens.

Latest Altronics cat. has LED lights, about 125 mm sq. and 4K lumens with 3 amp draw for $129 ea. Spot or Flood.

3528 strip is 8 mm wide, and draws 3-400 mA/metre. 5050 is 10 mm wide & draws 1.2 A/metre. SMD stands for surface mount device. Heaps of electronic "stuff" is now SMD, that's why they can make some gear so compact.

Bob

In any White LED lights the difference in price is reflected by two of the most important parts..... The LED itself and the LED driver, pay more and you get better.

The biggest killer of LED's is heat and a good quality drive and heat sink adds to their reliability.

BTW all white LEDs are graded similar to diamonds on colour and light output.... It's a bit like John West and his tuna, the cheaper tuna get sold on to low end companies or cat food.

Hairy, have a look at these blokes for your driving lights;

http://stores.ebay.com.au/AU-omgcar/7-Off-Road-Light-/_i.html?_fsub=5716970018&_sid=802872898&_trksid=p4634.c0.m322

Cheers Mick

Hairy,
A led light bar would be best for beach driving as it gives a good wide beam and makes it easier to see the dips & rises on the beach at night.

Rigging up at night, we've found that less is more in the light department. Something like a Stanley fat max head torch which has a removable light refractor gives a more gentle light so that everything else doesnt reflect back at you.
Similar with driving lights. Depending on the amount of surf and mist, driving lights and even high beam can be completely useless on a beach at night. A decent set of yellow fog lenses will be much more beneficial. The brightness of led/hid coming back at you in surf mist leaves you blinded. Of course on those few clear nights you can light up the planet. Maybe think about a handheld spottie for when you are looking about? They are very useful when looking for gutters and beach exits - much easier than turning the car around all the time. And for a small amount of money you can really light up the blokes that think they should be leaving their spotties on when driving towards you.

I have some ebay stip led lights under my awning and in the back cargo area. I also have 4 of the below lights mounted on my rack and they outshine my halogen LF Strikers for the first couple of hundred metres. Good lights for what I paid for them.

http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/2X-6-INCH-12V-24V-45W-LED-Flood-Beam-OffRoad-Truck-Boat-Driving-Working-Lights-/281136474237?pt=AU_Car_Parts_Accessories&hash=item41750a287d#ht_2890wt_1124

Thanks for all the replies........Ive bought a couple cheapies off ebay and a couple led dimmers to go with them.
It sounds like its probably not the ideal set up but I figured for 2x 500mm (5050)lights plus dimers delivered for around $10 it was worth a shot. Im a bit stuck for time at the moment and haven't properly read all the replies but will do over the next while ........and let you know how the cheapies worked out compared to the others.....

Cheers
Hairy

Hi Hairy

On my van i have 2 x 1 m strip lights with dimmers. They work very well. At full blast they provide a great light and if dimmed to the lowest setting just give a soft light. I found the voltage and amperage drops, so at low setting very little power is used. One thing I would suggest as a MUST DO is to solder the connecting wires to the led strips. Don't use the plastic clips. I have found over time the connection diminishes and once they are glued in place it is an arse to solder. I have just been through this process myself. The clips were good for a few months and then started playing up more as time went by.

cheers Kc

Hi Hairy

On my van i have 2 x 1 m strip lights with dimmers. They work very well. At full blast they provide a great light and if dimmed to the lowest setting just give a soft light. I found the voltage and amperage drops, so at low setting very little power is used. One thing I would suggest as a MUST DO is to solder the connecting wires to the led strips. Don't use the plastic clips. I have found over time the connection diminishes and once they are glued in place it is an arse to solder. I have just been through this process myself. The clips were good for a few months and then started playing up more as time went by.

cheers Kc