Lighted LED Whips

[JAS]

My wife and I are ATV operators. I have been noticing that those operators that use lighted LED whips are easier to see in the dust.

Does anybody here have any experience with lighted LED whips.

 

[kerneldrop]

Whips are big where I'm at.... they are generally paired with big lifts, big tires, big speakers, and a yeti full of Busch Light or Bud Light depending on budget.

As far as whips go...I imagine they are all the same. Amazon a pair.
My cousins and I ebay or amazon all our SXS and ATV lights.

 

[Mr. Merk]

What you want is a chase light, but you could correctly mount a legitimate rear fog lamp like a Hella 003030151 which could also be useful and legal if you ever drive on the road in low visibility weather (fog, torrential rain or snow.)

Porsche used to mount two or more of them up high on their rallye cars as chase lights.

 

[Hamilton Felix]

You know, these might be a good idea on other machines. I just mounted a pair of flashers high on the (very non-original Ford) ROPS on my 1959 Massey Ferguson tractor. Any tractor or piece of equipment that may ever go on any road with cars, really should have more than just a slow vehicle triangle. How tough are these whips? Would they be hard to damage in brush?

 

[Alaric Darconville]

You know, these might be a good idea on other machines. Any tractor or piece of equipment that may ever go on any road with cars, really should have more than just a slow vehicle triangle.

When you're talking about vehicles, including farm implements, that are *on the road*, using non-standard lighting is a bad idea. The "slow vehicle" triangle, and signage like "wide load", and such are normal and expected and recognizable. "LED whips" are unusual and while they may be "attention-getting", simple "attention" is not recognition and can interfere with the cues we need to determine vehicle type, size, direction of travel, and speed.

 

[-Virgil-]

Alaric is right that we have to be really careful not to self-assure ourselves that a nonstandard lighting configuration is a good idea. But I don't think that necessarily means "don't add any lights at all". Use good judgment, make sure to respect applicable local regulations and general color and placement conventions (red to the rear, white/yellow/amber to the front, amber to the side) and don't operate the lamps in an unusual or potentially confusing way (no flash/strobe/"pulse" operation of lamps that are supposed to be steady-burning, for example), and that still leaves a pretty large canvas to paint on, in terms of what lights to install. Bigger/brighter lights positioned to accurately show the height and width of the equipment, are probably a good idea if the equipment is operated on roads with much traffic and/or short lines of sight to intersections.

 

[Hamilton Felix]

Point taken. A pair of flashers is more universally recognized. And a modest amber beacon or strobe is common in these parts. I still remember when, on a rainy night, Dad totaled his 1976 Malibu by rear ending a large John Deere while meeting a car. The neighbor with the John Deere had NO lights on it. (It did turn the tractor onto its side and damage one tire, but fortunately no serious injuries.) That neighbor quickly acquired an amber beacon. Dad bought another car. 🙄

The whips seemed attractive because of height. Flashers must be kept below the crossbar of the ROPS and inboard of the uprights, or they are likely to be destroyed in the brush.