Want to go crazy w/ custom LED/HID lights for my "new" boat... suggestions needed!

Want to go crazy w/ custom LED/HID lights for my "new" boat... suggestions needed!

Greetings gentlemen. I'm the proud new owner of this money pit -



And I'm also a flashlight nut, and I'm a little bit of a do-it-yourselfer, and God forbid I'm ever out later than I want to be and have to navigate at dawn/dusk/night -
I want to be able to say... LET THERE BE LIGHT.

I haven't kept up with the latest greatest, but I have a number of assets to work with -

1. Power supply - I will have a bad mother 12 volt deep cycle battery for power (or two if necessary)

2. Materials - I have friends that run fabrication shops, i.e. I can get custom mounts and brackets in exchange for spots on the boat when we go fishing

3. As you can see, the existing top provides a great support structure at an ideal height for the lights

I would like...

1) Two general purpose flood lights for the front and rear of the boat - probably 100-150 lumen flood lights - two facing front, two facing rear since two is one, one is none...

2) Four "headlights" for the front of the boat - something that could give 200+ yards of visibility - two facing directly to the front, and two that are offset 20-30 degrees to the left and right so that I have a good idea of not only what is in front, but what I might be turning into...

3) Possibly two more "headlights" for the rear, in case I'm backing up or need to see behind us

I'm thinking that I might be able to mount the front/side angle lights on a swivel to that if I ever needed light to the rear I could do that...

Suggestions about which LED's or HID set ups would be ideal for these applications would be VERY appreciated!

I'd rather spend it on shore than wish I hadn't been cheap on the water, so while I'm not looking to build the most expensive lighting set up ever, nor am I balancing this against my baby eating... I'd rather err on the side of quality.

Thanks a million guys!

Re: Want to go crazy w/ custom LED/HID lights for my "new" boat... suggestions needed

Pretty sweet boat, how about these

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI....199172&ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT#ht_2780wt_698

Ive not used them but they look decent, (i have been wanting them for my work van but will wait until it starts getting darker round 5pm here)
Sstainless steel brakets, IP66 rated, runs on 12V, maybe a few of these like you said, 4 front 2 back, I would think thats all you need

Re: Want to go crazy w/ custom LED/HID lights for my "new" boat... suggestions needed

I think you are after more of a custom style but my bother just fitted these cool LED's to his boat. I got them for him from my JETBeam dealer who also sells all kinds of lighting.
He purchased 2x 12w 720Lm 4' long =$130ea and 1x 24w 1440lm 6' long =$200 they light the deck up like mad. They have them in 120w 22' long 7200lm good for driving lights at night in the boat.
I cannot tell you much about them and I am not sure if they will ship O/S but I am sure you would have something like that over there.


Cool boat my bother has a center console similar to your's but it's made from alloy.





cheers

Re: Want to go crazy w/ custom LED/HID lights for my "new" boat... suggestions needed

Plenty of 12v HID/LED lights on ebay. Not sure if ANY would survive in a salt/fresh water environment. So, make sure whatever you choose is maintained so it doesn't fail when you need it most.

You might have battery power. But, make sure that your alternator is up to the task of the additional load.

For the 100lm general purpose lights, find something with a floody beam from a single XM-L, P4, XP-G, Rebel.... I think that the 'bicycle' forum is a good place to start, as the builds there seem to be excellent for multiple purposes. You'll have to find an acceptable 1w-1.5w driver that works with at 12-14v.
I've always like the simplicity in design and looks of the Chelboed lights:

http://www.candlepowerforums.com/vb...Other-Hobby-Machinists-Bicycle-Light-Services

For the headlights, you need power. Four separate independent 30w SST-90(search for the flashlight builds) is an option. Even the bridgelux is worth looking into. But, ebay has 35w HID(spot/flood/fog lights). Quality is hit/miss on ebay. But, it would give you a start since you'll have to modify it for reliability if/when it breaks down. Get a pair of flood and a pair of spots. There are also 24w, 27w, 30w LED equivalents(farm tractor or offroad jeep type).

A quadruple or even quintuple gun for your headlights:
http://www.candlepowerforums.com/vb/showthread.php?312212-Meet-the-Triple-Gun&p=3613953#post3613953

For the rear reverse lighting, a couple 10w(XM-L, MC-E, P7, SST-50) would be an easy choice in a cloned housing similar to what VisionX/Rigid sell, or the typical bike light housing.

I also like and would definitely add-in the 'Police car pillar light' mounted near the boat Captain. When you're moving at night, you'll want to be able to sweep the area with a light. Toss in a rechargeable bazillion candlepower hand held one for a passenger too.

Clone something like:
http://www.rigidindustries.com/Dually-2x2-LED-Lights-p/duallyled.htm
http://visionxsuperstore.com/solsticeprime.aspx
http://visionxsuperstore.com/visionxSolsticeSeries10WattLEDLights.aspx
http://www.magnalight.com/ledlights.aspx

To prevent water reflective glare, consider neutral to warm LEDs.