Birty Dastards Jeep Club
Tech Forum => Workshop => Topic started by: MrBrown on January 28, 2016, 09:17:53 PM
-
Picked up a 96 XJ Cherokee sport recently for an absolute steal. Honestly I was initially looking at fourtraks but this was just too cheap. So I haven't done as much research as possible but trying to make up for that now.
Looking at doing some very cheap mods to it initially as seems silly paying 3x cost of jeep for winch bumper or lift. I've seen a lot of pics about people cutting the bumper down to ad a little more clearance, is this fairly straightforward?
Also the headlights are awful, o/s in particular. I've read about the wiring loom upgrade. Pucto? Amazon.com has it $40 and .co.uk £110 :banghead: anywhere we can get them this side of the pond.
I've read bits and bobs about budget boosts too and lifting without spending a fortune? Is this worth doing or will I just have to stump up the cash for the proper stuff?
Also any tips for picking up some black steelies on the cheap and what size tyres is best without a lift?
Sorry for all the questions, hopefully this should keep me busy for a while.
-
Welcome! XJs are awesome, I expect you'll love it. What engine's in yours?
-
Make your own headlight loom upgrade with bits from Halfrauds or your local car spares shop (less than £20). I had a budget lift on my last XJ and drove it all around Europe in 2010. The current owner is a friend of mine and the lift is still good.
-
It's the 2.5 petrol, I was wanting the 4l but really couldn't say no to this one. I guess I could always shot a 4l in later haha.
Budget lift sounds the way forward then I guess. I'll start googling the wiring upgrade now too. I'm already loving it tbh. Just rotting up all the bits and pieces I could do is scary tho haha
-
Welcome Mate
here's a link for some ideas
http://go.jeep-xj.info/
-
xj's are more capable than you think plus the comfort level is better than other 4x4s of the same age.
headlights, do it yourself but basically you use relays to power the lights rather than send the light voltage through the switch, as the switch fails over time causing your lights to switch on and off. gojeep gives you the simplest explanation of what to do.
2.5ltr not bad but the fuel economy is not that different from the 4ltr, plus with the 4ltr you dont have to worry about gears
-
Welcome aboard! This might be useful for you on the headlamp problem :
(http://i567.photobucket.com/albums/ss113/scoobyh123/Jeep/IMG_20151117_182243166.jpg) (http://s567.photobucket.com/user/scoobyh123/media/Jeep/IMG_20151117_182243166.jpg.html)
The nearside lamp has the standard, 4W tungsten filament sideilght bulb. The offside has one of these :
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/1X-White-BA9S-57-W6W-4-COB-SMD-LED-License-Plate-Light-Map-Bulb-Dome-Lamp-K017-/321668589072?hash=item4ae4f12610:g:6BwAAOSwqu9U3hs2
Here's the comparison between the 100/80 and 60/55 bulbs :
(http://i567.photobucket.com/albums/ss113/scoobyh123/Jeep/IMG_20151117_182419556.jpg) (http://s567.photobucket.com/user/scoobyh123/media/Jeep/IMG_20151117_182419556.jpg.html)
Again, the offside has the new bulb and as you can see, shows up much brighter. Shame the tree gets in the way but you can see the bleaching on the nearside :
(http://i567.photobucket.com/albums/ss113/scoobyh123/Jeep/IMG_20151117_182405717.jpg) (http://s567.photobucket.com/user/scoobyh123/media/Jeep/IMG_20151117_182405717.jpg.html)
These are the bulbs i fitted :
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Ring-Sportz-Blue-Bulbs-Intense-Blue-White-Light-High-Power-Beam-/141165295229?var=&hash=item20de1b767d:m:mRSycNKMj0NNHC_syRcAIwA
Definitely an improvement, they remove the bleaching effect due to the limitations of the headlamp design and make night driving much less stressful.
Like you i've found the standard XJ headlamps (same light units used by Fourtraks i believe and many other cars/4x4s) so went hunting for improvements on a budget. The best improvement per £ spent was the Ring 100/80W headlamp bulbs. Officially they are not for road use because of the risk of dazzling but to be honest, the design of the lamp unit is so bad, even with the extra power they still don't put out as much light as i would like or enough to get you noticed by Mr Plod.
There are also "crystal lens reflector"type headlamp conversions available which allegedly put 25% or more extra light on the road - i haven't tried them so can't comment. This is them :
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Pair-of-Crystal-Halogen-Headlights-for-Jeep-Cherokee-headlamp-RHD-upgrade-kit-H4-/171260266959?hash=item27dfe849cf:g:~oQAAOxyuuJR3SR~
Might be worth a go as well, don't know if anyone on here has tried them or not?
-
Thanks for the help. Will get to work on the lights. So far found the XJ a lot of fun. I'm hearing I can maybe get 30inch tyres without a lift. Is this doable? If so I might hang fire on the lift
-
I know the TJ has round headlights rather than square but I tried the crystal type headlamps several years ago and found the beam pattern so disappointing I went back to standard Hella replacements.
I have been using Osram Nightbreaker Ultimate bulbs for a year or so and they are the best light output I've had for years from standard 60/55W bulbs. Closest yet to PIAA bulbs in the OEM headlamps. Next week though I'll be running Truck-Lite LED headlamps.
-
That answers the question on the crystal headlamps then! Another thing i found was the reversing lamps were pretty poor too. I used the 500 Lumen version of these bulbs :
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/291125722557?_trksid=p2060353.m2749.l2649&ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT
Compariosn photo, LED bulb in the left, OE bulb in the right :
(http://i567.photobucket.com/albums/ss113/scoobyh123/Jeep/IMG_20151110_171812281.jpg) (http://s567.photobucket.com/user/scoobyh123/media/Jeep/IMG_20151110_171812281.jpg.html)
With both replaced :
(http://i567.photobucket.com/albums/ss113/scoobyh123/Jeep/IMG_20151110_173110641.jpg) (http://s567.photobucket.com/user/scoobyh123/media/Jeep/IMG_20151110_173110641.jpg.html)
They give a much brighter view at the back end than the OE bulbs - i've also changed the bulbs in the roof console for the courtesy/map reading lamps for these :
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/301664075607?_trksid=p2060353.m2749.l2649&ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT
Much brighter without glaring the way LED bulbs sometimes can and they slot into the lenses in the roof console and fit snugly without excessive effort - at least they won't ever need replacing!
Sounds like you're enjoying your XJ and will have a lot of fun with it - good to hear that!
-
i did use 130w bulbs after i changed the loom on the xj i had, the light was great but in winter the heat given out by the bulb and the cold air cracked the lense. justt a word of warning if you think more watts = brighter lights without risk
-
Black BUSH !!!
-
Bargain for them lights inside. I was looking at replacing them too so I think I'll pick them up.
Yeah I am really enjoying it so far. Even the bits and pieces of tinkering. Never really done that with a motor before.
-
Where's our mate YT?...he's the man with such things.
Come to think of it...I need his help as well.
-
Yeah if you can find the YT link, you can like him, illuminate a whole county :icon_super:
Respect!
-
The respect is well deserved...he did the homework and got the results....gotta acknowledge that.
I certainly learned a lot from Phil...didn't always follow his lead, but he gave me the direction I needed for answers.
-
Hmmm, this sounds interesting - any details on it or links at all please?
-
Stand by a while...I'm going to speak with the man himself.
-
Will do :icon_biggrin:
-
Yup waiting in anticipation now!
-
HEELLOOOO Birtys :peekaboo: been out the loop for a bit.
Here's a couple of vids from the God Cree. (the one what said 'let there be light' and there was MUCH fuckin light upon the earth. :greggmo:)
Cree LED 12.5/30w H4 replacement.
http://youtu.be/F74o13KFI3g
I'd need to hunt fleabay to find the right type, there's some useless shit LEDs about. :)
This is the Cree headlights at night. The driver side reflector was goosed. Tbh, both pots needed replaced. 60" of Cree bars are ignited after the 2nd car passes. (The screen needed a good clean too. lol)
http://youtu.be/mDiu7JBKqvw
I could make daylight brighter. :)
(http://i1281.photobucket.com/albums/a519/Philxj4L/C5E67002-8FAA-4A4A-B664-5BD4F4282ADD_zpsqnpomlvd.jpg) (http://s1281.photobucket.com/user/Philxj4L/media/C5E67002-8FAA-4A4A-B664-5BD4F4282ADD_zpsqnpomlvd.jpg.html)
-
Yup, that's some bright shit! eBay is hit and miss. So much choice...
-
As Phil said...Cree is the God. All the rest are just poor cousins.
-
Good to see you back Phil.
-
Yup, that's some bright shit! eBay is hit and miss. So much choice...
With 90" of bars on a single switch puttin out 57,500Lm you had to treat them like a loaded gun. With a hair trigger. And no safety catch. A certain Mr Clarkson described a 50" bar on a Raptor as a 'collapsed sun' That was a Ridig Industries bar, RI DONT use Cree chips, and they'll relieve you of 12-1500 dollars for a 50.
I'll have a hunt tomorrow and dig out headlights and links. You need the chip layout right. You can pick up a 20" Cree bar for sub fifty notes now ! FFS, mine was 120 ! If you'r after bars as well, let me know what size/sizes and I'll grab some links. :)
-
Good to see you back Phil.
:D cheers, I'm not normally too far away from Birtys. Still can't get 'Jeep' outta the bloodstream. :)
-
What a guy. Much appreciated!
Headlights is the main one for me but a 20-30 bar wouldn't hurt!
-
Just watched the before/after and night driving vids - that is awesome stuff! Definitely interested in the LED headlamps, i'm all for trying new stuff but don't want to waste bucket loads on useless tat so i'm very gratedul you've done the experimentation and the videos! :icon_biggrin: Might very well be interested in a light bar too although for now the headlights are the important option! Even with the 100/80W bulbs in they still leave a lot to be desired!
-
Just watched the before/after and night driving vids - that is awesome stuff! Definitely interested in the LED headlamps, i'm all for trying new stuff but don't want to waste bucket loads on useless tat so i'm very gratedul you've done the experimentation and the videos! :icon_biggrin: Might very well be interested in a light bar too although for now the headlights are the important option! Even with the 100/80W bulbs in they still leave a lot to be desired!
The led headlights have a sub 2A draw on high beam, so even with the crap stock loom you get the full fat 2000Lm per side. If you dig deep enough into construction & use regs, there's an 1800Lm/side output limit. Plod haven't got the kit/time/inclination to check or enforce this so as long as they're properly aligned your good to go and you'll have no problems at MOT time. :)
-
This is what I could do to daylight. :D
(http://i1281.photobucket.com/albums/a519/Philxj4L/8A3F1394-5EDB-454D-8DCF-16A155BFC033_zpsc6ixqqb0.jpg) (http://s1281.photobucket.com/user/Philxj4L/media/8A3F1394-5EDB-454D-8DCF-16A155BFC033_zpsc6ixqqb0.jpg.html)
(http://i1281.photobucket.com/albums/a519/Philxj4L/0D2B0211-E473-45B3-A179-ABAA24A66461_zps1cxpeae3.jpg) (http://s1281.photobucket.com/user/Philxj4L/media/0D2B0211-E473-45B3-A179-ABAA24A66461_zps1cxpeae3.jpg.html)
-
All good stuff! Just had a quick look on fleabay and even limiting the search to UK only (i've had bad experiences buying single and/or small quantities of bulbs from China) there is still a bewildering choice of stuff!
Couple of questions though. Would i be right in thinking the CREE LED headlamp bulbs are set up for conventional (+ve line) switching or are they unipolar so can be used without further modification on an earth switched system?
Obviously on the Jeep it is the conventionally +ve switched system but i am thinking of fitting them to other cars i have which have an earth switched system.
Also how do they perform with the dim-dip system?
**** EDIT **** if you also have some links for CREE H3 replacements, that would be good too please!
-
I've never seen the exact type of LED headlight units I used since I got mine, but these 4 have the correct chip layout to give true high/low beam pattern. The first 2 links are for units that use heatsinks, so probably the weapon of choice if your planning, or could end up with the headlight submerged in water. The last 2 are for units that have integral cooling fans, more efficient and they are waterproof, but probably not ideal for bonnet deep wading trips. If you still have the stock loom, I'd recommend sticking with the 30w or 36w options to keep the power demand low.
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/2-x-68W-H4-HB2-9003-Hi-Lo-Beam-LED-CREE-Headlight-Car-Lamp-Kit-Bulb-6000K-UK-/321895792749?hash=item4af27c006d:g:HUcAAOSwA4dWIfsb
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/H4-HID-36W-High-Power-CREE-LED-Hi-Lo-Car-Headlight-Fog-Light-Bulb-Ballasts-6500K-/181977278052?hash=item2a5eb0e664:g:oaQAAOSwHaBWhPHb
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/2x-H4-High-Power-80W-CREE-XML2-Chips-9000LM-Xenon-White-LED-Headlight-Lamp-Hi-Lo-/301746498370?hash=item46417e2b42:g:tiIAAOSwWnFV79Yd
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Car-White-H4-LED-CREE-Headlight-Kit-3000lm-30W-Hi-Lo-Beam-Lamp-6500K-Light-Bulbs-/191746626800?hash=item2ca4fd54f0:g:49QAAOSwqrtWpfEC
20" Cree bars.
UK seller
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/20-Inch-126W-CREE-LED-Spot-Flood-Combo-Driving-Work-Light-Bar-ATV-UTE-Boat-/361449872314?hash=item5428175bba:g:dB8AAOSwLN5WjioX
Chinese seller. Remember to add around 10-15 quid customs charges.
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/120w-Cree-LED-Light-Bar-Spot-Flood-Work-Driving-Lamp-20inch-Offroad-80w-126w-NEW-/172059747083?hash=item280f8f630b:g:Jp4AAOSwLN5WlL2V
30" bars UK sellers
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/WOW-High-End-180W-30-Offroad-CREE-Spot-Flood-Combo-LED-Driving-Work-Light-Bar-/252035465876?hash=item3aae7c0294:g:ZdQAAOSw~gRV0otP
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/WOW-180W-30-Offroad-CREE-LED-Driving-Work-Light-Bar-Truck-4x4-Wiring-Kit-/252179275833?hash=item3ab70e6039:g:SHYAAOSwHQ9WUBSu
Curved 30 Chinese seller
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/30inch-180W-CREE-CURVED-LED-WORK-LIGHT-BAR-FLOOD-SPOT-Combo-OFFROAD-SUV-ATV-4WD-/291618376424?hash=item43e5cf4ae8:g:tRMAAOSwLnlWoKU8
40" are a bit thin on the ground. Chinese sellers so remember customs charges.
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/40-240W-CREE-LED-FLOOD-SPOT-COMBO-LIGHT-BAR-WORK-LIGHT-OFFROAD-4WD-SUV-BOAT-ATV-/291614718923?hash=item43e5977bcb:g:uEcAAOSwGotWnfQI
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/40-240W-CREE-LED-Work-Light-Bar-Spot-Flood-Cambo-Beam-off-road-Lamp-Truck-Boat-/161666250929?hash=item25a40f38b1:g:3h0AAOSwrklVI5Yo
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/40-inch-240W-LED-Light-Bar-Combo-Beam-Curved-Work-Offroad-Truck-Boat-UTE-cree-42-/301796813903?hash=item46447dec4f:g:3T0AAOSwa-dWn1Wv
Last one's a 50". Chinese seller, but SHOULD clear customs at the marked (lower) price
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/50-400W-CREE-LED-FLOOD-SPOT-COMBO-LIGHT-BAR-WORK-LIGHT-OFFROAD-4WD-SUV-BOAT-ATV-/301715492812?hash=item463fa50fcc:g:cbIAAOSw5dNWnI0p
Chinese sellers always mark the stuff at a lower value. (My £120 bar was marked at £40) carriers like DHL are 'bonded carriers' so can deal with customs/import charges en route. This means, to save time they don't ask questions & charge at marked price. ANY other shipping method hand them directly to those nice folk at HMRC. They fuckin LOVE asking questions. They'll want,
Original order reciept (screen shot of eBay order)
PayPal reciept
Bank acc conformation
They WILL charge you full whack, and add 1-2 weeks to delivery time. If ya need anything else give me a shout. :)
-
All good stuff! Just had a quick look on fleabay and even limiting the search to UK only (i've had bad experiences buying single and/or small quantities of bulbs from China) there is still a bewildering choice of stuff!
Couple of questions though. Would i be right in thinking the CREE LED headlamp bulbs are set up for conventional (+ve line) switching or are they unipolar so can be used without further modification on an earth switched system?
Obviously on the Jeep it is the conventionally +ve switched system but i am thinking of fitting them to other cars i have which have an earth switched system.
Also how do they perform with the dim-dip system?
**** EDIT **** if you also have some links for CREE H3 replacements, that would be good too please!
The led headlights are 'plug n play' on most older Jeeps, a lot of the listings I linked have an application list, Annd some technical bumf that's over my head, in the new fancy ass newer lighting system requirements to run these units. Any units I've linked will give proper MOT passing hi/low beam pattern.
These are the only H3s I can find with the right chip layout. :)
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/2x-80W-6000LM-9005-9006-H1-H3-H4-H7-H8-CREE-2-LED-Headlight-Lamp-White-12-24V-UK-/391372624686?var=&hash=item5b1fa0532e:m:mlYaiVpGWKxgs4PQeXsG12w
-
XJ HEADLIGHT UNITS.
Space is a bit tight behind the headlight pots, some of the replacement LED units are bulky round the fans/heatsinks. You may have to make a slight modification to the headlight bucket.
A hole saw to the centre of the bucket will allow enoug space for the fan/heatsink to fit though. :)
-
That's a great list and thanks for including the H3 as well! :icon_biggrin:
While doing my own hunting, i also found these :
http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B01B2UEW3M/ref=ox_sc_act_title_2?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=A163Y5IHY1ZJ6M
What's your opinion?
-
That's a great list and thanks for including the H3 as well! :icon_biggrin:
While doing my own hunting, i also found these :
http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B01B2UEW3M/ref=ox_sc_act_title_2?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=A163Y5IHY1ZJ6M
What's your opinion?
I've seen similar fitted to a jap 4x4 on Twitter, but I don't know how they'd fair in the MOT side and I didn't see any mention of CE marking so could be dodgy. :)
-
Hmm, interesting - i've seen similar on a US spec XJ round here as well, definitely an improvement on standard but i don't think as good as the CREE bulbs. They did seem to dip etc as they should though but only the centre row of LEDs was lit on dip - strange! At least they weren't dazzling oncoming traffic like the standard Right Hand Dip (for Left Hand Drive vehicles) lights on most of the other US spec stuff here.
-
I've asked if he's MOTD it yet with these.
(http://i1281.photobucket.com/albums/a519/Philxj4L/F0A342ED-E241-416A-A734-F7569B83AEF9_zpsx3hfzqtu.jpg) (http://s1281.photobucket.com/user/Philxj4L/media/F0A342ED-E241-416A-A734-F7569B83AEF9_zpsx3hfzqtu.jpg.html)
-
I see quite a few set ups like that over here...no problems, but those tires would get you a fail!!
-
I see quite a few set ups like that over here...no problems, but those tires would get you a fail!!
At the risk of potentially asking a daft question, why would the tyres get a fail? As far as i can see they still have plenty of tread, they are the same pattern (took a while of squinting etc but they are) and the only difference i can see is that one is wet and the other is dry? AM i missing something so blatantly obvious i can't see the wood for the tress? :icon_eek:
-
He's just got back to me. MOT not due until May. He did say he has the stock lights on standby in case.
-
I see quite a few set ups like that over here...no problems, but those tires would get you a fail!!
At the risk of potentially asking a daft question, why would the tyres get a fail? As far as i can see they still have plenty of tread, they are the same pattern (took a while of squinting etc but they are) and the only difference i can see is that one is wet and the other is dry? AM i missing something so blatantly obvious i can't see the wood for the tress? :icon_eek:
Not worth an argument, but to me, with a lot of squinting, they aren't the same! Over here, steers have to be the same...brand, tread pattern etc. Rears are your problem, so long as the wear pattern matches.
-
Thank you very much for the list YT. Think I'll end up going for the headlights and probably end up grabbing the 50inch bar haha
-
I see quite a few set ups like that over here...no problems, but those tires would get you a fail!!
At the risk of potentially asking a daft question, why would the tyres get a fail? As far as i can see they still have plenty of tread, they are the same pattern (took a while of squinting etc but they are) and the only difference i can see is that one is wet and the other is dry? AM i missing something so blatantly obvious i can't see the wood for the tress? :icon_eek:
To be honest i thought that was what you meant at first, the tyres were different and the more i looked, it was just because one was wet they looked different. I could still be wrong mind.
When i fit tyres to my beasts i always change in pairs minimum but preferably all 4 the same as it makes a hell of a difference - understandable why the law where you are says the steering tyres have to be the same.
Not worth an argument, but to me, with a lot of squinting, they aren't the same! Over here, steers have to be the same...brand, tread pattern etc. Rears are your problem, so long as the wear pattern matches.
-
As I said, not worth an argument...if it gets through the MOT, all is good.
A little hiccup with my Golf 4 Motion, all the tires have to very closely matched, rotated often and when replacement time comes around, all four are done, but I can live with that.
Next big job for me is the headlights...Phils advice and links are very handy and will be studied closely.
:icon_winkle:
-
Thank you very much for the list YT. Think I'll end up going for the headlights and probably end up grabbing the 50inch bar haha
If it's for an XJ, check the roof first, a 50 might be a bit wide for a cherry. 50s are a perfect fit for wranglers. 40s line up nicely with XJ roof rails. :)
One other important thing with the bars, some have steel, sliding bottom mounts, others have ally end mounts. SCRAP the ally mount brackets ! They're breaky cast ally shit. B&Q sell 30x3mm strip steel for not a lot of beer tokens. Bend up some L brackets to suit. You can make them whatever height you like (I kept mine as low as possible) From 30" and over, make the 'foot' of the brackets long enough to take 3 bolts. For roof & bonnet mounting use 3 rivnuts per side. If your worried about leaky roof syndrome, whack some silicone into the hole first.
The steel brackets are, neater, stronger, and more important, allow you to spot weld the mount bolts to keep theiving twats at bay. I used hex heads and had the bars almost touching the heads just to help make it more awkward.
I know of at least 5 bars that've been swiped off 4x4s, 2 of those where 250 quid 50s !
-
Thank you very much for the list YT. Think I'll end up going for the headlights and probably end up grabbing the 50inch bar haha
If it's for an XJ, check the roof first, a 50 might be a bit wide for a cherry. 50s are a perfect fit for wranglers. 40s line up nicely with XJ roof rails. :)
One other important thing with the bars, some have steel, sliding bottom mounts, others have ally end mounts. SCRAP the ally mount brackets ! They're breaky cast ally shit. B&Q sell 30x3mm strip steel for not a lot of beer tokens. Bend up some L brackets to suit. You can make them whatever height you like (I kept mine as low as possible) From 30" and over, make the 'foot' of the brackets long enough to take 3 bolts. For roof & bonnet mounting use 3 rivnuts per side. If your worried about leaky roof syndrome, whack some silicone into the hole first.
The steel brackets are, neater, stronger, and more important, allow you to spot weld the mount bolts to keep theiving twats at bay. I used hex heads and had the bars almost touching the heads just to help make it more awkward.
I know of at least 5 bars that've been swiped off 4x4s, 2 of those where 250 quid 50s !
Thank you for this! I'll stick with the 40 then and save a few quid. I'll make sure I get the steel as well. Might as well do the job right first time around.
-
Just a thought if you don't have access to any sort of metal bending facility - angle iron is pretty cheap too and it's already bent. Also angle aluminium which might be suitable depending on how thick it is and the weight of the light bar :
https://www.metalmaniauk.com/
That supplier is pretty cheap, not used them yet but got a few bits in my trolley to buy off them when i get time to use it!
-
Just a thought if you don't have access to any sort of metal bending facility - angle iron is pretty cheap too and it's already bent. Also angle aluminium which might be suitable depending on how thick it is and the weight of the light bar :
https://www.metalmaniauk.com/
That supplier is pretty cheap, not used them yet but got a few bits in my trolley to buy off them when i get time to use it!
If you use ally, you've nothing to spot weld the bolt heads to. LED bars are like shinny shit to magpies ! One of the nicked bars was gone inside an hour and a half ! :banghead: (30m of synthetic rope disappeared from his winch at the same time)
-
You could always try those big SS pop rivets...takes an age to drill them out and makes a lot of noise in the process. I used them on my light bar but it worked too well...when I sold the Nissan, I tried to get it off so it could go on the new ride; gave up and let him have it as a bonus! :010:
-
If you use ally, you've nothing to spot weld the bolt heads to. LED bars are like shinny shit to magpies ! One of the nicked bars was gone inside an hour and a half ! :banghead: (30m of synthetic rope disappeared from his winch at the same time)
Good point. Why can't people leave stuff alone? :icon_sad:
-
:iagree: What a nice world we could live in...if only!!!
-
So drivers side light that was dimmer went out yesterday, I went to replace bulb and it came back on. Looks like someone has had 100w bulb in and it has melted/corroded the plug. Are these easily available?
-
You can get a pair of H4 ceramic plugs in eBay for around a fiver.
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/H4-3-PIN-HEADLIGHT-REPLACEMENT-REPAIR-BULB-HOLDER-CONNECTOR-PLUG-WIRE-/252244523276?hash=item3abaf1f90c:g:FmYAAOSw5dNWkamE
-
Yup should have searched there first. Was just coming back to say I found them.
-
I was going to order a pair of these as recommended by Phil/YT yesterday but as i clicked on the listing to buy it, it sold out! :icon_rolleyes: Typical!
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/321895792749?_trksid=p2060353.m1438.l2649&ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT
I'll have to wait a couple of days now..... :010:
-
I was going to order a pair of these as recommended by Phil/YT yesterday but as i clicked on the listing to buy it, it sold out! :icon_rolleyes: Typical!
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/321895792749?_trksid=p2060353.m1438.l2649&ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT
I'll have to wait a couple of days now..... :010:
These would be a close 2nd. :)
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/H4-HID-36W-High-Power-CREE-LED-Hi-Lo-Car-Headlight-Fog-Light-Bulb-Ballasts-6500K-/181977278052?hash=item2a5eb0e664:g:oaQAAOSwHaBWhPHb
-
Funny you should mention them - i have those in my watch list too. A bit dubious that they're not on UK soil, i've had some bad experiences recently buying small quantities of things like LED bulbs from "abroad" - down to the increased handling by shipping staff i'm sure but it's made me reluctant to order anything even remotely delicate from anywhere but the mainland.
I'll give it a couple of days and see if the others are restocked.
-
All my LEDs came from China with no issues, and I've had a couple of breakable items from Greece with no issues either. The H4 LEDs are pretty rugged, and they're well packed from the factory. :)
-
That's it - rub it in lol! :003: I've had many LEDs from China before but recently we errrrr....... "gained" a Polish postie.
He seems to have very little respect for property of any kind (he regularly walks from my neighbours front door, straight to mine, trampling over the gardens in the process) and since he has been delivering the post i've had numerous breakages and failed LEDS. He even managed to completely break an H3 LED that i bought to use in my DRLs in a pair of el-cheapo frog lamps. He did this by bending the Jiffy bag in half to stuff it through the letter box!
He's probably a perfectly nice bloke :icon_eek: but you can't ask/tell him anything as he blatantly doesn't understand English. :icon_rolleyes: Or at least he makes out he doesn't anyway. :banghead:
-
I think you would enjoy a visit to my home town (2nd biggest city in BG)...I know my postman fairly well and the way he describes his job would have you choking on your bacon buttie!
Example....front up to work at 7.30am, collect empty mail bag from back room, sort through letters, parcels etc. stacked on the floor in the mail room and take those which are yours...fill bag. When bag is about the right weight, pick up and depart to coffee shop across the street. When he is suitably refreshed, he begins his round...about an hour later (remember he's on foot) he arrives in my street...and has about 30 addresses to pass before he gets to my door. Sadly, just opposite my place is a bar, and if he has timed it right...time for another break! Many times have I gone downstairs and found his mailbag sitting on my front step...and him across the street, enjoying a few brandies. That's actually how I got to meet him, but that's a story for another day. :icon_winkle:
Let's continue....if he meets up with his mates at the bar and the company is pleasant, he will stay for a couple of hours...the mail bag stays sat on my doorstep. When it's about time, he picks up the bag and heads back to the Post Office, empties the bag onto the mail room floor and goes home!! Take into account that a postman in Bulgaria earns about GBP8.50 per day and it starts to become clear why this happens...it also explains why that in more than 10 years living over here, I've had TWO letters from family and friends. The rest (and there have been many) have been returned to sender...undelivered!!
Sounds unbelievable?...Post me a letter and I'll post the result!!
-
Hmmmmm, many similarities! Except the Post Office here is also a tea room/coffee shop! I can't remember the number of times i've been to the doctors and he's moaned at me for not going to this apppointment or that appointment and i've sat there with a blank look on my face because i've known nothing about it! That's just in 3 years!
The wages for posties here aren't great either, not sure what they are these days but back in 2000 it was about £150 a week after tax. If the Bulgarian Posties earn about £8.50/day, the brandy must be bloody cheap!
Thinking on those lines, would buying him a brandy or three each week get your mail delivered correctly? Thinking a bit of bribery might work well with him! :icon_jook: :icon_jook: :icon_jook:
-
You're right on the money mate...that's exactly what I do to keep him onside.
Poor bugger earns 8.50 per day...deduct the 20% tax PLUS his social insurance payment and the actual take home money is quite a bit lower...more like a fiver per day. He has to pay rent, utilities, food etc for his wife and five kids with all that.
Brandy over here will cost you between 50p and a quid for three fingers in a pint glass...unless you live in a village where the going price is usually about a fiver.......for a gallon!
We went out for dinner last week...six of us...three courses plus beers, wines, soft drinks (for me) and brandies all round at the end of the evening...total bill, including tip....45 quid!!!
You really must come over and see for yourself.
-
No wonder they go elsewhere in Europe to find work! :icon_eek:
-
When you consider that the average wage here is around 180 quid PER MONTH, it's easy to figure. Official figures suggest that more than 30% of workers earn about half that amount....don't get me started on the age pension.
-
Just seen the rest of your post about the cost of brandy, meal etc (internet was playing up here yesterday) and to put that in perspective, about 10 days ago i went out with a friend and her mum as it was my friends birthday. Her mum paid for the meal but it came to £55 - two poppodoms each with dips to start, main course, coffee (for me) and 3 pints of soft drinks. The tip was on top.
That is about par for the course round here in the average eatery and makes it at least twice as expensive here - factor in the 3 courses you had, brandies etc and it's more like 4 times the cost here.
That said the official average wage here is about £25k/year but most are on or slightly above the National Minimum Wage which is due to change to £7.20/hr in April. Might sound a lot by comparison but the cost of living here is hat much higher as well - back to those swings and roundabouts i guess!
-
Swings etc etc...you're quite right. The older folk have become quite adept at living cheaply, especially in the villages where almost everybody has a large vege garden, a few chickens and the odd pig (usually fattened and eaten at Xmas.) There is always someone with a still, so cheap brandy is readily available and a lot of folk, like me, make their own wine...if you don't mind a diet which doesn't include much meat, you can live reasonably well. A village is also the place where you can buy yourself a large house on an acre or so for around a quarter of your average salary! I have a 9 room, 3 level house on roughly 3/4 of an acre, large vege garden, heaps of fruit trees, 25 chickens and six bee hives (Peter H has stayed there). The local dairy is a 5 minute walk away and the very small local shop is 5 minutes in the other direction...smokes, beer and bread are all we ever need to purchase when we stay there for 7 months, during the warmer weather. The barter system works really well there too!
The average persons annual income in that village would be less than 250 quid although I suspect it would be much lower!!
-
In some respects that sounds a little like an off-grid Utopia. A few years ago i might have gone for a life like that but lifes events have changed a lot of that for me.
-
Sounds like a 'Mad Max' off grid existence would be very possible hidden away in the forests and tracks......
And I mean that in a positive ......quite envious way....... Monster trucks and post apocalyptic motorcycles....... :icon_super:
(Puts down bong and steps away from keyboard smartly) :icon_twisted:
-
It probably all sounds a bit strange to many of you, but both of you have hit the nail right on the head!! It's a great place to live...stunning scenery, peace and quiet and very few rules and regs to p1*s you off. You can find trouble and strife...if you go looking for it, but it rarely, if ever, will come looking for you. Living 'off the grid' is easy to achieve...I know of a couple of expat Brits who do exactly that...shady past or whatever reason brought them here, but they live (separately) just outside of two different villages and have done for more than 10 years...no fuss, no bother. I live a similar lifestyle, but in full view of everyone. Live and let live is the overbearing motto over here. A stranger knocks on your door...invite him in, give him a bite to eat and a drink, ask no questions and expect no answers...he'll be gone in an hour, but you will have made a friend. You can go and do the same thing with someone you don't know...their culture and traditions dictate this practice. This rule does not apply to most people with a Roma background.. :icon_winkle:
If you're thinking like Jez, with his dreams of monster machines and heaps of space to play with them to your hearts content...this is the place. Don't go tearing up someones crop or garden, don't chase his cow, goat or sheep and don't use his water supply as a toilet..........never EVER pay his wife and daughters any attention and you will live a long and healthy life. You will be hard pressed to find a fence or hedgerow anywhere in BG, except around the owners house and garden and that's only there to stop wildlife eating his veges. All domestic livestock are looked after by shepherds etc..and brought home and housed every night...no need for fences as they are never unattended...ever!! Peter Henry may remember driving through a quite mountainous forest area with me and coming across a timber workers camp, perched on the side of a very steep slope...their toilet (bog) was built out over the edge of this drop and I can imagine that the user would spend a very short time in residence! Anyway, we stopped and had a look around...the lady showed us the horses which they used to recover logs from the mountainside...she seemed to be quite friendly, but in reality would have been terrified to be in such close company of three strange men...I've wondered since, how many sets of eyes were watching us over their rifle sights that day! That was my big stuff up and one which has never been repeated.
Mr Henry...can you post up the pic of that epic crapper?
-
I was thinking add a herd of cows into the mix - not only meat and dairy products and leather of course but save the cow-pats, let them decompose and recover the gas. Compress it and use it to power your Jeep! Oh yeah, and your electricity generator!
-
Getting back on topic (although it was great to talk about another sort of life!) i was going to order a pair of these :
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/321895792749?_trksid=p2060353.m1438.l2649&ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT
but they sold out at the weekend.
While trawling fleabay i found these :
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/172085313008?_trksid=p2060353.m2749.l2649&ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT
Call me cynical if you like but both sellers are in Portsmouth, both Chinese and both items are the same pictures, same specification and only the words vary a bit in the description! In other words i think it's the same seller with 2 (or maybe more) different accounts.
The good thing (for me anyway) is the second lot i found were £7 cheaper. Ordered a set for the Jeep, i'll see how they go and maybe order a set for my other beasts too.
Once i've got them fitted in the XJ, i'll report back on their performance, hopefully with pics as well.
-
You might have to get used to wearing sunglasses at night.... :003:
-
I hope so! :greggmo: :icon_biggrin:
-
.
-
Getting back on topic (although it was great to talk about another sort of life!) i was going to order a pair of these :
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/321895792749?_trksid=p2060353.m1438.l2649&ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT
but they sold out at the weekend.
While trawling fleabay i found these :
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/172085313008?_trksid=p2060353.m2749.l2649&ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT
Call me cynical if you like but both sellers are in Portsmouth, both Chinese and both items are the same pictures, same specification and only the words vary a bit in the description! In other words i think it's the same seller with 2 (or maybe more) different accounts.
The good thing (for me anyway) is the second lot i found were £7 cheaper. Ordered a set for the Jeep, i'll see how they go and maybe order a set for my other beasts too.
Once i've got them fitted in the XJ, i'll report back on their performance, hopefully with pics as well.
Look to have a nice amount of offset between the 2 chips. :)
-
That's what i thought as well. They arrived pretty quickly too, not had a chance to try them in a vehicle yet - just on a power supply. They work either way round (earth-switched or conventional +ve switched) and when switched to full beam both LED chips light. This means you get the added benefit of gaining the dipped beam pattern on full beam.
I will of course report back once i've tried them in a vehicle (or two!) with some photos of before and after for comparison.
Hopefully hey will be another set of LED headlamps we can add to the list of "worth buying"!
-
Both chips on main is how it should be. With halogen, and the old tungsten bulbs, the dipped filament stayed on with the high beam. :) The LEDs should be the same as the standard bulbs, but bright white instead of orange. lol
-
With halogen, and the old tungsten bulbs, the dipped filament stayed on with the high beam
I beg to differ on that one i'm afraid - every car i've ever worked on (with a few minor exceptions) switches between high and low beam filaments on the headlamp bulbs, whether an H4 halogen or the older tungsten filament bulbs. The wiring diagrams also verified this.
Some exceptions were cars with separate main beam headlamps such as Mk3 Capris, Rover P6, Triumph Dolomites etc and there was no high beam filament in the outer pair of lamps. The cars mentioned above don't necessarily do this, i'm using them as an example to point out what i mean about separate main beam headlights.
Virtually everything else i've ever seen switches between high and low filaments although i've known a few cars modified so dipped beam stays on with full beam.
If i could find the "Paint" program on this computer (since it's upgraded to Win10) i would upload the diagram for the XJ headlamp circuit and you can clearly see it changes between low and high beam or dipped and main if you prefer.
-
Werd.
Dip extinguishes when main is selected.
-
Werd.
Dip extinguishes when main is selected.
:iagree:
-
If you are talking about vehicles with single headlights (one on each side) and dual filament bulbs, you are both correct. However, if the vehicle has four headlights and is using single filament bulbs....low beam is usually the outer light and works as required in LO....select HI beam, or use the flasher and ALL the lights are on. My Golf is set up like this and according to my recently aquired service manual, this is how they are supposed to work....the only PITA is that HI and LO require different bulbs...one is H4 and the other is H7...both are single filament!
The secret, apparently, is in the reflector.
-
If you are talking about vehicles with single headlights (one on each side) and dual filament bulbs, you are both correct. However, if the vehicle has four headlights and is using single filament bulbs....low beam is usually the outer light and works as required in LO....select HI beam, or use the flasher and ALL the lights are on. My Golf is set up like this and according to my recently aquired service manual, this is how they are supposed to work....the only PITA is that HI and LO require different bulbs...one is H4 and the other is H7...both are single filament!
The secret, apparently, is in the reflector.
:iagree: That's what i was referring to when i said the outer pair of a 4 headlamp system often only provide the low beam which stays on with high beam. However some cars have the outer pair set to toggle between high and low beam, with the inner pair generally being referred to as driving lamps, rather than high beam.
On my Rovers, although it's only a 2 headlamp system, they have inner reflectors and bulbs to give a driving lamp set-up but both outer lamps toggle between high and low beam.
Conversely on my old Series III Jag, the outer pair only ever worked as dipped beam and the inner pair were the high beam. A friend of mine also had a Series III at the time and he added relays and some wiring to provide high/low beam on the outer pair and changed the inner lamps to enable him to have high and low beam on them as well so all 4 headlamps switched between high and low beam. Apparently improved his night time vision no end.
-
I think we are reading the same hymn sheet...that's how mine work anyway and apart from wanting a little brighter light, I'm pretty happy with the set up. These old eyeballs have served me well over the years, but after 68 years, don't perform as well as they did when they were new. Any help is well regarded.
-
Brighter light is always useful - you're a little older than me and aside from a car falling on me when i was about 20 which banjaxed my night vision, my eyes have also served me pretty well. That said, the standard XJ lights, even with the 100/80W bulbs in aren't that good. I really noticed the difference last night as i drove one of my Rover 827s last night which has 60/55W bulbs (still the blue Xenon bulbs, so a good comparison) and i can see more on dipped beam in that than full beam on the standard XJ lights, even with the 100/80s in them!
I have got a set of auxiliary driving lamps oon the Jeep running 55W bulbs which help on full beam but dipped beam is like driving by candlelight! :icon_eek:
-
:icon_biggrin: :icon_biggrin:
I still believe that the secret is in the reflector setup/shape...My Nissan had awesome lights, even when sticking with the stock standard/legal bulbs...I only fitted the 20" light bar for a very wide/ foglight effect and it worked very well. My Golf has lights which work quite well...nice and bright, but no real distance coverage (and I've tried all sorts of adjustment)...the Nissan would light up about 300 metres...the Golf would be lucky to give you more than 150!
Imagine driving down a country road, on a dark night, cruising at around the 70mph mark...cow, camel or horse laying in the middle of the road (very, very common where I come from) ...it's really hard to see it and stop in time. In Bulgaria, the situation is also common...only the animals are different and may even be a person....but the result will be the same!! No such thing as too much light!!
-
I can imagine the animal situation very easily - deer are very common in my neck of the woods (including muntjac) as well as foxes, badgers etc and only rarely do we find bodies in the road.
The big thing is having plenty of brightness as well as range, that takes some doing though!
-
As I've said before...you and I are reading the same page. Phil (YT) knows which way we are heading too!! :icon_winkle:
-
With halogen, and the old tungsten bulbs, the dipped filament stayed on with the high beam
I beg to differ on that one i'm afraid - every car i've ever worked on (with a few minor exceptions) switches between high and low beam filaments on the headlamp bulbs, whether an H4 halogen or the older tungsten filament bulbs. The wiring diagrams also verified this.
Some exceptions were cars with separate main beam headlamps such as Mk3 Capris, Rover P6, Triumph Dolomites etc and there was no high beam filament in the outer pair of lamps. The cars mentioned above don't necessarily do this, i'm using them as an example to point out what i mean about separate main beam headlights.
Virtually everything else i've ever seen switches between high and low filaments although i've known a few cars modified so dipped beam stays on with full beam.
If i could find the "Paint" program on this computer (since it's upgraded to Win10) i would upload the diagram for the XJ headlamp circuit and you can clearly see it changes between low and high beam or dipped and main if you prefer.
Ah fir fuck sake ! Your 100% correct ! I'm sufferin brain fade recently, ONE of my bikes had the 'dipped stays on' set up, and that'd got stuck in my head. :D
The LEDs should work very well for your dodgy eyes, my eyes are also a bit 'second hand'. With the LED headlights I noticed a LOT less eye strain than with halogens. I'd also say the 12.5/30w Cree LEDs where at least a match for the full HID headlights on the Nissan xtrail I'd had before the Jeep. :)
-
We all have moments like that and i'm no exception! :icon_redface:
-
Another convert to the God CREE. :D
-
Another convert to the God CREE. :D
I was already converted Phil, i just hadn't found headlamp bulbs that did what they said on the tin! Very pleased with them so far but it has shown that my headlamp reflectors (currently fitted the bulbs to my 827 Sterling) are FUBAR and the new ones i ordered turned out to be out of stock, the only reasonably good second hand ones i had have siezed and/or broken adjusters (broken to the point i can't even transplant the reflectors into my old lights) but the LED bulbs definitely out-perform what was in there before :
(http://i567.photobucket.com/albums/ss113/scoobyh123/LED%20Headlights/IMG_20160307_210023070.jpg) (http://s567.photobucket.com/user/scoobyh123/media/LED%20Headlights/IMG_20160307_210023070.jpg.html)
(http://i567.photobucket.com/albums/ss113/scoobyh123/LED%20Headlights/IMG_20160307_210033221.jpg) (http://s567.photobucket.com/user/scoobyh123/media/LED%20Headlights/IMG_20160307_210033221.jpg.html)
Dipped then main, for comparison here's my Jeep in the same spot with 100/80Ws and a pair of 55W driving lamps, again dipped first :
(http://i567.photobucket.com/albums/ss113/scoobyh123/LED%20Headlights/IMG_20160221_204632450.jpg) (http://s567.photobucket.com/user/scoobyh123/media/LED%20Headlights/IMG_20160221_204632450.jpg.html)
(http://i567.photobucket.com/albums/ss113/scoobyh123/LED%20Headlights/IMG_20160221_204657059.jpg) (http://s567.photobucket.com/user/scoobyh123/media/LED%20Headlights/IMG_20160221_204657059.jpg.html)
Even with FUBAR reflectors, the LED bulbs outperform the 100/80s on dipped and main - the Jeep lights are in pretty good condition (like near new when i got them from a breakers yard last year) and although the driving lamps are about 4 years old, they only had about 6 months use before going on the Jeep and have been on about 6 months so about a year old.
I suppose i'd better get another set for the Jeep now................
-
PB links ain't working for me, but it could be my end as our internet people been acting a fuckin maggot all afternoon !
The new convert I ment was MrBrown, his Jeep has just had an upgrade in the lighting department. :D
-
Ah i see! I suppose you can add me as a convert as i've only just added the CREE headlights - that said i've been using a CREE headtorch which has the same (or very similar) chips as the headlight bulbs inside it for a couple of years now so i've been waiting for car headlight bulbs to catch up.
The PB links are working for me and showwing the pics on the thread, maybe try refreshing your page might work?
-
Yeah, they're showing for me now, it was definetly our internet, it's just sorted itself out in the last 15 mins. :) Halogen lights just don't hold up to LEDs, and you can see more car adds with them now. :) Seat where first, they where the first WRC team to use led bars on their cars too, I'd LED headlights & bars 7-8 months before them. lol
-
What makes me laugh is i have 2 yellow spots somewhere up the road where full beam lands - got a pair of H3 CREE LED bulbs to fit once the new headlamps land - finally found a pair from separate sellers and ordered them today so should be able to get even better results with decent reflectors.
-
What makes me laugh is i have 2 yellow spots somewhere up the road where full beam lands - got a pair of H3 CREE LED bulbs to fit once the new headlamps land - finally found a pair from separate sellers and ordered them today so should be able to get even better results with decent reflectors.
I'm sure you will see quite an improvement with decent reflectors.
I'm still waiting for some decent weather so I can dismantle the front of my car...just to get at the bloody headlight units!! :banghead:
-
60" of bars + headlights, and that's a minimum of 1km throw. :)
(http://i1281.photobucket.com/albums/a519/Philxj4L/4BA26DB4-7FD0-469C-970B-183220EB4AE9_zpsyk8ssqd5.jpg) (http://s1281.photobucket.com/user/Philxj4L/media/4BA26DB4-7FD0-469C-970B-183220EB4AE9_zpsyk8ssqd5.jpg.html)
You could drive as fast as you can slow down for bends, or get round them ! :D
-
What makes me laugh is i have 2 yellow spots somewhere up the road where full beam lands - got a pair of H3 CREE LED bulbs to fit once the new headlamps land - finally found a pair from separate sellers and ordered them today so should be able to get even better results with decent reflectors.
I'm sure you will see quite an improvement with decent reflectors.
I'm still waiting for some decent weather so I can dismantle the front of my car...just to get at the bloody headlight units!! :banghead:
I certainly hope so! I ordered a pair of lights from one seller the other day only to be told two days later they only had the left hand light. A couple of days later the right hand appeared from another seller and lo and behold, the left hand appeared again from the original seller. So 3 orders in total, third time lucky i hope!
60" of bars + headlights, and that's a minimum of 1km throw. :)
(http://i1281.photobucket.com/albums/a519/Philxj4L/4BA26DB4-7FD0-469C-970B-183220EB4AE9_zpsyk8ssqd5.jpg) (http://s1281.photobucket.com/user/Philxj4L/media/4BA26DB4-7FD0-469C-970B-183220EB4AE9_zpsyk8ssqd5.jpg.html)
You could drive as fast as you can slow down for bends, or get round them ! :D
Not sure round here i could find a road with 100m without a bend, never mind ten times that!