I installed a 52" Eyourlife light bar on my jeep and did a little video walk through.
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My 52" Eyourlife light bar install
- Thread starter TheFrenchMan
- Start date
OP
It's been working great. I just took it on a night trip and it is really bright! I got it from Amazon for $86.99. The whole install was under $300. If you are going to buy a cheaper light bar, just do the prep and make sure it's sealed up before you install it. The only real bad reviews I could find was that it leaked in moister so I took the time to silicone every seam in the bar before I installed it. It's rained twice so far and it's perfect!
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That's one hell of a deal! You don't by chance happen to have a link to the light bar on Amazon do you? Or maybe I should just look up 52" light bar on there?
OP
This is the one I got. Looks like it went up a couple bucks since I bought it a couple weeks ago. $92.99 now.
Eyourlife Off Road Extra 52" Light Bar 300W Flood Spot Combo Beam https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00F4MQJ5O/?tag=wranglerorg-20
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Eyourlife Off Road Extra 52" Light Bar 300W Flood Spot Combo Beam https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00F4MQJ5O/?tag=wranglerorg-20
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See, I don't get it. You can get this light bar for next to nothing, but then some of these manufactures charge $900 for their light bars. I just don't see what's with the huge variety in price difference.
OP
My guess is overall quality. I bet a $1000 light bar will be better and brighter and last longer than mine but if mine lasts me a year or two I'm happy. I'll just buy a new one.
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I agree. I think they're all made in China though. But for less than $100 you can't argue.
OP
Yeah, be sure to update us on how it ends up. If it ends up working out nicely I'm going to buy the same one for myself.
Like most things, you need to understand the nuance of the parts to get the price difference. When it comes to LED's, they are manufactured and tested. As the results come back the brightest are put into one bin, the next brightest into the next bin and so on and so forth until the run is sorted. The brightest that are in the same temperature range fetch the most money, the next brightest slightly less and so on.
Essentially that means you can purchase "Cree" 3 watt LEDs" that are not the same as the top of the line "Cree 3 watt LED's" and pay a whole bunch less than the company that demands only the top of the line output and is willing to pay for it.
Digging around, I found a decent explanation of what I'm poorly trying to explain.
While one LED looks almost indistinguishable from the next, the efficiency of a LED in terms of lumen output can vary dramatically depending on the BIN of the LED. After a LED is produced it goes through a computerized testing machine that separates LEDs into various BINs depending on their color and lumen output. The BIN of the LED is then given a product ID code and placed for sale by the LED manufacturer. A good example of binning is demonstrated in the graph below for 630nm red LEDs offered by Luxeon.
The most efficient 630nm LED offered by Luxeon is the LXM2-PD01-0050 which emits 102 lumens at 700mA. These LEDs can be purchased in reel quantities (1000+ LEDs) for $2.36 per LED and are considered "Top-BIN" LEDs. The least efficient 630nm LED offered by Luxeon is the LXML-PD01-0030 which emits only 62 lumens (40% less) at the same 700mA drive current. These LEDs can be purchased in reel quantities for $1.54 per LED (35% less) and are considered "Low BIN" LEDs. The main difference between a high quality and cheap LED Grow Light is usually separated by the BIN of LEDs being used, giving further credence to the saying "You get what you pay for". Hydro Grow sources Top-BIN LEDs for all X-PRO LED Grow Lights despite the high costs associated with these LEDs to ensure the absolute best performance from our products.
As you can see, there is no way a 100 dollar light bar is using top bin emitters. Also, I've been involved with some folks that race and depend on LED light bars to stay alive and the output from the top brands is actually night and day difference over the el cheapo stuff on Amazon and Ebay.
That said, if you don't need it, don't pay for it but at least now you understand some of the nuance.
That makes sense Blaine. I guess I figured that all of these light bars are clearly made in China (at least the parts are) so I figured they had to be the same.
I do however understand that you have different quality levels for things that come out of China. For instance, my iPhone is made in China but I'm sure the parts used to make it are much higher quality than some knock off Chinese phone.
The good thing is I don't need a light bar right now. I have some more important things on the to do list!
I do however understand that you have different quality levels for things that come out of China. For instance, my iPhone is made in China but I'm sure the parts used to make it are much higher quality than some knock off Chinese phone.
The good thing is I don't need a light bar right now. I have some more important things on the to do list!
I just bought a 52 inch for 68$ off amazon says 30k luminous, either way if it works I got a light bar for cheap if it doesn't I'm only out 68$. I don't need anything serious since ill only use it once in a while. your video was a great, I might take some of your ideas and use them. Channeling the brackets to run the cable. Thanks for the ideas! I also bought these brackets (80$): http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00LIF1RP8/?tag=wranglerorg-20
hope they do the trick and fit right.
hope they do the trick and fit right.
You'll have to be the one that determines if the definition of "fit" is what you are after. My definition is that it follows the windshield frame with no gaps top or bottom. I've yet to see any out of the box that do that even including some I've paid well over twice that for.
The problem is the windshield frame is curved and to curve a bent up piece of angle, you need to build a forming die which is neither easy or cheap. Good luck, I hope they fit better than the ones I've had to fix.
American consumers operate almost wholly under the mantra that price is king, quality is second. It is our badge of honor to brag to our friends that we paid less for the same thing that everyone bought and try to shame them for overspending. No one runs around telling everyone they spent more, so we as consumers are responsible for creating this mess where there is high quality at one end with high prices and then pure junk at the other end with low prices just so we can show everyone we can have the same things.
That also breeds entire industries devoted entirely to making look alike products at price points designed to attract that buyer. Only a few generations ago, the tools, appliances, etc. were built to last a lifetime and be passed along to your kids and their kids. Now, not so much. We buy something, when it breaks, fails, or simply falls out of fashion, we toss it and go buy another equally crappy product and in doing so promote the very things that irritate us about the one we just tossed.
I see folks lambaste Walmart and their ilk as being the downfall of our society with all their cheap crap. The flaw in that logic is they wouldn't exist for long if that isn't what we wanted as consumers. You used to go buy a lawn mower with the Snapper logo on it at the local hardware or lawn and garden supply and they also sold to the folks that mowed lawns for a living so you knew the quality was there and that mower might last you 20 years. Now you go to Walmart and buy a mower with the Snapper name on it but due to no one wanting a real mower or at least wanting to pay for one, you get a version of a Snapper that no self respecting landscaper would even take to the dump for you.
The part that makes me sad is the good stuff is steadily going away and I don't ever see it coming back.
You're preaching to the choir, trust me. The majority of Americans are hipocrites too. We say we want cheap products and affordable prices, but we also want it to be quality and built to last. Sorry, but those two don't go hand-in-hand.
I'm obviously not as old as you at only 32, but I have seen a lot of older toys, tools, lawnmowers, etc., and that stuff was built to last a lifetime.
Case in point, my Dad still has original craftsman power tools including jigsaws, band saws, and tons more. He's had them in his family since the 50s and they are sure hell still running strong. I borrowed some of them the other day for a project and I was shocked at how much better the quality is on this 50s jigsaw than it is on a modern day one.
To clarify, my commentary is just observation, nothing more.
TheFrenchMan,
How is the light holding up? Do you ever take your rig through the car wash? Touchless? I'm wanting to do some night rides this spring, and would really like to get some lights installed ASAP.
Any helpful info would be greatly appreciated.
How is the light holding up? Do you ever take your rig through the car wash? Touchless? I'm wanting to do some night rides this spring, and would really like to get some lights installed ASAP.
Any helpful info would be greatly appreciated.