Adventures in 4Runner'ing

[DouglasVB]

Thanks! When my bulbs finally give up the ghost (previous owner also included a spare sealed bulb), I'll be taking this upgrade path. FWIW, I just ordered one of these H4 bulbs yesterday for one of my motorcycles (currently running an HID system that I have been only semi-happy with) http://www.cyclopsadventuresports.com/3800-Lumen-H4-LED-Headlight-bulb-_p_83.html

The guys on the motorcycle forum for that bike (Honda Pacific Coast PC800) have been raving about this bulb. If it works well for my motorcycle, maybe I'll give it a try in one of those Hella H4 housings to see if it's worth the upgrade.

---EDIT---

Also yeah I agree about going with an upgraded harness for headlights if you're bumping up current draw. It's on the to-do list if I go high amperage for the headlights.

 

[Squishy!]

I dig LED headlights, but for our winter months it may be a hassle keeping ice and snow build-up off the lens. Truck-lite makes a whole replacement heated bulb just like the one I linked to. It's gotten rave reviews, but man it is expensive.

 

[DouglasVB]

Sounds like a business opportunity

I wonder how difficult it would be to laminate some resistive heating elements in between two lexan sheets...

 

[Squishy!]

Sounds like a business opportunity

I wonder how difficult it would be to laminate some resistive heating elements in between two lexan sheets...

More than I'm willing to take on...

 

[nuclearlemon]

it was dirt cheap for trucklite to add the heating elements...so glad they finally did it. i know they did the rounds. haven't heard if they've done the rectangular tho. i bought some sort of hella or something lights for puff, but wish i'd gone with the trucklites.

 

[DouglasVB]

it was dirt cheap for trucklite to add the heating elements...so glad they finally did it. i know they did the rounds. haven't heard if they've done the rectangular tho. i bought some sort of hella or something lights for puff, but wish i'd gone with the trucklites.

I don't see anything about the rectangular housings having heaters yet. Hopefully soon! For my operating case, I probably wouldn't need heaters since I don't plan to drive the truck in the snow very often.

 

[DaveInDenver]

Does that Cyclops LED dealie locate the LEDs in the right place? The way H4 bulbs work is low beam and high beam filaments are at a fixed location so that the two sources are at the correct focal point in the reflectors. HID bulbs usually are OK for one or the other (or neither in some really cheap crap) and tend to blind oncoming drivers when done wrong. Badly (dangerously) blind them.

PS, I think it's funny that they have to add heaters to lights that are already burning power making light to mimic what has been done and worked for decades. I like LED lights fine for reliability and power reduction. Although I can't really get down with the super cool color.

 

[nuclearlemon]

I don't see anything about the rectangular housings having heaters yet. Hopefully soon! For my operating case, I probably wouldn't need heaters since I don't plan to drive the truck in the snow very often.

smear rain x on the lenses.

 

[DouglasVB]

From what I'm told about that LED bulb, the hi/lo function works very well. I've seen a few pictures of people with it installed in their motorcycle and the beam pattern looks really good.

The HID setup I have does hi/lo well also. There is a solenoid that moves a reflector around the bulb to change how it focuses in the housing. The main things I don't like about my current HID setup are 1) I'm getting noise on the custom EFI system I built from the HID ballast, 2) I can hear a high pitched squeal sometimes (the bike is very quiet), 3) the bulb I ordered came out more greenish than I wanted. I was going for a more natural yellow color like normal automotive bulbs but instead got a sickly green.

It is kinda funny that LED bulbs don't heat things up enough to melt snow. That's been a big problem with street lamps and traffic lights in cold, snowy places. The energy savings are good and even more importantly for many of these applications, the amount of maintenance is greatly reduced. It saves municipalities a lot of money.

 

[DaveInDenver]

The HID setup I have does hi/lo well also. There is a solenoid that moves a reflector around the bulb to change how it focuses in the housing.

This is why HID bulbs in H4 housings can never work, it's band-aid over something that just can't work. Incandescent bulbs are small, almost point, sources and LEDs can be to some extent now that the LEDs themselves are getting better (thus requiring fewer of them).

The location of the source needs to be correct in the H4.

HID bulbs are plasma and is more of blob than a point source. All they can do is mask it, which reduces the total incident illumination, kind of defeating the purpose.

 

[DouglasVB]

I know all of that from a science/engineering perspective but the HID that I have in my motorcycle works just fine. The light dispersion pattern isn't really any different than the old H4 bulb. Others using the same HID setup as I have in the same bike as I have also have had similar results (that's a lot of "haves" in one sentence!). Originally I thought that I would have a vibration problem with the little shield rattling around but I haven't had any issues. It baffles me why it works so well.

The LED bulb I ordered supposedly turns on/off different sets of LEDs to mimic using different filaments like the incandescent bulbs. I'll know soon enough about that.

 

[Squishy!]

Ok I thought I'd compile a list of vendors I regularly visit as I look at doing my wide axle conversion. These guys are all top notch (except Trail Gear, just meh).

www.frontrangeoffroadfab.com
-Brian Ellinger is local and second to none with axle stuff. Period. Long wait for intense fabrications, but he stands 100% behind his products un-questioned. Great kits and upgrade options.

www.ruffstuffspecialties.com
-These guys make awesome axle stuff too. They specialize in more than Toyota, so they are more limited in Toyota selection, but they have a great rep. Great source for heim joints and other builder parts.

www.marlincrawler.com
-The undisputed Toyota innovator. When it comes to drivetrain mods look nowhere else. Seriously. His customer service, warranty and support is as good as Front Range Fab and they are quick about it. They have narrowed their focus in a relatively saturated Mini-truck market and are excelling at what they do. Best quality drivetrain components and upgrades.

www.trail-gear.com
Sigh... I really don;

www.allprooffroad.com
-These guys were heavily Mini focused for decades, but have recently been scaling down mini's to focus on Tacoma and Runner Chassis. Still an excellent option for the parts they carry and fabricate.

www.addictedoffroad.com
-Scotty is local and has awesome armor, but has recently become a Trail-Gear dealer. I'm not a huge fan of Trail-Gear, but if you must buy TG, support the local guy too. The armor Scotty makes is unique and well built. It feels a bit homemade rather than mass produced and I like that. Great choice for Armor.

www.sky-manufacturing.com
-Sky is a cheap source for builder parts. I like their Chevy leaf spring swap stuff and u-bolt flip kits. They like to knock stuff off here and there, but they are up and coming in the Mini world.

www.trail-gear.com
-Sigh... I really don't like TG. Chinese steel, stealing designs and a less-than-truthful warranty. They have a rep for poor build quality and low customer support. All my interactions have left me less than impressed. Ok, rant over. They have cheap parts. Sometimes that's just what you need. They have lots of weld-on accessories, Longfield birfs and other necessary parts. I usually look at them last if I can't find it elsewhere or someone else's price is out of my budget. Just remember, you get what you pay for.

www.Lowrangeoffroad.com
-Can't find what you need? Low Range probably can. Fast service and support with a WIDE array of stuff. They are a drop-shipper and don't have any of their own stuff that I'm aware of, but I like them none-the-less. They support Cruise Moab with donations, so use 'em when you can.

 

[nuclearlemon]

www.Lowrangeoffroad.com
-Can't find what you need? Low Range probably can. Fast service and support with a WIDE array of stuff. They are a drop-shipper and don't have any of their own stuff that I'm aware of, but I like them none-the-less. They support Cruise Moab with donations, so use 'em when you can.

and they'll most likely just ship it from trail gear, so you're back to the chinese crap.

 

[ToyodaTocco]

and they'll most likely just ship it from trail gear, so you're back to the chinese crap.

Screw lowrange! What a joke of a company. Their customer service is horrible. I bought things from them twice. Both times I received shipping tracking numbers from them and then they didn't ship the items for two weeks. I had to call them both times to find out what was going on, the second time I told them to cancel my order and that I would order from somewhere else. I will never use them again, I don't care if they do support CM. Try Yotamasters if you want Trail gear, at least they ship when they say they do. Rant over!

 

[Squishy!]

and they'll most likely just ship it from trail gear, so you're back to the chinese crap.

Very true. I use them for odd ball stuff like pillar gauge pods and the like. mostly just odds and ends.

Screw lowrange! What a joke of a company. Their customer service is horrible. I bought things from them twice. Both times I received shipping tracking numbers from them and then they didn't ship the items for two weeks. I had to call them both times to find out what was going on, the second time I told them to cancel my order and that I would order from somewhere else. I will never use them again, I don't care if they do support CM.

That's funny. I've never had an issue, but that is good feed back. Sorry they've been bad

Try Yotamasters if you want Trail gear, at least they ship when they say they do. Rant over!

If I need TG I go through Addicted Off-road. He's local and I like supporting the local guy.

 

[ToyodaTocco]

If I need TG I go through Addicted Off-road. He's local and I like supporting the local guy.

I called them (after the lowrange debacle) but they didn't have the part I needed in stock and would have to have it drop shipped from TG. Ended up ordering from Amazon because I needed the part to get my truck back on the road.

 

[mikeyhcrana]

4wheel parts repeatedly warranties parts without question for me including my Chinese Trail gear parts.

I only use parts made from steel formed with elements created by exploding stars.

...save money, live better.

 

[AxleIke]

Not all elements are combined equally

Agreed on saving money, though on my truck, trying to save money has neither saved me money in the long run, nor helped me live better since I end up frustrated and pissed with broken cheap stuff and I end up spending money twice to get the better quality things I should have bought in the first go.

But, everyone's experience is different.

 

[DaveInDenver]

Buy once, cry once.

 

[DouglasVB]

All I'm saying is y'all should spec out everything that I should buy and from where. Then I can blame you if it breaks or doesn't work!