Send me to LED Light Bar School

So.....I'm interested in getting an LED light bar for my truck. There are a couple things though, namely I hate the way they look and that I don't know why so many people get them. Living in northern ontario I'm starting to see the merits of extra light in the dark when we have 5 hours of daylight. I'm looking at the Cali Raised Led bar that sits behind the grill, nice and hidden . So here's my questions:

Why get an Led bar?
How do you guys wire them? Stand alone or with high beams, and if with high beams how did you do it?
Since I'm specifically looking at the cali raised 30.5", who has it and how do you like it? Anyone have before and after pictures?
Anyone have opinions on good or bad brands?

Tried searching on this forum and couldn't find much info. Any help or your two cents is appreciated. Thanks guys.

 

I got them cali raised ditch lights and just the bumper brackets.... ordered a 32" light bar from eBay... I must say I love it! Where I live in Washington getting home at night is around some curvy unlit roads so I have used it there mostly.
I have mine running to independent switches for grill light and ditch lights and hopefully soon roof rack mounted led bar.

 

Most all bars come with wiring harness and switch, which is typically mounted in the dummy cover next to your inverter switch of course to the left of steering wheel.

 

I'm a 2nd gen, but I'll chime in.
I got my light bar (roof mount) because I wanted additional light when I finally move out to the property I am building up. 25+ miles from the nearest street light in an area that gets elk and deer going through.
I wired it using a relay. High beam circuit controls the + side of the control circuit and a switch controls the - side of the control circuit. That way I can use just high beams in more populated areas, but have the bar controlled with the high beams when I am driving through the mountains or in remote areas.

 

I figured this was how it would typically go. I was curious if anyone had hooked them into high beams and what that would entail. I figured the 12v to the headlight could be split to trip a relay, but mostly this is for curiosity sake. I put in my own 12v fuse panel to run all my stuff off of. Too scared to cut into factory wiring.

 

Would go for Cali Raised bar. Good quality and not too $$. I have their 31" flush mounted bar (I have yet to install though). Theres comes with a switch and all required wires but I wanted a more OEM look so i bought a separate switch from Amazon

 

Not sure about how you do that, but running a light bar is illegal on public roads in most places is it not? I wouldn't want the hassle of only being able to use my high beams off road if it's connected to turning on the light bar as well

Edit. Just read posts above about how that may work without the bar being on all the time

 

So when your bar switch is off the high beams work as normal but when it is on they come on with the high beams? I really like that.

I don't like the light bars sticking if the trucks so want to go with the one behind the grill. I really like that. And u would order a different switch as well. Everything I have poor in so far I have for switches for that look stock

 

Yep makes sense. I just liked the flush look personally. I wasn't a fan of having it behind the plastic cutouts. But hey that's why both types are options

 

Yes. When the switch is off, the high beams alone turn on. But with the switch on, the light bar is turned on and off with the high beams. The way I did it was to use an Add-a-fuse. Wire it to the relay, remove one of the high beam fuses, plug the high beam fuse into the AAF with one for the relay, and plug the AAF into the high beam fuse spot. No cutting of OE wiring.

 

So there is no power to the high beam fuse when the high beams aren't on? Sounds like an aaf is the way to go then . that's awesome! So did you run from aaf to switch to relay?

 

It's simple, works well, and is 100% reversible with no alterations to factory wiring. Let me make this clear. The light bar MUST be on its own fused power source. The AAF from the high beam circuit is to provide power to the relay CONTROL side ONLY.
I have a BlueSea aux fuse panel which I use for main power supply to all my high load accessories.

 

I bought that same CaliRaised LED for behind the grill (3rd gen). The wiring harness that comes with it is good for an "anytime on", but I also like the stock-looking switches, so I got the AirOnBoard switch which comes with a wiring diagram to connect to a relay and trigger only when the high beams are on (and the switch is pressed - otherwise it's high beams as usual). There are a ton of "anytime on" mods or setups on TW, but I really like the way it was intended by AOB. I'm never going to use the light bar outside of having my highs on, and I don't want to accidentally bump the switch on, or leave it on when not in use.

As far as wiring, the AOB switch diagram is pretty straightforward. You'll have to rewire the relay block that comes from CaliRaised, and remember the newer model Tacos are negatively-switched (looking for the -12v off the high beam circuit instead of the +12v).

Good luck.

 

I have a blue sea box under the hood as well. For those that have the Cali Raised bar, how much power does it draw? I can't find any specs on it.

 

-Some get them for added light out put either wider to the sides or further down a path. Others get them for looks.
-This is preference and is like asking "How do you skin a Cat?" Some might say they did it a specific way to save a few bucks by not adding things like a SwitchPro ect...
-I bought the same Stealth bar you're looking at and it's still sitting in a sealed box.
-There are quality differences between high end brands and lower end brands, but this comes down to how much your budget is, because I can tell you why I like my Baja Design Racer Edition ONX6, but you might not be looking at spending that much, so it would be pointless.

 

One could get a headache looking at LED lightbars on eBay. Which one did you get (which vendor may be easier)? What brackets did you use?

Thanks,

Sagebrush

 

Hello

I see Cali Raised was mentioned a couple times in your post. First of all thanks for everyone supporting us and recommending us. OP Just like you said, our product here :http://www.caliraisedled.com/product/2016-toyota-tacoma-31-5-light-bar-lower-bumper-brackets

Is one of our most popular items. Our combo deals comes with everything necessary for you to install your led light bar. It comes with the Lower bumper brackets, 31.5" LED light bar and wiring harness with a switch. The install is not that hard, also it comes with instructions and a youtube video to go along for you visual learners. Overall its a great addition to your truck. For the whole package your looking at spending 269.99. Let me know if you have any questions

 

Are you guys having any Black Friday or holiday sales coming up in the next month? I would like to get my father a kit but $270 is spendy for a gift.

 

@CaliRaisedLed are you gonna do any black friday sale for this set up on the 3rd gen taco... if so i gotta know so i dont spend my money somewhere else!!! lol

 

Can you attach a link to the video? I would like to see if it is something I am capable of doing myself