Colinb17's kinda sorta build thread

i'm building my future children these so they can follow me on the trails!

 

Definitely music to my ears. I think they will do well enough mounted down there. May lose some light output, but I believe there will be plenty of light left to spread around and help with vision.

 

Scrub bars!

 

New project started this evening. taking the ammo can light idea, and improving upon it.

instead of a standard military style ammo can, I've opted for a watertight marine tool box. figured if it's going to be used at night, might as well make it really hard to lose in the dark and go with bright orange

going to have a spot beam on the front, and 4 single LED floods on the top. the 4 will be on one switch, and the spot on another. the 4 top LEDs will be perfect for illuminating a tent at night, or for working under a vehicle, while the spot up front will cover everything else. Power is coming from two 6v computer backup batteries that i'm wiring in series. they are nice, high capacity batteries, so they should power the LEDs for plenty of time. I am also fitting the box with a 12v outlet. this will be how I charge the batteries, as well as give me an option to use the batteries to charge small electronics, in addition to powering the lights.

here's the box and two batteries


Some extra room in the box, but this will give me the needed space to pad and secure the batteries, as this will eventually be mounted in a quick release fashion somewhere in the bed. the extra space will also be used to secure the built-in charge regulator and any other electronic components.



These are the 4 flood lights that will be mounted facing upwards. They are actually marine pods, that are designed to be permanently mounted under water on boat hulls, so water will not be an issue for these guys.



This will be the general layout of the floods.



The floods will be mounted recessed. I tapped the holes in the aluminum body of the LEDs, so two small machine screws through the top will have them nice and secure. then just seal it up and it's good to go.



The rest of the parts I need will be here Friday. here's the LED spot I got.





Got two Rigid Industries, waterproof rocker switches, that will be mounted on the top of the box.



and here's the blue sea, waterproof 12v outlet for charging the batteries as well as running/charging small electronics from said batteries

 

hmmmm, may try to build something that will allow me to securely mount this to the bed rails, yet still have a simple pull-pin release/removal. might get tricky......

 

couldnt you make a base plate with maybe a spring hinge style latch to hold it in place???? dont really know how to describe what i am trying to say to paint a better picture. wouldnt work for the bed rail idea but would still be quick release.

 

I'm thinking an angle iron tray for it to sit in, with a hinged strap over the top, with some sort of quick release. after i make something that holds it properly, then it's just a matter of securing it to the bed, bed rails, or bed rack.

 

Vertical floods mounted and sealed. drilled and tapped the holes for 6x32 and used stainless hardware with some clear marine silicone. picked up some other stuff for it from the hardware store today. rest of the stuff comes in the mail tomorrow.

darn box is so bright that it throws off my camera....

 

This is a sick box

 

cheap too. i think it was $14. about half of a standard steel ammo can....and it won't rust

 

^

Matt

 

that^

pretty much just a big box of batteries with some lights and a charging port.

 

You got a link to the box Colin?

Matt

 

walmart in the fishing section...

 

You know about how much those size ones are?

Matt

 

Don't remember, but I imagine they are under $20.

 

this one is from Academy, in the boating section, but I do believe I remember seeing them at walmart too

this one was $14

just drill a hole in the front of it and use a nut/bolt, and two sandwich plates if needed.

 

Tested the batteries out last night after having them on the trickle charger for a day and a half. batteries are about 5 years old, and aparantly, spending 6 months in an un-airconditioned florida storage unit finally killed them.

picked up one of these as a replacement. same voltage and capacity, just one battery instead of two, linked together. will be here tomorrow.

$27 WILDGAME INNOVATIONS 12V Edrenaline Rechargeable Battery for Game Feeders Outdoor Long-Lasting Sealed Lead-Acid Tab Style Rechargeable Battery

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0031AUPOC/ref=oh_details_o00_s00_i00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

 

What's the total amperage of your new LED's? Just curious how long they'll run with the 7.5AH battery.


Oh, and I figured out that my HID's don't need to be split between two relays. Each ballast only draws "less than 6 amps" on startup, and 3 amps continuous. That means I can free up a switch for the rock lights!