LED Headlights

[charliemccraney]

I got some JW Speaker 8700 Evolution 2 headlights for the truck. They are a direct replacement of the sealed beam. 2 amp low beam, 3 amp high beam ~28w and 42w. DOT and SAE. If you had told me that I could have simple plug and play headlights, that rival those which come on new, high end cars, I would have thought you were joking. However, they exist. Technology is awesome.

These pictures show that they are clearly better than the Sylvania halogen sealed beams I had, but they still do not do these lights justice.

I'm not particularly fond of the modern look of the lights on the truck, However, the added safety of being able to see much more in front of me makes the aesthetic acceptable. These lights are available with a chrome or black bezel. I went with chrome since it does look more like a traditional lens, at a glance, than black. Black might look pretty good on darker colored vehicles.

Halogen left, LED Right
Low beam top, high beam bottom







Low beam:



High beam:

[Toyz]

I had been looking for something more traditional in appearance. I found them from a local company online. Vintagecarleds.com provided a Hella-appearing glass lens with the 28 watt LEDs. I took some comparison pictures; I'll hunt them up and post them. They are probably the best $200.00 I have spent on the truck, other than original purchase price! They are fluted with little "scatter" noted; and other than being slightly flatter than the original beams, look stock at first glance.
Paul

[dennyboy]

Where did you get those!!

[charliemccraney]

I agree, while not cheap, some of the best money spent.

Vintagecarled.com does not seem to exist anymore. Probably Hella Vision Plus H4 conversions with LED H4 replacement bulbs. I guess I should have asked. I found reviews of the Vision Plus conversion, but nothing with H4 replacement LEDs. So I decided on something that was designed from the start as an LED headlight.

$200.00 is not bad at all. You can have more than that in Piaa or comparable H4 bulbs, alone and they draw 2 to 3 times the current for the same brightness.

I got them on Amazon.

[slick4x4]

I rewired my blue truck
Used heavier wire & switch & run alternator
Had a set of halogens (from a parts truck )
Bright lights are a wonderful thing !
But if running the stock wiring ... LEDs
Would be my choice

[orangeRcode]

Vintagecarled.com does not seem to exist anymore. Probably Hella Vision Plus H4 conversions with LED H4 replacement bulbs. I guess I should have asked. I found reviews of the Vision Plus conversion, but nothing with H4 replacement LEDs. So I decided on something that was designed from the start as an LED headlight.

$200.00 is not bad at all. You can have more than that in Piaa or comparable H4 bulbs, alone and they draw 2 to 3 times the current for the same brightness.

I got them on Amazon.

Got a link? I looked and saw several but wanted to make sure which ones you used. Was it a plug and play or did you have do some modifications?

[charliemccraney]

Stock wiring or not, LED is the future and will be the way to go, particularly as they become more mainstream and the price comes down.

Yes, plug and play.
https://www.amazon.com/JW-Speaker-8700- ... volution+2

There is a Youtube channel called Headlightrevolution. I can't provide a link right now but if you go to Youtube and search for that or the headlights that are the subject of this post, you will find them. They reviewed 12 LED headlights. Take a look at that. All are not equal. Some are crap. Others are ok, and few are exeptional.

I'm not even sure if mine are aimed correctly. I did make sure that they were aimed the same as the sealed beams for equal comparison but I have not ever actually checked the aim, so it might actually be even better when I do that.

[Toyz]

vintagecarleds.com The headlamps have another name embossed in the lens; I don't recall what exactly it is. That was another thing I liked about them; they have the alignment "lugs" if. I ever got my headlamp aiming equipment working (not likely!). I was concerned as to how well the LEDs would work with the fluted lens; I am quite pleased with the results. I would have hung a light bar under the bumper before settling for the Jeep style lamps with the wide "beam divider". I see little compromise in these, however, I have yet to check them from an approaching traffic viewpoint.
Paul

[Toyz]

I rewired my blue truck
Used heavier wire & switch & run alternator
Had a set of halogens (from a parts truck )
Bright lights are a wonderful thing !
But if running the stock wiring ... LEDs
Would be my choice

With the upgraded wiring, you are probably alright. These trucks originally came with 50 watt high beams, so the use of modern H6014s with 60 watt high beam is often enough to overload the circuit breaker in the switch leading to the famous "flashing headlamp syndrome". I would highly recommend that anyone using the higher wattage lamps ( and that is most of us), consider the relay conversion to avoid overloading the breaker, as well as maximizing the light output. LED users, no problem; as Charley stated, you have effectively cut the load in half!
Paul

[orangeRcode]

With the upgraded wiring, you are probably alright. These trucks originally came with 50 watt high beams, so the use of modern H6014s with 60 watt high beam is often enough to overload the circuit breaker in the switch leading to the famous "flashing headlamp syndrome". I would highly recommend that anyone using the higher wattage lamps ( and that is most of us), consider the relay conversion to avoid overloading the breaker, as well as maximizing the light output. LED users, no problem; as Charley stated, you have effectively cut the load in half!
Paul

So these are the ones you have on the silver truck you had at SS? How do you like them? I'm seriously considering the $159 kit (VC3000 Classic 7" from Vintagecarleds.com).

[Toyz]

Yep, ordering sets for the 4x4 and the XL cab. I am very pleased with them; they are the slightly more powerful ones, $226.00 with Texas tax.
Paul

[charliemccraney]

Did you get any shots of how the lights actually light up the road?

Something I forgot is for the JW Speaker lights, they are thicker where the retaining ring goes to hold the light in place. About a 1/8" spacer (or stack of washers) for each of the 3 screws will help to ensure that you do not distort or put excess stress on that ring.

[Toyz]

Road, what's a road? No, this was the evening I discovered my 400 mile 385 series had fallen victim to the dreaded "roller lifter failure" illness, which itself seems to be caused by the "this truck is GOING to Slickstock!" disease.
Paul
.

[skidoorulz]

Yep, ordering sets for the 4x4 and the XL cab. I am very pleased with them; they are the slightly more powerful ones, $226.00 with Texas tax.
Paul[/quote]

I looked these up and with the exception of the 2800 they seem kind of deep, if that would describe them. Do they hit the core support behind the headlight bucket?

[orangeRcode]

Yep, ordering sets for the 4x4 and the XL cab. I am very pleased with them; they are the slightly more powerful ones, $226.00 with Texas tax.Paul

Paul, did you get the VC3000 ($159) or the VC3500 ($189)? The VC2800 is the base model but it also says its the Modern 7". The VC3000 looks yellow almost due to something on the LED bulb.

[Toyz]

I went with the VC4000. They drop into the original bucket slots with no clearance issues, The wiring harness is considerably longer than needed, but also tucks behind the buckets.
Paul

[bird55]

So if I have a perfectly good rebuilt generator that I would rather not toss for an alternator, would I be OK trying to run a set of LED headlights. DI don't have relays either but reasonably new Slvania stock headlamps?

[charliemccraney]

Yes. The LED headlights may actually reduce the draw on the system vs what you currently have. Do you know the power draw of the current lights?

[bird55]

Charlie, no, I don't know the current draw. I do know the existing setup is marginal on the road. Seeing not very well IS believing!
I also have a cracked headlamp on my tbird so I will probably replace both with these first as my own personal test. The bird does have an alternator.
How would I check the draw on the truck setup?

Thanks

[Toyz]

Our trucks were originally equipped with #6012 45/50 watt lamps. The halogen replacements are generally H6014 drawing 55/60 watts. My LEDs draw 28 watts on high beam, effectively taking a large load off the circuit breaker, switch, wiring, and charging system. The original circuit breaker was rated at 12 amps, giving it ample capacity with the 6012s. As the system and connections deteriorated over the decades, the addition of higher draw lamps often pushed the circuit breaker, resulting in "flashing headlamp syndrome". Larger output alternators often added to the problem by creating heat due to high draws and poor connections. Relays alleviate that load on switch and breaker, but can add problems if connections and wires at headlamp are not also upgraded.
Paul