B2650 ROPS light mounting bracket?

[atitus74]

Correction, that is ropslights.com

 

[Rob 80]

Correction, that is ropslights.com

HA HA of course............. they look good and are the brightest i've seen yet. 4560 lumens each

 

[JWR]

I'm surprised that there is no aftermarket product light kit for tractors. Now i need to find some decent wire any idea on what gauge?

thanks for the help everyone and for the part # atitus74

I have not searched but I would be very surprised if there is no aftermarket light kit for tractors...

So I just did -- go to Amazon.com and search on "tractor light kit." This will pull up a long page, the first 6 or 8 items of which are light kits with wiring, rocker switch, etc. Keep scrolling down and you will find Nilight LED Light Bar Wiring Harness Kit 12V On Off Switch Power Relay Blade Fuse for Off Road Lights LED Work Light for about $7 on the first page.

This goes on for 20 pages but I won't say all of them are relevant.

If you choose to do it from scratch yourself, I would use stranded 20 or 22 guage wire which is probably overkill. The terminology is "stranded hookup wire." Auto parts stores carry that as well as crimp type connectors, fuses, switches, etc. I like the multi-wire cable (esp. if you are wiring multiple lights) that has an all weather outer sheath to it. Try Radio Shack if they still exist. Lowes and Home Depot probably sell it by the foot.

 

[atitus74]

Like JWR said, if you buy the pieces separately like I did, you will need hookup wire. Often in auto parts stores its easy to find, they call it "primary wire." There are many web sites on the internet that will explain how to choose which size (gauge) wire. With my setup it was 2X18 watts + 76 watts for a total of 112 watts total. The tractor is a 12v system, so for me its just under 10 amps. I got 16 ga wire to be on the safe side. Don't forget an inline fuse, also available at most auto parts stores. Always install the fuse in the wire attached to the POSITIVE side of the battery. Do these things and you are fine.

 

[Rob 80]

Like JWR said, if you buy the pieces separately like I did, you will need hookup wire. Often in auto parts stores its easy to find, they call it "primary wire." There are many web sites on the internet that will explain how to choose which size (gauge) wire. With my setup it was 2X18 watts + 76 watts for a total of 112 watts total. The tractor is a 12v system, so for me its just under 10 amps. I got 16 ga wire to be on the safe side. Don't forget an inline fuse, also available at most auto parts stores. Always install the fuse in the wire attached to the POSITIVE side of the battery. Do these things and you are fine.

So what is the max watts i can pull before killing my battery around 112 watts? That does not count the factory lights. I will have a look JWR. It seems to be cheaper if you build your own of course.

I guess you could run only one wire to the battery to the back then just join the other wires to the one wire? 2 or 3 wires from the rops. I would solder them and use heat shrink. I even have a cigarette lighter socket at the back of the tractor i could use that might turn on and off.

The trouble is i have to put my rops down to get into the garage.

Is it better to get 2 flood lights and then a spot light bar in the middle?

 

[atitus74]

The 112 was just my example. You can get whatever you want. The battery is pretty substantial, would support pretty large power draw. You just have to make sure that all the parts (switches, wire, etc) are rated to carry the load. Rops folding is something you do have to watch for when you install the parts, make sure lights don't get in the way.

 

[JWR]

Yeah Rob, I agree with atitus comments overall. Do not worry about dragging down your battery. Anytime the motor runs the battery is being charged/kept charged and the relatively small drain of lights is of no real concern. Just like a car -- leave your lights on for a few hours without running the motor and, yes, you will run down your battery.

"Is it better to get 2 flood lights and then a spot light bar in the middle?" That's entirely up to you. There is no such thing as "better."

No, I do not think it is cheaper to do it from scratch with wire and parts, etc. The $7.xx kit on Amazon is less than you would spend for the individual parts and besides chasing all that takes time.

 

[Rob 80]

I found a plug to add more lights on the tractor it even has a tag on it saying the max watts. It's back behind the seat now i just need to figure out what type of plug that is.

 

[JWR]

I'd put a meter on them and see what turns the circuit on and off or whether it is always on, etc. Those are very common type connectors in tractor wiring even back decades ago. I do not know what they are called. Might or might not find them in an auto parts store. My guess is that those connectors were for a rear work light and that the circuit comes on when your tractor headlight switch goes on. That was the case with similar wires/connectors I found back there on my B2150 and I used them for an extra light. Pretty handy to have them already turned on and off with an existing light switch (if that is the case.)

 

[atitus74]

No guarantee but that looks like the connectors on my hazard lights for the grass catcher. I'd do what jwr says. Put a voltmeter on it and turn on the hazard light button on the dash and see what happens.

 

[KennyV]

... what type of plug that is.

View attachment 571987

Bullet wire connector.

 

[Rob 80]

Bullet wire connector.

Thanks Kenny, i ran a meter across it's 12v DC and only has power when the key is turned.

 

[dragoneggs]

I used studs that attach with epoxy. They're used in the aircraft industry. You have to sand the paint off where you want the studs, but my ROPS needed touched up anyway, so I repainted it. :: Click Bond, Inc. :: Studs & Standoffs

I can't remember if I got the idea from this site?

Probably. I have a few threads on Click Bond here. You might have seen this one...

https://www.tractorbynet.com/forums...nstall-but-look.html?highlight=LED+light+ROPS

That is really an innovative way to deal with these kinds of issues. Thanks for the post (an idea which can probably be used for a lot of other purposes too.)

Since you were wondering... aux tool box install, side mounted rear view mirrors, and a fire extinguisher install...

https://www.tractorbynet.com/forums/build-yourself/369233-bx-auxiliary-chain-box-mod.html?highlight=

https://www.tractorbynet.com/forums...dding-rear-view-mirrors-using.html?highlight=

Mounting a Fire Extinguisher on a BX ROPS - YouTube

Full disclosure... I am associated with Click Bond but these were all for personal use and I just wanted to share. I am not trying to advertise but instead thought some might be interested in a unique way to do 'mods' to your tractors.

 

[Rob 80]

Here are some pictures of my setup. Hope this helps. First, I got a waterproof switch, and used silicone sealant to affix it to the dash so water can't get in behind it. Its wired direct to the battery so I can turn the lights on when the tractor isn't running, which is convenient.
View attachment 571671

I have two 4 inch floods facing rear. These square u-bolts were fairly long. I put nylon spacers to keep tension and give me a little space to work with then cut the extra bolt threads off with a hacksaw. The lights come with the little bracket, just put it on over the end of the bolt and tighten it up. Holds great.
View attachment 571672

Did you use 3 inch square bolts?

 

[atitus74]

I don't remember exact size, I measured the rops and measured the internal space of the bolt at the store to make sure it would fit. You should be careful buying them sight unseen, as the stores are not consistent in the way they list their sizes. Some reverse width x length, etc.

 

[Rob 80]

I finally got the lights mounted now i just need to wire them up. On my dash just below the idle lever there are two blank spots how hard would it be to mount a switch in one of them? I really don't want to cut holes so maybe the two blank spots just pop out.

 

[s219]

The easiest will be to tie into the work light circuit, which runs a wire to one of the rear fenders already (normally the left). Tie into that and then add a switch (or switches) at the rear of the tractor.

As far as mounting, I am amazed more people don't use the threaded mounts already on the ROPS, circled in yellow below:



It's a good fixed rigid mount that doesn't get affected when you fold the ROPS and you don't have to dick around with clamps, etc or clutter up the ROPS. I forget the thread size, but it's a standard metric thread (M10 maybe?).

 

[atitus74]

s219 -- don't know about you but I don't want the lights shining into the back of my head. Or right in my face if I turn around. Need them much higher.

Rob80 -- take a look at the pictures I posted earlier in this thread. You can see where I installed a switch. On my tractor there was a rubber grommet there. No cutting, just pulled out the grommet and dropped the switch in.

 

[s219]

s219 -- don't know about you but I don't want the lights shining into the back of my head. Or right in my face if I turn around. Need them much higher.

Rob80 -- take a look at the pictures I posted earlier in this thread. You can see where I installed a switch. On my tractor there was a rubber grommet there. No cutting, just pulled out the grommet and dropped the switch in.

Hasn't been an issue on my Kubotas -- I mount the lights there on all of them. But I can see how it might be a problem on a smaller tractor like a BX though, as the ROPS is a lot shorter and narrower on those.

 

[JWR]

The easiest will be to tie into the work light circuit, which runs a wire to one of the rear fenders already (normally the left). Tie into that and then add a switch (or switches) at the rear of the tractor.

As far as mounting, I am amazed more people don't use the threaded mounts already on the ROPS, circled in yellow below:

View attachment 572506

It's a good fixed rigid mount that doesn't get affected when you fold the ROPS and you don't have to dick around with clamps, etc or clutter up the ROPS. I forget the thread size, but it's a standard metric thread (M10 maybe?).

That's a great feature and good to find out that the threaded mounting hole exists. It does not exist on many models, especially older ones, however.