Running LEDS for Toolcat

[Kurtis22]

Has anyone switched there regular bulbs for light bar to LEDS? My relay keeps on melting in cab. It will run for a couple weeks but putting 30 amps through that little prong on the relay seems to melt it down. I figure if I can get the correct leds for the application it would bring down the amount of current through the the relay maybe that would solve my problem. I'm not sure if I can just go buy some Leds and put them in. The bulb is 885. Just wondering if anyone has tried it.

 

[Jabonee]

Has anyone switched there regular bulbs for light bar to LEDS? My relay keeps on melting in cab. It will run for a couple weeks but putting 30 amps through that little prong on the relay seems to melt it down. I figure if I can get the correct leds for the application it would bring down the amount of current through the the relay maybe that would solve my problem. I'm not sure if I can just go buy some Leds and put them in. The bulb is 885. Just wondering if anyone has tried it.

I don't think its a current issue. LEDs do not draw the as much current as incandescent. Possibly a feed back issue because of the LEDs. LEDs are polarized. The may not be signaling the controller that the lights are on or off. :confused3:

 

[ruffdog]

I'm thinking the OP wants to switch to LED's because of the issue.

 

[Jabonee]

I'm thinking the OP wants to switch to LED's because of the issue.

10-4 :confused2:

 

[Xfaxman]

Has anyone switched there regular bulbs for light bar to LEDS? -----------------------------
I'm not sure if I can just go buy some Leds and put them in. The bulb is 885. Just wondering if anyone has tried it.

I don't use the lights much, so haven't thought about it. I did replace the the headlight bulbs in the Polaris with LEDs so know it can be done.

The other option is to replace the the whole thing with a LED work light:

 

[PILOON]

I would say no problem substituting LED's for sealed beams.
In fact there exists some very neat and compact LED light bars that are ideal for tractor usage, I found one compact light bar that has 12 LEDs in 3 clusters of 4.
The center cluster is 'spot' and the outer 4's are 'flood' all packaged in an adjustable finned aluminum housing.

Current draw is minimal and the lighting is simply awesome and better that the pair of halogen spots/work lights it replaces.

 

[Xfaxman]

Yep, replacing all 4 with a light bar is another option :thumbsup::

 

[craneman13]

but it would take away from the "cool off road look" right?

 

[laurencen]

i switched the original lights for 4 LED lights, they are 18w 6LED bulbs in each, draws way less power, i used 2 spot and 2 flood easily 3x brighter

 

[craneman13]

what lights did you buy?

 

[laurencen]

what lights did you buy?

hate to say I got them from China, locally they are 40 dollars each, I purchased 2 flood and 2 spot for 30 dollars with free shipping, they work great and using 4 the toolcat keeps the same look, will try to get a picture tonight, here is the link for the lights

Car LED Work Light Bar led Chips Waterproof Offroad Car Work Bulb headlight ATV SUV 4WD Boat Truck for Jeep BMW-in Light Bar/Work Light from Automobiles & Motorcycles on Aliexpress.com | Alibaba Group

Laurence

 

[laurencen]

here is a picture of the lights installed, they are easily 3X more light than the factory ones, I looked for the connector same as the factory bulb with no luck, for these lights I wired them together, bared a half inch of the wire, tinned them with the solder iron and simply pushed them into the connector that the original bulb attached, keep in mind the LED lights are polarity sensitive and only work connected one way,

for the cost of these lights I purchased a couple for the mower and tractor, they use less power than a single bulb on the Toolcat, this summer I will purchase another 3 and fit them between the 4 pictured, I also mounted 2 on the rear

Laurence

 

[Kurtis22]

MaxGTRs on Amazon. They are plug and play replaces the Phillips 885 bulb

 

[aelsnow]

@Kurtis22, I took your suggestion and bought MaxGTR 885s for the front work lights on my 2021 Toolcat. They plugged right into the existing fixture and wiring. Took 5 min. to change all 4.

Wow, the difference is (literally) night and day. They are a large improvement over the stock halogen bulbs.

I tried to install them on the rear work lights as well, but those bulbs are 886s, with a 90 degree bend at the back. The 885s sort of fit, but they don't clip in, so I aborted that mission. I'll get different bulbs for the rear lights.

Thanks for the tip!

 

[laurencen]

after the install of 4 led lights on the series A toolcat wanted to go LED on the new one but keep the original lamps, got a couple on Amazon, they were easy fit but not much different than the halogen, after some looking local found a couple 880/881 bulbs said to be 5000 lumins, they fit direct into the rear but as the connector is a 90 degree offset same as the rear halogen the connector has to turn up, by rotating the housing down you can get the bulb in then rotate the lamp back in place, here is a picture of the install, only one replaced front and rear in the picture

given the bulbs 5000 lumins with 4 thats 20,000 lumins, a light bar we were considering was 10,000 and it keeps it original

 

[aelsnow]

@laurencen which LED bulbs are you using?

 

[laurencen]

I will be picking up 4 more today to install now I know they will work, I will take some pictures of the bulb and part numbers at that time, the light off the one front one is brighter than the headlamps, quite a improvement

 

[mmancuso13]

Yes please! Pics and info on front and rear bulbs?

 

[laurencen]

this is where I ended up, the bulbs have to rotate up to function, if you rotate them down and they will as no physical stop exists on this bulb unlike the halogen the issue is it will get hit by the wipers when operating so the bulb has to be vertical

with the bulb in the vertical position the wires hit the plastic deflector the lamp assembly is mounted to so the easiest fix is space the bracket down, this was done by using a longer bolt, nut and a couple washers, the unit was then mounted and had enough vertical rotation to aim the lights

next issue the second from the left will still get hit by the wiper, the other 3 clear so I removed them, went back to the original mounting bolt and shortened the connector where the wires are entering, there is a good 1/4 inch you can remove and no effect on the connector, this gives the clearance to aim the light

tried them last night and its night and day performance, it makes the headlamps appear yellow, other than driving on the roads the headlights are useless in comparison

 

[laurencen]

this is the lights last night, its a vast improvement, also a shot of the connector showing amount to remove, its about 1/4 inch, without it the lights can not be rotated down to get a good beam, after actually trying them I think I may rotate up a little to get more distance