I just started doing some math and want to put this out there to have more eyes than just mine to make sure I am heading the right direction.

My plan is I want to run four KC Daylighters in stainless steel, I will be buying them individually as thats the only way to receive the Daylighter in a floodlight set up.

These use a 100watt H3 bulb that only has one setting. I really wanted an H4 bulb that had high and low settings to tie into my dimmer switch. But I can settle with just one setting as they are ment for extra lighting when on unlit country roads and when I am off road.

I currently have a 1G externally regulated alternator, not sure of the power output but we use a guy at work, Finch, that rebuild starters and alternators and he can boost the output of any alternator. Can always have mine or another 1G externally regulated alternator rebuilt and boosted up to 75-100 amps. I also did away with all incandecent bulbs in the interior of the truck, everything is LED as of this moment. With all this in mind the follow is the math I did so far as to power consumption of just these four daylighters.

400w/12.8v = 31.25 Amps power consumption.

24w/12.8v = 1.875 Amps power consumption with same four Daylighters but using H3 Cree LED bulbs rated at 80 watt light output.

I need to do my research more on the H3 LED as they might not provide as much illumination as a halogen H3 bulb would.

But at this stage I wanted to ask if this math seems right so far? I used 12.8 volts as that is what a 12 volt battery really is. I could use 13 - 14 volts as well since when the engine is running the alternator bumps voltage to 13 to 14 volts depending on alternator and vehicle. This would also cause the amperage to go down as well.

I am working on figuring in my other lighting as well to get a complete picture of my power needs, so will update this post as I make more progress.

 

Skip modifying the 1g alternator, while you may be able to get the higher peak output out of it, low rpm output will not compare to a 3g. The standard run of the mill 130A rated one I have on my wheeling rig put out 152A peak according to the benchmark sheet it came with.
The real story however is it's low rpm output, I have measured 85a at 500 rpm engine idle after an extended period of winching.

A 3g swap will keep up with just about any reasonable amount of lighting you wish to add.

On the topic of LED lighting, a dedicated led assembly is far superior to a retrofit bulb in an incandescent housing.

 

I looked at the 3g swap, saw quite a few comments bout how it might not fit in the factory brackets.

I saw some dedicated LED assembly, just couldnt find a traditional round one I liked. Guess I am trying too hard at going for a vintage theme.

Guess I could go for the modern approach and go for one of those LED light bars that has both flood and spot light LED`s built into it. That would actually be cheaper than buying four of the Daylighters at $75 a piece.

Or I could just buy this $70 set of four round LED flood lights and be done with it. I think each one putting out 2160LM a piece with four of them running should work fairly good for lighting up unlit roads as well as fields.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/4PCS-27w-ROUND-Led-Work-Light-FLOOD-OFFROAD-ATV-Truck-Boat-SUV-12v-24v-lamp-/321381360375?pt=Motors_Car_Truck_Parts_Accessories&hash=item4ad3d262f7&vxp=mtr

 

You are planning on running them off a relay, correct?

 

Correct. I will be installing a headlight relay conversion for my headlights and I will use the other headlight plug in the factory harness to power the relay for the auxiliary lights.

Only thing different is I will use a switch inside that will kill the signal circuit from the headlight connector to the relay so I can manually turn them on. Might do something a little different but I will be using a relay for these lights.

As of now I am warming up to the idea of LED auxiliary lights. Found a good selection on Ebay but most of what I am finding are between 4 1/2 to 5 inch where I am looking more for the 6 to 7 inch range as I feel 4 1/2 inch would look too small mounted on a roll bar.

If I dont end up with four round LED lights I think I will just go with one light bar but thats only if its more cost effective.

Just need to focus on this now as I will be moving out of the city soon and I am not used to driving on unlit country roads and rather have the auxiliary lights so I can light up the sides of the road before I get there.

 

Texas must be different. Like I mentioned in a recent post, lights like that have to be covered and can't be used on the highway around here. Off-road is fine. As soon as you hit the pavement the covers had better be on the lights. No aux lighting can be above the factory headlights on the street.

 

I have not done a 3g swap on a small block but I had no issues on my 300 or 460. I'm sure a small case one would fit if all else fails.

Having lived in areas devoid of such nicities as street lights and more than 8 hours of daylight in the dead of winter for many years, one of my first upgrades on a sealed beam equipped truck is a set of good E code reflectors, followed closely by relays, and bypassing the dimmer switch on the low beam circuit so it is always powered when the head lights are on and the dimmer only switches the highs.
I usually run 100/55w bulbs as well.

Good auxiliary lighting is always nice but improving the primary lighting is not that difficult.

 

The 95A small case will fit without modifications.
The 148mm diameter 130A 3G will need the bracket clearanced.

There was a great step by step on the old RJM website.
You can probably still find those pictures on the FSB forum.

Another option is to search the waybak archives.
I know RJM & FYI are both on there.

 

A few of my opinions. Obviously you are free to do what you want with them .

LED lights in no way fit with a vintage look in my book. Even refitting an older style case, when lit they still scream Euro-modern. Not that they're bad, just not "vintage".

Four 100 W bulbs is overkill for improved night lighting on country roads. And four flood lights is underkill. Floods throw a short, wide pattern that's nice for lighting up a camp site or work area. But they don't throw enough light far enough down the road to help your high beams, and they throw it too high to use with any oncoming traffic.

Personally I really like having a pair of fog lights with 55W bulbs. They throw light to the sides to help light up the road shoulder and ditch, but they keep the light low so they don't blind approaching drivers. Mine are wired so they go on with the parking lights, with an additional switch so I can turn them off when I want to. Below is a pic showing them on the front bumper of my '97.

I don't feel that I need anything more that the 2 fog lights and the stock headlights for my driving. But if I wanted to help my high beams I'd add a pair of driving lights (also called spot, or long range lights), wired to go on with the high beams. 55W or 100W for these. But the driving lights throw a narrow beam way down the road.

Again, just my thoughts.

 

More than you ever wanted to know about old school halogen automotive lighting, laws, beam patterns, best practices, etc... at Daniel Stern lighting consultancy.

http://www.danielsternlighting.com/

 

What about two floods one on each side with two spots in the middle? Would that still be under kill on range?

The 100W bulbs are standard but I can get lower wattage H3 bulbs if need be.

I tried looking at the LED route and I found some that I liked the look of, but every one I find is way too small and would look weird mounted on a roll bar. On the front bumper they would be fine I think.

About on coming traffic, where I will be moving to, people turn their high beams off when they see the light beam shining on the other side of a hill. I could do like you were saying and have them jumpered off the high beam relay circuit considering that they really wouldnt be needed if you were driving with low beams. That would allow me to dim to just the low beam headlights with a simple hit of the dimmer switch.

The only thing I am unsure about is the light. I like the look of the Daylighter but I am concerned about the power consumption and considering that I still have the smog pump hooked up I wont be doing an alternator upgrade just yet seeing as I planned on gutting that emission system when I do a headswap.

The LED ones I can get as a combination spot/flood built into one assembly that would require lower power.

I am also thinking why did I ever settle on a "period" look for the truck considering that I am still throwing around the idea of installing one of those ABS aftermarket headliners that LMC sells. Just some things I need to think about and decide on. Wont be moving till around December so that gives me time to square away what route I really want to go.

If I go with a push bar up front with two driving light style lights I could use that for aux lighting when driving on the roads at night and save the roll bar lights for when I am driving on the property at night time.

 

So the output of the 3G alternator denotes the case size?

If so I found some 95A 3G alternators on summits site but cant recall if they had any with a V belt pulley or if they were serpentine belt pulley.

But if the output denotes the case size then I will just get a 95A one considering my Mercury has the factory 75A alternator and Ive never had an issue with the items Ive added to the car. So 95A would be good, just need to do some searching on here and hit up Identifix and see what the wiring of the 3G alternator is to see if theres some adapter that is just plug and play that will work. Down side is I think all he 3G`s I saw were internally regulated which means amp gauge on the dash will no longer work if I dont splice into the wiring at the external regulator that sends the signal to the amp gauge.

 

Floods light up a circular pattern.
You don't need to illuminate the treetops or the sky.
Fog's have a broad pattern that will illuminate the shoulders without blinding oncoming drivers.
Spot's will reach further down the road when there is no oncoming traffic.
If you look at the link, it shows all the beam patterns.

There's no need for floodlights unless you are driving the Baja 500 and have extreme pitch over jumps.
Anyone who feels they have to light up my entire yard/house while driving by on the road 200+ feet away is just being inconsiderate or ignorant.

 

Yes, the 95A has four holes between the triangles and is 135mm in diameter.
The 130A has two holes, and is 148mm in diameter.

"plug and play" is a misnomer.
You need to remove the external regulator.
Use the green/red wire as an exciter.

You need to get a fused charge cable that can handle the upgraded output, and you need a 2G/3G regulator plug.

Depending on what your 1G alternator is now you may have to tap the adjuster ear of the 3G from 8x1.25mm to 3/8-16.

The alternator shaft size is the same.
Get a thin washer to put behind your V-belt pulley so it doesn't rub the case and swap the pulley over.

It is very simple.

 

Not too bad, what I ment by plug in play was un plugging the regulator and having a plug adaptor that would plug into the needed wires and just run it to the alternator. That way I dont have to cut the orignal harness and solder in new wire. Just one of those things that I am not too crazy about doing is cutting wiring if I can have a plug and play adaptor that will plug into the orignal harness plug and convert it over to what it needs to be.