Hella 500 fog & driver install pix

[fixer]

Dead Link Removed

just bolted on right now, still need to wire them up and swap out the 55w bulbs in the drivers for 100s.

lights are spaced 7.5" apart and i used 2" wide masking tape to measure the distance from the top of the plastic trim on the front to the center of where i wanted the holes.

hmm, the lights are too clean copmpared to the rest of the truck... the pic looks like a bad Photoshop job.

 

[JoshC]

Looks good, looks like a clean install too, good job! Where can i get some 100w bulbs for my 500's. I just got 2 on my roof rack that i don't use very often, just playing on the trails at night really but i'd like to have that extra light coming out! Thanks!

Happy trails!!

 

[fixer]

Wal-Mart has $100W H3 bulbs for $5, or PIAA has H3s in Ion Crystal, Super White Platinum, Xtreme White and Super Plasma versions.

their 85w Super White is supossed to equal a typical 130W bulb... might be the best bet in the 6" Hella 500 housing.

i'm re-building the wiring harness to handle the 100w bulbs. whith higher power bulbs, don't run the lamps with the covers on them (clear or white). do not run them when parked/rock crawling. DO NOT try a 130w bulb in the Hella 500... i expect it's way too small for that ammount of heat

 

[JoshC]

I never thought about the wiring. Would i have to rewire for a 100w bulb. I've got every set of lights i have on there own relay, so it's not like i've just riged it up. Let me know cause i might pick me up a couple this week. Thanks!

Happy trails!!

 

[beavis195]

Where did you drill? Into the bumper or into the grill? Thanks?

 

[fixer]

wire gauge vs. amperage

Hella suggests using their "heavy duty" wiring harness for 100w bulbs... if you have 12ga wireing from the battery to the lights with the relay inbetween, you should be fine, but since the lights are mounted on the roof, you obviusly have longer wires than many "typical" instalations.

heavier wire is always nice for this kind of application.

12ga is rated for 20 amps, and 10ga is rated for 30 amps according to the chart i have.

two 100w bulbs would draw about 17 amps (Ohm's Law: watts divided by volts equals amps)

crimped terminals add resistance to the whole circut... i like to get the hi-temp terminals, crimp then, THEN solder the terminals to the wire and cover with heat shrink tubing for insualtion. never had a problem with any of my wiring for lights, airhorns, radios, etc... it may be "overkill" but like i said, no problems

i also like to wire the complete circut, instead of using the chassis ground, and use keep fuses close to the battery.

i'll post pix of my wiring once i get it all in in a few days.

 

[fixer]

Originally posted by beavis195
Where did you drill? Into the bumper or into the grill? Thanks?

drilled into the bumper. lights are 7.5" apart from each other and 2" from the top edge of the plastic trim. i marked out the locations with a tape measuer and a magic marker, then aligned some 2" wide masking tape with the plastic trim, wrapped it around the bumper and then re-measured the distances with a steel ruler and market the exact locations with a spring-loaded centerpunch ($2 on sale at Harbor Freight) drilled a pilot hole with a 1/4" drill then drilled to-size with the 13/32" drill.

the bumper is solid and fairly flat... if i ever want to remove them (HA!), i'll just plug the holes with plastic plugs. the grille is kinda flimsy compared to the bumper and i'd be worried about it cracking if you mounted a load on it heavier than deer-whistles.