I have an 10" ONYX light bar on the shock tower and its almost as bright as the cheapo China 50" single row light bar on the roof. I bought it so I can have good lighting with an amber lenses when I need to run in dusty conditions. There are times I run both. You know old and half blind lol!
Good budget light bar options for x3?
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I use cheap-o lighting and have had good results. Expensive lighting is brighter and more durable. Expensive as in up to 10X the cost.
First thing one should look for with cheap-o lighting is if the mounting brackets are included. If so, will the brackets in fact work. Most come with NO mounting brackets.
UTV Stereo in Mesa has or had a decent Cheap-O selection. Read that: has or had. UTV Stereo
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www.utvstereo.com
First thing one should look for with cheap-o lighting is if the mounting brackets are included. If so, will the brackets in fact work. Most come with NO mounting brackets.
UTV Stereo in Mesa has or had a decent Cheap-O selection. Read that: has or had. UTV Stereo
UTV Stereo
The #1 Stereo Installer in the UTV Industry. UTV Stereo is a bolt on parts and accessories dealer. From quality insurance rebuilds to full custom UTV builds, we've got you covered.
www.utvstereo.com
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I get trying to save a few dollars, but for me, the Baja Designs Lighting systems are hands down the best.....And yes, they are expensive......I run the 10" OnY6 on the front shock tower and the 40" on the top. Just like driving in the daytime.....Lucky my wife likes to see at night.....
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15,562 Posts
Amen brother!
Curved double row 42" Aresenal lightbar from Amazon. Going into the 4th season with it. Still works great. Probably not near as bright as a high end light bar, but since I don't have one I don't know the difference. What I do know is if you ride with a group or in dusty conditions an overhead lightbar is pretty much useless. Go with some pods mounted low and a 10" shock tower bar.
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281 Posts
This discussion is had at campsites all over the country as new riders/drivers enter the scene...we can be thankful they aren't going out with stock lighting.
Proper lighting costs $$, works with your eyes and your vehicle speed, brightest isn't always best.
Each light segment should be switched indivdually so you can have a wide-driving on in a canyon and not blind yourself with your spots hitting the walls in tight quarters. Same when you are running higher speed in more open country; cut off the wide driving and hit the hi speed spots to see what is important right then.
Quality lights dont have "hot-spots" "dark areas" or "bright spots" that mess with your vision.
The Chinese versions are bright, use more power per lumen, and splash glare all over. They can get you out to a cool hill at night if that is really all you want, but stick to that not trying to be a throttle-jockey because it won't be as safe or fun.
The light bars above the front edge of the roof are good as Daytime Running Lights (DRL) but the glare factor after dark is a serious problem. A-pillar pods and shock tower bars are better suited than the roof bars.
Spots should be as high as possible and driving or wide driving take the lower placement like front bumpers.
Yes, I like lights and run after dark.
Dwayne
Proper lighting costs $$, works with your eyes and your vehicle speed, brightest isn't always best.
Each light segment should be switched indivdually so you can have a wide-driving on in a canyon and not blind yourself with your spots hitting the walls in tight quarters. Same when you are running higher speed in more open country; cut off the wide driving and hit the hi speed spots to see what is important right then.
Quality lights dont have "hot-spots" "dark areas" or "bright spots" that mess with your vision.
The Chinese versions are bright, use more power per lumen, and splash glare all over. They can get you out to a cool hill at night if that is really all you want, but stick to that not trying to be a throttle-jockey because it won't be as safe or fun.
The light bars above the front edge of the roof are good as Daytime Running Lights (DRL) but the glare factor after dark is a serious problem. A-pillar pods and shock tower bars are better suited than the roof bars.
Spots should be as high as possible and driving or wide driving take the lower placement like front bumpers.
Yes, I like lights and run after dark.
Dwayne
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1,839 Posts
One of the main reasons why buying a smaller, high quality light is better than a big ass cheap light. They work FAR better mounted down low, but space is a premium down low. The other reason is the amount of light per available watt of electricity, which is also at a premium on a UTV.
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I decided I wanted a shock tower light, so I'm trying out the "buy once cry once" idea and have a Baja Designs 70-1003 S8 10" Driving/Combo LED Light Bar coming. I don't think I've ever spent even half of what this thing costs on any light bar I've ever owned previously. This thing better be impressive.
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It will be! Plus you'll be backed by a lifetime guarantee! It throws more light than any Chinese bar double the size.
I haven't run the S8 but I can tell you the ONX6 is killer.
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901 Posts
And that’s 3x more $ yet… I need to take up a less expensive hobby or figure out how to double my income and still have time to play.
anyone want to sponsor me? I do dumb and exciting stuff even though no one takes pictures of it. Hahaha
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2,625 Posts
I have lots of expensive lights, but my cheapest one on my bumper works really good and its bright. 20 inch RC Front Bumper Dual Row Led Light Bar
- 9600 lumens
- 120 watts
- Contains 40, 3 watt High Intensity CREE LEDs
- 18000 lumens
- 200 watts
- Contains 40, 5 watt High Intensity CREE LEDs
- Contains 20, amber daytime running light LEDs
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15,562 Posts
Remember, Buy Once, Cry Once!
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2,625 Posts
unless your like me and buy it once and warranty it a few times.
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15,562 Posts
Keep crossing your fingers. I think after awhile even the best vendors will claim abuse (which it actually has been). Not checking a ball joint, and driving into a rock wall has nothing to do with the integrity of a part. JMO.unless your like me and buy it once and warranty it a few times.
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Bounced into the side of a rock wall, but the video make is look like a soft Sunday drive. Either way I definitely don't plan to keep breaking things, as its a pain in the ass. I know now what's weak with experience, and what I need to do to get done to improved those parts. Now I just need to modify my driving to keep everything together then everything will be happy.
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281 Posts
If you want to reach the finish line, or not walk back to camp, better understand "mechanical-sympathy". It is an art of using just the minimal amount of tension or stress on a part to get the job done. Air is virtually traction-less, makes for cool videos but does nothing to move you forward.
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15,562 Posts
Well said!
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My lightbar showed up yesterday. My initial quality assessment against the sub $100 bars is.... The electrical is better. It has heavier gauge wire than the cheap one's, comes with both ends of a connector, and the wire where it comes out of the housing looks better/tougher/and more waterproof, like it's a bolted in plug. I should have it installed this week and I can compare the $296 Baja 10" against a $43 RigidHorse 12" that's on the other machine.
Installation note: I never in my life would've thought I'd run out of switch room when I bought this machine with all the extra holes it came with... The DPS is already hidden in the dash because its a useless switch and now I need to find or make another hole...
Installation note: I never in my life would've thought I'd run out of switch room when I bought this machine with all the extra holes it came with... The DPS is already hidden in the dash because its a useless switch and now I need to find or make another hole...
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2,625 Posts
I know what you mean when it comes to finding places for all the switches. I have the Switch Pro 8, and another 15 switches. I had to start putting switches in the glove box with the radios.
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