Yes, they are definitely the premium option. But their 8600lm offering is $486 per light (so almost $1000 for a pair). They do have cheaper ones, but the output is not impressive (after seeing what COBs are capable of)
I’m hoping we can figure something out for under $100 per light, with as much or even way more output.
Good to know!
Yes, making it modular / fixable is part of the plan.
Lightbringer, seven months later I saw your post!
Thanks for referencing my El Jefe project. It’s still a great off-road light, but it has problems with water incursion and needed a redesign.
To answer your question - what happened to light bars - the light “bar” is passé. So many cheap Rigid ripoffs with yellowing lenses on crappy work trucks have made them positively tacky. The 4x4s with money spent on them carry spotlights, not bars, the fatter the better, to create a vintage look reminiscent of the KC HiLites of the ’80s.
Two years ago I promised my cousin I would build a light bar for him. I finally finished it just before quarantine, but instead of a bar I made four individual fixtures, with seven 5700K S4 XP-G2s (current version) driven at 3 amps instead of 2 amps. I estimate that to be 28,000 djozz lumens per set of four. I used the same Russian drivers and the same giant heat sink extrusion, cut in a different shape. They run about 144 degrees F, still no PWM, no dimming.
The optics are 26.5mm Carclo spots instead of the elliptical beam, since the four fixtures can be aimed to whatever pattern one wants. Switching from XP-G3 with 20mm optics to XP-G2 and 26.5mm optics makes outstanding throw, with much less flood wasted on the foreground.
I’m finishing up the second set of four spotlights for myself now. Then I have to build three more sets for friends.
The design is very unique, so unique that I don’t want to post pics until a get a trademark. I doubt this will become a business, the TM is just mostly for pride.
Anyway I really appreciate all the knowledge I’ve gleaned from the members of this board and plan to do another write-up when I get my act together.
Kevin
Back to the OP, if you still want to build your own, I suggest:
Three of these 1 Ups, wired in series:
https://www.ledsupply.com/leds/cree-xlamp-xpg2-high-power-led
With three of these lenses and holders:
http://www.ledsupply.com/led-optics/10049-carclo-lens-elliptical-spot-led-optic
https://www.ledsupply.com/led-optics/10496-carclo-lens-holder
Driven by one of these:
https://www.ebay.com/itm/LED-driver-LD-3A-3A-12V-DC-5V-27V-for-CREE-XHP50-XP-L-XM-L-L2/113691430333?ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT&_trksid=p2060353.m2749.l2649
Mounted on a 1.75” of this:
https://www.heatsinkusa.com/3-945/
With an inch and a half of this as the bezel:
https://www.metalsdepot.com/aluminum-products/aluminum-rectangle-tube?product=292
Mount the goods to the heat sink, push the heat sink into the rectangular tube 3/8” - the thickness of the solid part of the sink - epoxy them together, drill and tap a few M3 screws around the perimeter to back up the epoxy, and put a piece of acrylic in the front with silicone.
It will draw a little under 3 amps and make about 3000 lumens in a wide horizontal flood that’s great for lighting up everything in your field of view, but not waste a bunch of light on the sky.