Big Blue's Transformation

[Gary Lewis]

I like how you've presented it Gary! But you know your way around Excel, Word or 365 in ways someone like me can't fathom.It's really too bad that Carling doesn't have switches with two illumination levels.You could probably use that to your advantage here.Or, the ability to have the dash dim function overridden by switched power so you get 'full bright' when that circuit is activated.But that would take diodes.

Thanks, Jim. I struggled for a long time last night in the post with all of the switch pics but couldn't get Nabble to do what I wanted. This morning I had an epiphany - Word! And I spent far less time creating that doc than I did beating my head against the Nabble wall.

 

I think I want to add the circuitry for each switch to the document as that will help me think through it. But I'm not sure how I'll do that in Word. On the other hand, I can do that in TurboCAD and save it as a pdf. Hmmm, let's see how that looks. Here's what I'm working on:

 

 

Nope, that didn't work. Need to try another format..... Yup, that's better!

[Nothing Special]

There have been lots and lots of iterations on what switches will be in Mission Control, what colors they will be, what type they will be, etc. And with each re-think it all changes. And I've spend a bunch of time trying to put the pictures of the switches side by side on here, to no avail.

 

But it dawned on me that if I'd create a Word document and embed it here it would get updated as I change the plans in the background. And, I could easily line the switches up to see how they'll look. So here's that document. Please give me your thoughts.

 

I'm getting a little picky here, but that's what you're doing too, so I don't think you'll mind...If it were me I'd put the front locker switch on one end or the other, where you can find it more easily without needing to look for it. I find myself switching (valving?) my locker in and out while I still want to be looking ahead at the trail. So I'd want that switch to be the easiest one to find.And at least from the way I've used the things that you have included there, I'd put the backup lights as the second easiest to find (probably the opposite end from the locker). That's another one I use when I don't want to take much time. I pull past my driveway and want to switch the lights on as I start to back up toward the motorhome that has a dark cover on it.By the way, I don't have "driving lights" but I do have fog lights. I have mine wired with the +12V signal to the switch coming from the parking lights. So my fog lights only come on if both the parking lights and the fog light switch are on. That way I don't have to turn off an extra switch. Just shutting the headlights off kills the fogs as well. The switches I have get their power for their indicator lights from that same source, so the switch only lights up if both the parking lights and the fog light switch are on as well.

[Gary Lewis]

I'm getting a little picky here, but that's what you're doing too, so I don't think you'll mind...

If it were me I'd put the front locker switch on one end or the other, where you can find it more easily without needing to look for it. I find myself switching (valving?) my locker in and out while I still want to be looking ahead at the trail. So I'd want that switch to be the easiest one to find.

And at least from the way I've used the things that you have included there, I'd put the backup lights as the second easiest to find (probably the opposite end from the locker). That's another one I use when I don't want to take much time. I pull past my driveway and want to switch the lights on as I start to back up toward the motorhome that has a dark cover on it.

By the way, I don't have "driving lights" but I do have fog lights. I have mine wired with the +12V signal to the switch coming from the parking lights. So my fog lights only come on if both the parking lights and the fog light switch are on. That way I don't have to turn off an extra switch. Just shutting the headlights off kills the fogs as well. The switches I have get their power for their indicator lights from that same source, so the switch only lights up if both the parking lights and the fog light switch are on as well.

Bob - That's good advice on the switch positioning, and I've updated the document to have the locker on the left and the backup lights on the right. Thanks.

On the power for the "lights", I hope to get a DPST switch with center off. That way I can have the lights on w/o the headlights or even the marker lights on. We shall see.

And speaking of lights, OTRATTW have this switch I've thought about. I don't really know what lights I'm going to have, but I don't think they'll truly be fog lights. So I'm torn with what legend to get.

As for what I did today, I cut, drilled, and filed on a plastic box all day and it is now ready for wiring. Unfortunately my heat gun gave up the ghost and the new one won't be in until Tuesday, so there's not going to be much wiring done until then.

Here are a few shots of it:

And now a comparison to the CAD drawing:

 

[Gary Lewis]

Bob - That's good advice on the switch positioning, and I've updated the document to have the locker on the left and the backup lights on the right. Thanks.

On the power for the "lights", I hope to get a DPST switch with center off. That way I can have the lights on w/o the headlights or even the marker lights on. We shall see.

And speaking of lights, OTRATTW have this switch I've thought about. I don't really know what lights I'm going to have, but I don't think they'll truly be fog lights. So I'm torn with what legend to get.

As for what I did today, I cut, drilled, and filed on a plastic box all day and it is now ready for wiring. Unfortunately my heat gun gave up the ghost and the new one won't be in until Tuesday, so there's not going to be much wiring done until then.

Here are a few shots of it:

And now a comparison to the CAD drawing:

With reference to what "lights" I might have I've done a lot of reading on the subject. On one hand I've found that folks that do serious overlanding on several continents with very specialized vehicles have lights absolutely everywhere. On the other, several folks that are into overlanding say they've tried lights everywhere but have gone back to wide-dispersion lights in front and some bright lights for the rear tied into the backup light circuit. And I've come to the conclusion that with the limited overlanding and off-road trails I'll do the latter will be the goal.

That raises the question of what type "wide-dispersion" lights I'm looking for. And on Rigid's site I found the graphic shown below.

Tthat seems to say what I want are indeed "driving lights" - at least in Rigid's opinion. But they also give beam angles, so that will help with finding lights that match my desires.

[Gary Lewis]

With reference to what "lights" I might have I've done a lot of reading on the subject. On one hand I've found that folks that do serious overlanding on several continents with very specialized vehicles have lights absolutely everywhere. On the other, several folks that are into overlanding say they've tried lights everywhere but have gone back to wide-dispersion lights in front and some bright lights for the rear tied into the backup light circuit. And I've come to the conclusion that with the limited overlanding and off-road trails I'll do the latter will be the goal.

That raises the question of what type "wide-dispersion" lights I'm looking for. And on Rigid's site I found the graphic shown below.

Tthat seems to say what I want are indeed "driving lights" - at least in Rigid's opinion. But they also give beam angles, so that will help with finding lights that match my desires.

Had another thought. If I can get the SPDT center off switches like I hope to on the lights, I could also use one as the "inverter power" switch. I'd cut the W/P wire between the fuse panel & aux battery relay and extend both pieces to the switch. Put always-on power to one side of the switch and switched power to the other and be able to turn the behind-the-seat power completely off from Mission Control as Bob suggested.

Which brings up the question of what lettering to put on that switch. I can change the lettering w/o no additional cost, but only get a max of 10 characters/spaces per line and two lines. It looks like this would work:

Behind The

Seat Power

But is Inverter Power better? Less accurate but..... Better ideas, please! I may order tomorrow.

[grumpin]

Had another thought. If I can get the SPDT center off switches like I hope to on the lights, I could also use one as the "inverter power" switch. I'd cut the W/P wire between the fuse panel & aux battery relay and extend both pieces to the switch. Put always-on power to one side of the switch and switched power to the other and be able to turn the behind-the-seat power completely off from Mission Control as Bob suggested.

Which brings up the question of what lettering to put on that switch. I can change the lettering w/o no additional cost, but only get a max of 10 characters/spaces per line and two lines. It looks like this would work:

Behind The

Seat Power

But is Inverter Power better? Less accurate but..... Better ideas, please! I may order tomorrow.

Auxiliary Power or Aux Power.

That came to mind before I saw the wiring diagram.

[Nothing Special]

With reference to what "lights" I might have I've done a lot of reading on the subject. On one hand I've found that folks that do serious overlanding on several continents with very specialized vehicles have lights absolutely everywhere. On the other, several folks that are into overlanding say they've tried lights everywhere but have gone back to wide-dispersion lights in front and some bright lights for the rear tied into the backup light circuit. And I've come to the conclusion that with the limited overlanding and off-road trails I'll do the latter will be the goal.

That raises the question of what type "wide-dispersion" lights I'm looking for. And on Rigid's site I found the graphic shown below.

Tthat seems to say what I want are indeed "driving lights" - at least in Rigid's opinion. But they also give beam angles, so that will help with finding lights that match my desires.

If you're getting lights from Rigid, then their definitions are the ones to use. But I've never seen "flood lights" refer to something with a tighter beam than "driving lights". In my experience:

• "Flood lights" have the widest beam pattern, what you'd want for the blue "area / crawling" zone.

  Think of flooding an area with light rather than trying to concentrate it in a narrow 25 degree wide area.

• What I've seen called "fog lights" have had a pattern close to (but probably even wider than) what Rigid calls "driving lights." But fog lights will have a very narrow vertical spread, while driving lights are often more of a cone, with similar spreads in the vertical and horizontal planes.

• What I've seen called "driving lights" would be more what they call "flood lights", a longer, thinner pattern to light up the road ahead of you so you don't overdrive your headlights.

In my experience, decent headlights are all I've ever felt I needed for seeing in front of me. Especially off road I'm never driving fast enough to need something that reaches farther.

Where I do think stock lighting needs to be improved for driving is off to the sides. Basically the two ditches if you are driving straight, but you're not always driving straight. A wider beam can make it a lot easier to see a little around the curve you are on. From the Rigid chart "driving lights" look like a good choice. But from what I've typically seen, that's where fog lights shine (groan!). They reach well out to the sides without spreading up to blind other drivers (so they can be used with low beams on the road too).

The other possibility instead of fog lights (my definition) would be flood lights (my definition). They don't reach quite as far out as fog lights, but that's usually OK off road. They might not spread quite as far to the sides as fog lights, and that's a bit of a loss. But they fill in a lot better in the vertical plane, so they work better at lighting up the hill you are about to point up (or down). But the downside is that they do shine into other driver's eyes, so you can't use them on the road, or even off road if you're following someone else (unless you want to be That Guy).

So with Rigid's definitions I'd agree that "driving" looks like a good choice for in front. But if you don't get Rigid lights "fog" or "flood" might be better choices.

For backup lights and for lighting up the area around camp I really like what everyone other than Rigid calls flood lights. Because that's what you're trying to do, flood the area with light (as opposed to concentrating it anywhere). But I don't want flood lights coming on when I'm backing out of a parking space at the mall, so I definitely have them switched separately (which also makes it easier to use them to light up camp since I don't need to have the backup lights on).

[Nothing Special]

If you're getting lights from Rigid, then their definitions are the ones to use. But I've never seen "flood lights" refer to something with a tighter beam than "driving lights". In my experience:

• "Flood lights" have the widest beam pattern, what you'd want for the blue "area / crawling" zone.

  Think of flooding an area with light rather than trying to concentrate it in a narrow 25 degree wide area.

• What I've seen called "fog lights" have had a pattern close to (but probably even wider than) what Rigid calls "driving lights." But fog lights will have a very narrow vertical spread, while driving lights are often more of a cone, with similar spreads in the vertical and horizontal planes.

• What I've seen called "driving lights" would be more what they call "flood lights", a longer, thinner pattern to light up the road ahead of you so you don't overdrive your headlights.

In my experience, decent headlights are all I've ever felt I needed for seeing in front of me. Especially off road I'm never driving fast enough to need something that reaches farther.

Where I do think stock lighting needs to be improved for driving is off to the sides. Basically the two ditches if you are driving straight, but you're not always driving straight. A wider beam can make it a lot easier to see a little around the curve you are on. From the Rigid chart "driving lights" look like a good choice. But from what I've typically seen, that's where fog lights shine (groan!). They reach well out to the sides without spreading up to blind other drivers (so they can be used with low beams on the road too).

The other possibility instead of fog lights (my definition) would be flood lights (my definition). They don't reach quite as far out as fog lights, but that's usually OK off road. They might not spread quite as far to the sides as fog lights, and that's a bit of a loss. But they fill in a lot better in the vertical plane, so they work better at lighting up the hill you are about to point up (or down). But the downside is that they do shine into other driver's eyes, so you can't use them on the road, or even off road if you're following someone else (unless you want to be That Guy).

So with Rigid's definitions I'd agree that "driving" looks like a good choice for in front. But if you don't get Rigid lights "fog" or "flood" might be better choices.

For backup lights and for lighting up the area around camp I really like what everyone other than Rigid calls flood lights. Because that's what you're trying to do, flood the area with light (as opposed to concentrating it anywhere). But I don't want flood lights coming on when I'm backing out of a parking space at the mall, so I definitely have them switched separately (which also makes it easier to use them to light up camp since I don't need to have the backup lights on).

And if that wasn't too long already...

Often "fog lights" come with amber lenses. That helps to reduce glare back from the lights bouncing off fog. But in my opinion it mostly helps because lights through an amber lens aren't as bright. If you want to reduce glare get lower wattage bulbs, or drop the voltage and you get the same benefit in fog. So I strongly prefer clear lenses. They're still often called "fog lights", but sometimes I've seen them called "cornering lights" as well.

And then this might just be me, but I don't like LED lighting on older trucks. They draw less power which is great, especially when parked in camp. But I just think they look out of place. It's getting harder to find halogen lights, but I really prefer that for fogs. The one's I'm currently using are these.

For floods I usually get utility lights at a tractor supply store. They are pretty cheap and have a good look (in my opinion) for old trucks. The only challenge is that they often have a trapezoidal beam (not quite as wide horizontally, but wider vertically than a fog light). That's not terrible, but I really prefer the flood pattern when I can find it.

Oh, and on being That Guy... Like you've noticed, "overlanders" have lights EVERYWHERE! A couple on the front bumper, upgraded headlights, a couple on the A-pillars, 6 - 8 across the top of the windshield, several along each side, a couple in the rear bumper, and a few more high in the back. Plus "rock lights" underneath. That's one of the reasons I refuse to ever be an overlander. I'll camp out of my truck (that's what it used to be called). But I'm not going to conform to the standard that "overlanders" seem to have.

And have you ever watched videos of trucks with lights like that at night? Man I'd hate to be in a group like that! The only person who can actually see anything is the guy in back who doesn't have several million candlepower hitting his mirrors.

So I applaud your thoughts on keeping it reasonable.

Having briefly mentioned rock lights, I've never had them, but I have thought about getting them. If you ever get caught out on a trail in the dark (I was, once), it can be impossible to see what you're tires and diffs will be hitting. I was reduced to turning off my headlights and having the spotter hold a flashlight. Rock lights would be much better there. And I could see rock lights being nice in camp, making it easier to see right around the truck, but not hurting the ambience of the campfire too much.

And there is one other light we haven't talked about. People who run in a group on dusty roads often have bright (but often amber) lights on the back. Often these lights flash like a strobe. That is to help people coming up behind you realize that there's a truck in the middle of the dust cloud. Not a bad idea if you're doing stuff like that. I've never done stuff like that though, so it's not something I often think about.

[Gary Lewis]

If you're getting lights from Rigid, then their definitions are the ones to use. But I've never seen "flood lights" refer to something with a tighter beam than "driving lights". In my experience:

• "Flood lights" have the widest beam pattern, what you'd want for the blue "area / crawling" zone.

  Think of flooding an area with light rather than trying to concentrate it in a narrow 25 degree wide area.

• What I've seen called "fog lights" have had a pattern close to (but probably even wider than) what Rigid calls "driving lights." But fog lights will have a very narrow vertical spread, while driving lights are often more of a cone, with similar spreads in the vertical and horizontal planes.

• What I've seen called "driving lights" would be more what they call "flood lights", a longer, thinner pattern to light up the road ahead of you so you don't overdrive your headlights.

In my experience, decent headlights are all I've ever felt I needed for seeing in front of me. Especially off road I'm never driving fast enough to need something that reaches farther.

Where I do think stock lighting needs to be improved for driving is off to the sides. Basically the two ditches if you are driving straight, but you're not always driving straight. A wider beam can make it a lot easier to see a little around the curve you are on. From the Rigid chart "driving lights" look like a good choice. But from what I've typically seen, that's where fog lights shine (groan!). They reach well out to the sides without spreading up to blind other drivers (so they can be used with low beams on the road too).

The other possibility instead of fog lights (my definition) would be flood lights (my definition). They don't reach quite as far out as fog lights, but that's usually OK off road. They might not spread quite as far to the sides as fog lights, and that's a bit of a loss. But they fill in a lot better in the vertical plane, so they work better at lighting up the hill you are about to point up (or down). But the downside is that they do shine into other driver's eyes, so you can't use them on the road, or even off road if you're following someone else (unless you want to be That Guy).

So with Rigid's definitions I'd agree that "driving" looks like a good choice for in front. But if you don't get Rigid lights "fog" or "flood" might be better choices.

For backup lights and for lighting up the area around camp I really like what everyone other than Rigid calls flood lights. Because that's what you're trying to do, flood the area with light (as opposed to concentrating it anywhere). But I don't want flood lights coming on when I'm backing out of a parking space at the mall, so I definitely have them switched separately (which also makes it easier to use them to light up camp since I don't need to have the backup lights on).

One of the reasons I like that Rigid graphic is the spread angles. I found essentially that graphic w/o the angles and didn't like it 'cause I, like you, don't agree with their terminology. But with the angles I might be able to nail down what I'm looking for with another vendor.

And I agree that I want more off to the sides as well as up and down. So that's what I'll be looking for in front.

So, maybe "Off Road" is the right legend on whatever lights I put on? That way whomever else drives the truck might not be expecting to use them on the road.

And I think we are together on the rear lights.

[Gary Lewis]

Auxiliary Power or Aux Power.

That came to mind before I saw the wiring diagram.

I like Aux Power. Thanks, Dane!