fordem wrote:
sideways wrote:
I think it's worth spending the little bit extra and getting a lightbar with a fish eye style lens (4D or 5D ect), all my conventional reflector cone light bars have no distance where as my 20", 80w 4D light bar out does all my HID spotties (and LEDs) for distance.
This is quite interesting - I've been telling people that LED bars lack range because of the lack of a lens in front of the LED (you cannot shape the beam properly with just a reflector), but, I find it hard to believe that adding a fisheye lens will give it the range to out do a decent HID spotty.
What sort of HID spotty are we talking here?
These, a few months back I gathered up all my lights and shone them off the veranda (across the paddock). There's Narva 175s, Narva 160/115s, Red ring eBay specials, KC Daylighter copies, old IPF.
I tried everything but the red ring lights (and leds, obviously) with 100w halogen and HID. Whilst the HID certainly was brighter it wasn't "smooth" like the halogen globes and I honestly preferred the halogen. It seemed as if the hid globes needed to go another few mm into the housing and the position of the ceramic tube needed to be changed (it caused a dark spot). The red ring lights were smooth but not as smooth as the LEDs.
The red ring eBay Hids were the best of the conventional lights. Sure, they're not a Lightforce product but the 4d light bar is cheaper anyway.
At 80w vs 55w the 4d light bar is more powerful but only it and the spot red ring light could reach the trees across the paddock and the light bar lit up 2-3x the area and that was brighter than the HID too. IMO it's much more effective at that range than the power increase indicates.
Some of the high end brand name leds use fish eye lenses, some don't. It doesn't seem to matter much in all the comparos.