Spotlight options for boat

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    Posted: 01 Mar 2022 at 8:07pm
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Titanium
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Ermm am tired of my hand held spot light. Very little grunt and have to have crew to use while I’m driving boat. So…. Remote spotlight on hardtop or barlight mounted ?

Which is the best brands from the experienced users?

Thanks 
The gods do not subtract from the allotted span of men's lives the hours spent on fishing - Assyrian Proverb
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Post Options Post Options   Likes (1) Likes(1)   Quote Pcj Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 02 Mar 2022 at 3:31am
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Bar lights are one thing that I would like banned. Yes they light up the world but hide your nav lights.
Amateur's built the ark. Professional built the Titanic
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My mate's boat has a bar LED light. It is next to useless. It has no range at all. It doesn't get used now.
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I use a spot light - for night fishing. There are a few things to know. If you get it wrong, you can't see anything. The LED ones are worse - the light scatters and gives you a blinding white in front and no penetration/distance.
The one that works for me is an old fashioned incandescent bulb . You want a focussed beam. I have one on the rocket launcher when I use it.
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This subject came up a few yrs back when I was (well crew) using hand spotlights. Espec when going into narrow breakwater late at night.

Ideally a spot light if mounted should be up on the bow rail. Bring it back any further, and definitely not on a cabin roof, even the front (bow end) edge, you will get reflection back

Also as PCJ mentions , fixed spots when used without consideration of others is more than just a problem, its huge potential to be down right dangerous to others.. on shore on other boats, around the ramp etc.

So following advice in old threads.. was not practical to mount mine on the bow rail so mounted on the very front edge of the cabin to eliminate as much reflection back off the decks as possible.

Its is directed down on to the water about 30 meters in front... picks up and thing laying in the water at night.. a dingy with no lights, a log on big tides etc.
And not much good for anything else.
 Going into breakwaters , maneuvering around stuff at night, back to handhelds each side (if 2 other crew) held on markers, rocks, bouys as approach and go past..
 Cant do that a fixed spot...and hand held does everything a fixed does far better.

 Unless comm, charters mounted spots a not much more than bling.. as mine is on my roof.
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Post Options Post Options   Likes (0) Likes(0)   Quote Alan L Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 02 Mar 2022 at 9:27am
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I have a spot I can mount on my rocket launcher via screw clamps. It also rotates/swivels. I put it on the frame on the side and can operate it from the helm. A focussed non-LED beam works well. The LEDs make a flood light type thing and you get a blinding scattered light. It doesn't penetrate to give any range and gives you a bright scatter close in which is a real nuisance. I wanted a bit more light for night fishing - catching bait - scooping flying fish. So I bought a 'powerful' LED spot. It sits in the shed.
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Post Options Post Options   Likes (0) Likes(0)   Quote Reel Deal Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 02 Mar 2022 at 10:33am
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Titanium
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interesting info here.
A summary as I read it. Don’t get a light bar for anything other than flooding an area with light eg deck, transom. 
Ideally mounted on bow but for most unpractical so top of cabin. Maybe set back a bit as to shade front deck/canopy. A concentrated bulb on a remote will pick up buoys, markers, rocks, other boats etc. 

Is this correct?
The gods do not subtract from the allotted span of men's lives the hours spent on fishing - Assyrian Proverb
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Post Options Post Options   Likes (0) Likes(0)   Quote Kevin.S Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 02 Mar 2022 at 11:04am
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Not much help for the original question, but if you want a hand held LED lamp with great distance performance these are pretty awesome.


I've got one of the original ones and the range and tightness of the beam is amazing.
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Played around with a few options and ended mounting a Hella (sea Hawk) on the roof.  Ok, moved back so as to stop the glare. Good at slow speeds like driving through moorings.
Has a high/low setting and while not legal i often switch it on if entering a busy harbour at night for short periods.  Amazing how many then shine tourch's from unlit boats.

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Few seasons ago some question was ask follow by langhtly debate, pros & cons. At the time I was making decision of fitting some kind of forward/search light. 
The reason was... got myself in a pickle beaching at pt. Jackson at night.
And so heaped at the time Hella release the  new LED bars, model SH-470.
Initially I've the got combi model/ spread and spot lens, I thought the spread light was of no use so have exchanged for spot lens only. 
The light from the bar is very,very intense with narrow focus and the housing it's corrosion resistant.
Over three years i've used it only three times Ermm but it works well imo Wink
I'was concerned with the reflection but after try and error i've found it the sweet spot Big smile 
Hope thats helps to make your own mind ...

   

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Ideally mounted on bow but for most unpractical so top of cabin. Maybe set back a bit as to shade front deck/canopy.

 Few pics above could confuse a little.
My 'cabin'  on the Commander,I look over .. roof a Bimini....
 Where as pics above a 'cabin roof over the helm.
 I did mess with puting up on the bimini frame, but any spill that hits the top of my cabin for foredeck simply reflected back. So ended up not practical to mount up there.

Sry not best pic but shows where I ended up mounting...Would think not reflection back , but it does, and its the least amount outside mounting on bow rail right up front.


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I use a IP67 LED driving spotlight and add a railblaza connector to the mounting arm then put the railblaza starport wherever works best within range of the cigarette lighter socket. Can turn it into a handheld with a bit of wood with a hole in the top if needed but on the starport it locks in and is hands-free
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Ok, tomorrow i'll take a close up pic of the spotlight and show why the bar light don't reflect inside the cabin or front of the boat. 
Steps... hope you do same and take close up pic of your lights, cos the only thing i can see is bbq (very nice) chair and some grass LOL
the top pic was taken 3 weeks ago at 4am, was waiting for a mate.   
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Post Options Post Options   Likes (0) Likes(0)   Quote kimber7wsm Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 03 Mar 2022 at 6:59am
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If you do put a forward mounted light on I would use a remote spotlight. It will be infinitely more useful than a fixed light forward. One thing to check though is how quickly they move. If it takes 1 minute to swivel side to side then it won't be as useful.

They do make through roof spotlights, that have a shaft under the roof for hand operation. That would work well, but I haven't seen one for marine use.
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Post Options Post Options   Likes (0) Likes(0)   Quote Steps Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 03 Mar 2022 at 8:06am
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Steps... hope you do same and take close up pic of your lights, cos the only thing i can see is bbq (very nice) chair and some grass LOL

 That is the only pic have pre loaded that shows the spot.. already got far to many rubbish, irrelevant, duplicate etc, to sort thru to find examples of stuff ..Would like to delete rubbish but permissions dont allow.

Look at the boat, the spot is on the cabin roof as described.
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Post Options Post Options   Likes (0) Likes(0)   Quote smudge Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 03 Mar 2022 at 8:28am
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Can you not add a new pic Steps, that's odd. I have hundreds of pics and it works fine for me
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Post Options Post Options   Likes (0) Likes(0)   Quote Alan L Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 03 Mar 2022 at 9:08am
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I think what he is saying is he can't get rid of a lot of rubbish pics in the file, so not keen to add more.
I have same problem - how do we clean that pic folder out?
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Post Options Post Options   Likes (0) Likes(0)   Quote Steps Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 03 Mar 2022 at 9:09am
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I have built a basic collection of pics ,instructional, examples, how tos etc..
 And over the yrs, obsolete pics of weather charts, a pile fish in a bin, random stuff, and duplicates of both of these.
So when I go to find an example of a how to for reposting to a question thats been asked before (often several time), there is a heap of crap pics to go down thru.

I would like to be able to delete the obsolete , irreverent and duplicate pics Then add odd new , how to informational pics and not have to dig thru heaps obsolete crap.
 Permissions to do so are in admin permissions, thu can be also given to mods.
 They could be made for a 'window'   to give option a clean up.
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Post Options Post Options   Likes (0) Likes(0)   Quote Phantom Menace Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 03 Mar 2022 at 11:13am
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Steps - you can delete old pics if you like.  It is not restricted at all by "admin permissions".  

Click on "Member Panel" then "File Manager" then select the pic you want and click the delete button.  

It's simple.

Bear in mind that it will make the posts that included that pic less useful as the pic will no longer show in the post.

I had forgotten how to do this as it's been some time since I have deleted a pic so TBH it took a few seconds to find - but it's there.
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Post Options Post Options   Likes (0) Likes(0)   Quote Apex Predator Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 03 Mar 2022 at 11:38am
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Instead of a light bar have you considered night vision.  Some of the options available would be similar in price to the cost of buying and fitting a decent light bar or spotlight.
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