Led Spot lights

[FTB530]

I plan on mounting a LED spot/flood light to the front of my aluminum boat and would like any ones reccomendation of any you have used and liked , i want one or two that are bright and reach out far in front of the boat for traveling in the dark Thanks.

 

[MH Hawker]

Re: Led Spot lights

That is not allowed and will get you a nice fine and it will blind and **** off other people. Its not a car and isnt necessary. You may use lower power lights for docking and a search light for very brief spotting on navigation markers and hazards.

 

[Campylobacter]

Re: Led Spot lights

Not only is illegal, it doesn't work. The light reflects off the water and back to you, ruining your night vision. Use red/green nav lights forward, all around (low power) white stern light (behind the helm). You will see better and not blind everyone else on the water.

 

[smokeonthewater]

Re: Led Spot lights

X2.... headlights for a boat are unlawful and unsafe.....

the best light for a small boat is a small hand held spotlight.... it should be used as little as possible to locate navigational markers and floating debris.... turn it off as quickly as possible to preserve your night vision.... BTW most jurisdictions limit night water travel to 10 mph or less

 

[FTB530]

Re: Led Spot lights

I didn't now it is illegal in California because i see about 99% of the boats sturgeon fishing at night using some sort of head lights when they move from place to place,i will check local regulations and make sure,the boat will have the navigation lights that are required(green /red) on the bow & white in the stern,but those do not do much in the way of letting me see where i am going in the dark.Thanks for the replies.

There is not a lot of boat traffic on the rivers i fish ,but some and i dont need or mean to **** any one off,i would just rather be able to see where i am going and miss any big floating logs in the water.

 

[smokeonthewater]

Re: Led Spot lights

you will see FAR better with your night vision and an occasional use of a spot light than with headlights

has to do with the reflectivity of the water...... ever notice on the river you can see really well going toward a city and objects appear as dark silhouettes but going away you can't? it's because when going away from the city lights the light is coming from the same direction as you are and it reflects back at you as thousands of points of light instead of the image you want to see and ruins your night vision

Don't feel bad... your desire for headlights is VERY common among new boaters and you will understand more as your confidence grows....

don't let floating logs worry you THAT much.. you are moving at less than 10 mph... smaller stuff will just part and move along the side of the boat and if you feel a heavy thump pop the engine in neutral... then grab a light and a paddle or pole and push off of said log if it is under you... logs under the surface wouldn't be visible with any amount of light

worst case you tear up a prop.. not terribly likely but you DO carry a spare prop and a prop wrench don't you?

 

[UncleWillie]

Re: Led Spot lights

I didn't now it is illegal in California because i see about 99% of the boats sturgeon fishing at night using some sort of head lights when they move from place to place,i will check local regulations and make sure,the boat will have the navigation lights that are required(green /red) on the bow & white in the stern,but those do not do much in the way of letting me see where i am going in the dark...

It isn't a State Law, it is a Federal Law (Page 27)

California does not have any Boaters Education Requirements, but it is always a good idea.

 

[crabby captain john]

Re: Led Spot lights

I've seen night glasses ads all over TV. Something like shooting lenses-- yellow. Give them a try and let us know,,, but keep lights mostly off. With practice you can hone your night skills. You cab develop your night vision and rely some on hearing also. In some areas even smell helps - ie we can smell marsh vegetation at low tide.

 

[Home Cookin']

Re: Led Spot lights

the spot lights really wreck my night vision when I aim my pellet gun at them, but it recovers after 20 minutes.

 

[smokeonthewater]

Re: Led Spot lights

I have a very powerful helm controlled spot/flood on my bow pulpit.... I ONLY use it to locate the boat ramp, decide where to beach and tie up on the island at night and to get the attention of the newbs running "headlights" and blinding me..... REALLY pisses em off but it gets the point across

 

[FTB530]

Re: Led Spot lights

Uncle Willie thanks for those links i will read them,
Smoke OTW ,i am not a new boater ,but i now have a boat that i am not afraid to be in the local rivers at night in,and when we fish sturgeon here the water gets high and sometimes whole trees come floating down,on anchor i will have a breakaway , but was thinking about headlights for traveling, i appreciate all the replies,i am a little confused though as to why many of the higher end aluminum boats i see on the river have built in headlights, you would think if it illegal the manufacturers would not install them,maybe ill just use my 1 million candlepower spotlight instead.

 

[FTB530]

Re: Led Spot lights

I have a very powerful helm controlled spot/flood on my bow pulpit.... I ONLY use it to locate the boat ramp, decide where to beach and tie up on the island at night and to get the attention of the newbs running "headlights" and blinding me..... REALLY pisses em off but it gets the point across

Yea i wouldn't like to be blinded and i dont intend to use them to blind any one else.

 

[FTB530]

Re: Led Spot lights

the spot lights really wreck my night vision when I aim my pellet gun at them, but it recovers after 20 minutes.

Hope i don't get any one shooting at me either,i hate wasting lead returning fire.

 

[smokeonthewater]

Re: Led Spot lights

The built in lights are docking lights

Btw don't take the fun comments as attacks

We wouldn't actually condone shooting at other boaters

 

[Lbridge4]

Re: Led Spot lights

I actually have three low powered cheap fog lights on my 15 42 John boat and I haven't had any problems with them. A switch placed in an easy to reach position presents the option to shut them off if needed. I think it depends on the location and environment when it's comes to effectiveness. Wide open water or timber

 

[Lbridge4]

Re: Led Spot lights

The legal aspect I'm not sure of, I have been checked several times by the game wardens and have had no complaints

 

[MH Hawker]

Re: Led Spot lights

I added 2 LED lights last year for docking and beaching the boat at night. I cat fish at night so it is nice to have them when pulling into a spot at brush piles.This is what I use and so far they work very well a nice wide and short range light. And the current draw is very low.

EDIT : I have a 1.5 million CP aircraft landing light as a spot light, snickers you can see some one picking their nose at 1000 yards and its very good to teach people manners at night. If your wondering why any one would need that much light power, I run at night on small mountain lakes and we get fogs that will cut visability down to a few feet with conventional spot lights and even with this the only way you can navigate is to point it at the bank 30 feet away and idle along, other than that you spend the night on the boat and wait for it to clear in the morning.

 

[Home Cookin']

Re: Led Spot lights

while I oppose spot lights as head lights, I was on a friend's Hinckley one night and he had a spot mounted on the roof, used it like a headlight and it did not afffect night vision and picked up the crab pots and channel markers just fine. It's important to say that there were NO OTHER BOATS on the river that night and he doesn't use it if they are. But that's a super high-end boat with perfect equipment; a diffferent league from what we mortals on iboats use.

btw I have travelled a totally unlit marsh with narrow creeks, ripping currents, sand bars and mud flats, all my life with many night crossings and know all about preserving night vision. No lights. Cover the dash lights and often the stern light. even the bow lights can be a problem, but.... Use the flashlight sparingly to find a marker and shut off; hold it high so it hits nothing in the boat.

 

[agallant80]

Re: Led Spot lights

Just get yourself one of these and use to it locate markers and check out shadows really quick.

Academy - Coleman? CPX? Ultrahigh Power LED Spotlight

 

[FTB530]

Re: Led Spot lights

The built in lights are docking lights

Btw don't take the fun comments as attacks

We wouldn't actually condone shooting at other boaters

I did not think it was serious about getting shot at and i wasn't either,if i was that much of a hot head i would have run out of ammo along time ago on people who drive cars lol.