Reflective light buckets

[chipgibbs]

I have the Axial light bar and led set up and I don't think it's bright. The light buckets are black and the lenses are not clear.
Are there any vendors making light buckets with a reflective interior like a real light?
Or, what LEDs are brighter than the Axials?

CG3

[JesterSpec]

Paint the insides silver.

lighthouseleds (no affiliation) sells prewired led's for 12v that put out some light.

[wurster]

there led I don't think a reflector matters.

[nharkey85]

Originally Posted by wurster

there led I don't think a reflector matters.

Bingo. Only good a reflector or painting the inside of the bucket will do is help with the looks

You more capable leds

[phillyb]

The lenses didnt work for me. I found a giant bag of googly eyes at the local craft store. 7$, kinda pricey, took about ten minutes to cut them to fit. They fit into the brush guards and are sandwiched in. They project much farther, and look much better.

[fatroofus]

MORE VP Rigid Industries Light Bars, now available turn-key!

[Johnnysplits]

Originally Posted by fatroofus

MORE VP Rigid Industries Light Bars, now available turn-key!

Those prices...ouch!!

[Duuuuuuuude]

Reflective light buckets DO make a difference. The more light you can reflect forward, the brighter they will be. A quick coverup with a silver paint pen makes a noticeable difference.

Originally Posted by Johnnysplits

Those prices...ouch!!

Yes. But remember you are buying A) a VP light bar, B) not your average everyday leds, and C) those leds preinstalled into the aforementioned light bar.


Crawlerdad makes some more affordable units, though they aren't as scale looking.

[chipgibbs]

I have a Maglite LED flashlight that has a reflector and shines super bright and is a focusable beam due to the reflector. Without a reflector to point the light, it's just a light bulb.
Silver paint is an option but, not very reflective.

I found a Vaterra set but it is a pair and the axial set has 5 buckets......

CG3

[ssdub33]

Originally Posted by Johnnysplits

Those prices...ouch!!

Look at mad dog rc vendor on here u can get led bars that are almost 3 x as bright as the vp for barely more than the vp led bars
That is what I plan on doing unless u want to blow $50+ for a vp light bar and then go into the vendor section and get a slide in led strip that's 2 x as bright as the mad dog led har for another $80 on top of the price for the vp bar but..

U CAN'T PUT A PRICE ON LIGHT WHEN U NEED IT! BUT THERE ARE OPTIONS FOR US BUDGET MINDED FOLKS

[TacoCrawler]

LED's primarily emit light forward...
but there is some residual light projected off
it's sides if the LED protrudes forward some
in it's housing mount.
Will also bleed out the rear if that's not a tight or sealed fit.
^ I use liquid electrical tape, to seal the rear of the LED housings.

This residual light emitting off the reflector
is hardly enough to be considered an improvement
in forward light throw/output.
But it can offer a slight amount if done properly.

I created headlamp reflectors on my son's Mojave headlight buckets.
By using aluminum foil pressed (formed) in (possibly glued)...
^ foil should be placed shiny side out.

They really don't emit much more light forward...
but they do look visually more appealing when on.

I'd think that aluminum foil method
could be used on other LED buckets as well.

My stock Axial LED light buckets use a diffuser lens...
This spreads/softens the light pattern and helps diffuse spotting.
The Mojave lens is also faceted and should disperse/diffuse the LED's
light beam somewhat... but haven't installed LED's in those yet.

* without the diffuser lenses...
the LED's would project circle (spot) beams forward.

example: (but could be applied to other applications I'd think)