Front 42" Light Bar

[Bob R1]

I went by Harbor Freight today and bought a 42" Road Shock LED Light Bar. This Light Bar has good reviews, from what I can tell. My plan is to install it on the front of the Fortress Roof out in front of the Windshield. I will bolt the Light Bar to the Roof, then drill a hole in the roof, and install a Rubber Grommet to run the wiring through to get the wiring on the under side of the roof. My plan is to run the wiring back from the Switch/Relay to the B-Pillar through my PVC Conduit that I have installed under the drivers door opening for my other wires going to the back. I will then route the wiring up the B-Pillar Drivers side Vertical Roll Bar, then route the wiring forward along the Horizontal Roll Bar to the Windshield area. I will drill a hole in the Windshield to Roof Filler Plate, and connect the Switch Wiring to the Light Bar Wiring.

I have a new Rocker Switch Pro Switch and Back Lit Cover on hand, and ready to go. I also have a new 5 Pin Relay with the Wiring Harness for the Relay. All of my Rocker Switch Pro Switch's have a Top "Back Light" that comes on with the Ignition. This illuminates the Symbols and Wording on the Switch's so that you can easily identify what each Switch is for in low light/at night. I have Switch's for the Interior Lights, Rear Flood Lights, Front Light Bar, and the Two Speed Wiper Switch. When one of the Switch's is activated a light comes on on the bottom of the switch that light up an oval area so that you know the switch is activated. This is mainly handy in daylight letting you know a switch is on.

I have Harbor Freight Rock Lights for Interior Lighting. One mounted on the B-Pillar and the second under the dash on the passenger side.
I have 3 each of the Road Shock 6 LED Flood Lights on the back of the Roof for Rear Work Lights, and to see when backing up at night. One centered on the back of the roof, doing a great job lighting up my Spare Tire and the Bed, and the other two are outboard on the roof lighting up the area behind the Roxor. NOTE: I did not have the Spare Tire Mount when I installed the first Rear Light in the Center almost two years ago. Having three on the back of the roof works out fine. I have the center one pointed down a little more to light the bed, and the outboard ones are both angled out a little, lighting up a larger area behind the vehicle. So far ALL of the Harbor Freight LED Lighting has been 100% trouble free. The Rock Lights work very well for interior lighting. The 6 LED Flood Lights likewise have worked out great for rear lighting. Per the reviews that I have read, I am sure that the 42" LED Light Bar will also work out well.

FYI I have the Fortress Roof made for the Rear Angled Roll Bar that extend to the back of the bed. This Roof extends back about 10 Inches behind the B-Pillar, and angles down. This works out very well for mounting the rear lighting. Bad Hunter, a member here picked up a Hard Cab a couple years ago, and I bought his Fortress Roof and Windshield that he no longer needed. If ordering new I am 100% sure that I would not have bought the roof for the Rear Angled ROPS. I ended up lucking out getting this roof. It has worked out very well for my rear lighting as well as my Hard Cab Rear Bulkhead. With the YJ Jeep Windshield the front of the roof extend forward of the windshield and angles down, this likewise works out well for the Front Light Bar installation. Having both the Front and Rear Light Bars mounted on angled down areas of the roof keeps them away from limbs a little better avoiding most damage. I am glad that I ended up with this particular Fortress Roof totally by accident.

I have Sportsman Club stuff to do Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. I might find time to work on getting the Light Bar installed, and wired up Sunday Afternoon, "With a Little Luck".

Bob R

 

[lost1wing]

I went by Harbor Freight today and bought a 42" Road Shock LED Light Bar. This Light Bar has good reviews, from what I can tell. My plan is to install it on the front of the Fortress Roof out in front of the Windshield. I will bolt the Light Bar to the Roof, then drill a hole in the roof, and install a Rubber Grommet to run the wiring through to get the wiring on the under side of the roof. My plan is to run the wiring back from the Switch/Relay to the B-Pillar through my PVC Conduit that I have installed under the drivers door opening for my other wires going to the back. I will then route the wiring up the B-Pillar Drivers side Vertical Roll Bar, then route the wiring forward along the Horizontal Roll Bar to the Windshield area. I will drill a hole in the Windshield to Roof Filler Plate, and connect the Switch Wiring to the Light Bar Wiring.

I have a new Rocker Switch Pro Switch and Back Lit Cover on hand, and ready to go. I also have a new 5 Pin Relay with the Wiring Harness for the Relay. All of my Rocker Switch Pro Switch's have a Top "Back Light" that comes on with the Ignition. This illuminates the Symbols and Wording on the Switch's so that you can easily identify what each Switch is for in low light/at night. I have Switch's for the Interior Lights, Rear Flood Lights, Front Light Bar, and the Two Speed Wiper Switch. When one of the Switch's is activated a light comes on on the bottom of the switch that light up an oval area so that you know the switch is activated. This is mainly handy in daylight letting you know a switch is on.

I have Harbor Freight Rock Lights for Interior Lighting. One mounted on the B-Pillar and the second under the dash on the passenger side.
I have 3 each of the Road Shock 6 LED Flood Lights on the back of the Roof for Rear Work Lights, and to see when backing up at night. One centered on the back of the roof, doing a great job lighting up my Spare Tire and the Bed, and the other two are outboard on the roof lighting up the area behind the Roxor. NOTE: I did not have the Spare Tire Mount when I installed the first Rear Light in the Center almost two years ago. Having three on the back of the roof works out fine. I have the center one pointed down a little more to light the bed, and the outboard ones are both angled out a little, lighting up a larger area behind the vehicle. So far ALL of the Harbor Freight LED Lighting has been 100% trouble free. The Rock Lights work very well for interior lighting. The 6 LED Flood Lights likewise have worked out great for rear lighting. Per the reviews that I have read, I am sure that the 42" LED Light Bar will also work out well.

FYI I have the Fortress Roof made for the Rear Angled Roll Bar that extend to the back of the bed. This Roof extends back about 10 Inches behind the B-Pillar, and angles down. This works out very well for mounting the rear lighting. Bad Hunter, a member here picked up a Hard Cab a couple years ago, and I bought his Fortress Roof and Windshield that he no longer needed. If ordering new I am 100% sure that I would not have bought the roof for the Rear Angled ROPS. I ended up lucking out getting this roof. It has worked out very well for my rear lighting as well as my Hard Cab Rear Bulkhead. With the YJ Jeep Windshield the front of the roof extend forward of the windshield and angles down, this likewise works out well for the Front Light Bar installation. Having both the Front and Rear Light Bars mounted on angled down areas of the roof keeps them away from limbs a little better avoiding most damage. I am glad that I ended up with this particular Fortress Roof totally by accident.

I have Sportsman Club stuff to do Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. I might find time to work on getting the Light Bar installed, and wired up Sunday Afternoon, "With a Little Luck".

Bob R

I'd like to see how it turns out. I am keeping the factory cab. I already installed the switch and harness for a light bar. I was still trying to decide on the light bar itself. I was thinking about how to run the wire to the light. I guess drilling through the roof is the only way.

 

[Bob R1]

FOLLOW UP
First I mounted the Harbor Freight Road Shock 42" Light Bar on the nose of the Fortress Roof. I used the Bolts Provided in the Box.

NOTE: Something I did not think about. I got the Light Bar to far forward. If I lift the hood all the way up and lay it back against the roof edge, it now hits the Light Bar before contacting the roof edge. Just something to keep in mind when installing a Light Bar. You might want to check this out before drilling the mounting bolt holes.

I rounded up a Rubber Grommet the correct size for the Light Bar Wiring to go through, then I used my Step Bit to drill a hole in the nose of the roof to get the wiring to the lower side of the roof.
Next I drilled a hole through the Windshield Filler Plate to get the Factory Light bar Wiring inside the vehicle.
I extended the light bar wiring along the Horizontal Drivers Side Roll Bar to the B Pillar, and then routed the wiring down the B Pillar, then forward in PVC Conduit. My Rear Light Bars, 12V Outlet in the bed, and my Interior Light Wiring is protected by this PVC Conduit.
I thought that I still had one circuit free off my 6 Circuit Auxiliary Distribution Panel, however I did not locate it. I ended up routing a new wire back from the battery to the 5 Pin Relay controlling the Light Bar. I used a 30A inline fuse holder to protect the wiring.
I split the power circuit, and ran one wire to power up the Switch, and the other #12 wire went to the 12V IN Terminal on the 5 Pin Relay.
I ran a Neutral to both the Switch, so that the Indicator light would work on the Switch, as well as to the Relay so that it would work.
Here is where I end up getting creative. With the 12V wire ran straight off the battery, I could not power up the Indicator Lights on the Switch with that wiring. It would be on full time, so I popped out the Windshield Wiper Switch, and installed a Piggy Back Terminal on the Wiper Switch Power Terminal that was activated off the Ignition Switch. I jumper-ed this 12V Ignition Switched power wire to the Light Bar Switch Light Circuit. With the Jumper wire the Switch Back Lighting comes on just like all the other rocker switch's.
When I took the Roxor out for a test after dark, I discovered that I had already positioned the Light Bar perfectly. All that I needed to do was tighten down the screws on both sides.
The Harbor Freight Road Shock 42" Light Bar does a great job lighting up the World in front of the Roxor at night. With the Flood/Spot Combination you not only light up the road, you also have enough side light to keep an eye on the sides of the road for deer.

I still need to open the Dash back up, and do a much better job securing all of my wiring up behind the dash and out of sight.

I give the Harbor Freight Road Shock 42" Light Bar my Seal of Approval. It works as well as I had hoped for.

Bob R

 

[Bob R1]

I was a little concerned about the Light Bar Switch being powered up direct, as this would allow the Light Bar to be powered up with the vehicle turned off. My Briard Sheepdog "Hay Stack" likes to get in the Roxor now and again for a nap. She may also be making sure that it does not go anywhere without her in it. I could see her turning the rocker switch on bumping it, and running the battery down. Google Briard Sheepdog, and you will see why we named her Hay Stack. NOTE: She now goes to the Dog Beauty Shop every few weeks for a hair cut. She looks more like a BIG Poodle without the Pop-Poms on the feet and tail now.

Since the 5 Pin Light Bar Relay is powered direct from the battery, the Light Bar Switch did not need any real power just to activate the Relay. I popped the Light Bar Switch back out, and unhooked the Power Wire from the Battery going to the switch, and taped this wire up. I unplugged the Jumper Wire coming from the Wiper Switch that I was using to power up the Switch Back Lighting and put a new Piggy Back Connector on it and plugged it on the Switch Input Power Terminal. I then made up a short jumper wire to go from the Power Piggy Back Terminal to the Back Lighting Power Terminal.
Now the switch will not function without the Ignition Switch being on, and my Switch Back Lighting comes on with the ignition like all of my other rocker switch's.
NOTE: All my other switch's (Wipers, Back Light Bars, Interior Lights, and the Outlet for my Sprayer and Seeder) are power through my Auxiliary Power Panel which is power up through a 5 Pin Relay so that the switch's will not power up without the Ignition being on.
FYI: The Piggy Back Terminal has both a Female and Male connector. You can plug it on a Male Switch Terminal, and then Plug a Female Terminal on to it to power something else up. On Back Lit Switch's you need to use a Piggy Back Connector to jumper power from the 12V In Put Terminal on the Switch, to the Switch Back Light Power Terminal.
We started using Piggy Back Connectors on Deer Feeders with a Solar Panel to charge the battery. In that application you need the Piggy Back Connector to connect the Solar Panel wiring to the Feeder Power Wire where it connects to the battery.

The Harbor Freight Road Shock 42 Inch Light Bar installation is now completed, and I am happy with the results. From my short drive down the gravel road it looks like the Light Bar is going to put out plenty of light. It illuminates out in front of the vehicle as well as providing side illumination to cover the road shoulders well. This should help a lot to prevent having a Deer for a Hood Ornament.

I am likewise impressed with the Harbor Freight Road Shock 6 LED Flood Light's that I have on the back of the roof for rear illumination. Again they work very well for rear lighting when backing up as well as for rear work lights.

Bob R