Harbor Frieght LED Lights

[SDXLT]

I saw a guy with a new Tremor put the Harbor Freight lights on the A pillar. Does anyone have some long term use with their lights to say whether it’s worth it to put them in? I flat out don’t have the budget for Baja Designs or Rigid and BD didn’t want to give me a free set in their ask us anything thread haha. But seriously, I’d like to know if they are decently bright and durable enough to last a couple years before I put any money down.

If there’s a good middle ground that splits the difference I’d be interested.

The Tremor guy has these for ditch lights https://www.harborfreight.com/3-in-led-spot-with-side-light-pair-57538.html

These are only $20 but half the lumens
https://www.harborfreight.com/3-in-led-flood-light-64322.html

And then I was thinking these could also be interesting on either side of the radar in the bumper
https://www.harborfreight.com/8-in-spotflood-combo-led-light-bar-64324.html

 

[9zero1790]

some off the china knock off lights really are not bad at all. the main differences are quality control life span and weather proofing. if you get lucky on a set of auxbeam or harbor fright nilight etc. just slap some silicone on them to keep water out. expect about 2 years out of them. i have a china light bar on my 4g and its worked about 7 years. it gets water in it, lens is yellowing and its no longer as bright but still works. its an aux beam. im sure the hf brand are nilight or auxbeam just branded for them. also look around on ebay and you can find some decent deals on the fancy brands. almost got a 400 dollar set for 130 today but was outbid at the last second.

 

[Frenchy]

Can't speak for them, but you do need to understand the term "you get what you pay for". One member on here who clearly has the money decides not to go with KC lights but instead with woth cheap China lights off Amazon. He can already tell some differences between the two but thinks the cheap China lights will do enough for him.

 

[Synfulz]

I like the design of the first ones.

 

[rydfree]

As someone said , yellowing of the cheaper plastic lenses and water intrusion will be the downfall of most cheap lights . Seal them up good and they will do for a couple of years. How much they stay out in the sunlight will be a factor. Garage kept they can last a bit longer.

 

[9zero1790]

one thing to think on is what you need the lights to do. is it to shine greater distance to drive faster in dark or is it for wider path of light so you can see to the sides better, fog, snow, dirt etc.
if you have the forescan setup you can have the high beams and fogs on at the same time and it helps a lot for low cost. upgrading bulbs also can make a nice difference on a budget.

 

[SDXLT]

I’m looking more for seeing farther in the desert at night especially when following and it’s dusty. I hear you on you get what you pay for and I don’t enjoy throwing away money but I can’t keep pouring money into the truck right away! I still need to find time to get the Tremor leafs in and the Eibach coilovers in the front. Then I need to beef up the tires from the stock Hankooks. Lights don’t have priority at the moment so picking them up on the cheap when another HF coupon hits the inbox could be tolerable.
I also check OfferUp and CL and I rarely see any good finds on the hood lights out here in SoCal. If they are listed people want a lot for them, naturally.
Appreciate y'alls feedback

 

[9zero1790]

I’m looking more for seeing farther in the desert at night especially when following and it’s dusty. I hear you on you get what you pay for and I don’t enjoy throwing away money but I can’t keep pouring money into the truck right away! I still need to find time to get the Tremor leafs in and the Eibach coilovers in the front. Then I need to beef up the tires from the stock Hankooks. Lights don’t have priority at the moment so picking them up on the cheap when another HF coupon hits the inbox could be tolerable.
I also check OfferUp and CL and I rarely see any good finds on the hood lights out here in SoCal. If they are listed people want a lot for them, naturally.
Appreciate y'alls feedback

if dust is something you will be in consider doing amber / yellow lights. they sorta cut into the dust better with less glare reflecting back to the driver. i think hf sells the yellow ones as well as white. for rear leaf springs check these out.
https://autospringkits.com/product/2019-2023-ford-ranger-rear-add-a-leaf-kit/

cost less than the tremor spring. fit perfectly and easy to install. adds some lift, flex and supposedly around 750 pounds more load capacity. You can get them direct from the maker or some of our r5g sponsors like S3M sell them. now and then s3M has a sale going and they may be even less than direct from the maker.

 

[SDXLT]

Thanks! Planning on yellow/amber for the dust. I already have the Tremor leafs I got off a forum member. Just need to find the time now that I got some Jack stands tall enough to work on a truck safely.

 

[Frenchy]

If you have no problems spending a bit extra I would recommend going ahead a saving up. Better to have extra money saced up to spend i stead of spending and regretting.

 

[Ugly_Betty]

 

[OFC Ranger]

Can't speak for them, but you do need to understand the term "you get what you pay for". One member on here who clearly has the money decides not to go with KC lights but instead with woth cheap China lights off Amazon. He can already tell some differences between the two but thinks the cheap China lights will do enough for him.

I'm guessing you are referring to me.

You are correct, for my non-professional capacity paying name-brand prices would serve me little use outside of instagram. That and the pricing format would dictate I would have to somehow burn through as many as 3+ sets of lights to finally justify the name-brand price tag. (in the case of the KC gravity comparison found here)

They are all Chinese components anyhow, some are just spec'd out with tighter tolerances than others. Cheap ones can be "fixed" prior to install with little time and some knowledge.

 

[SDXLT]

I'm guessing you are referring to me.

You are correct, for my non-professional capacity paying name-brand prices would serve me little use outside of instagram. That and the pricing format would dictate I would have to somehow burn through as many as 3+ sets of lights to finally justify the name-brand price tag. (in the case of the KC gravity comparison found here)

They are all Chinese components anyhow, some are just spec'd out with tighter tolerances than others. Cheap ones can be "fixed" prior to install with little time and some knowledge.

That’s kind of where my head is at. They are all made in China I haven’t found any made in the US. Maybe they are specs a little better but to your point, for $500 I can buy a new set every year for what I would pay up front once. They may not be quite as bright but I can take a little less bright for 1/4 of the price.

 

[OFC Ranger]

That’s kind of where my head is at. They are all made in China I haven’t found any made in the US. Maybe they are specs a little better but to your point, for $500 I can buy a new set every year for what I would pay up front once. They may not be quite as bright but I can take a little less bright for 1/4 of the price.

I've tested countless types of lights from Amazon and I've only had one fail in relative short order and in that case the vendor promptly had a new one in my hands in a few days.

We can debate where these Chinese factories ultimately come up with the knowledge to design these lights but the fact of the matter is as time goes on they are getting better and better at what they produce on their own.

The thread I link before is it good example.

 

[Frenchy]

Two brand I have found to be nice that ware not made in China are PIAA and ARB Lights. One other possibility it Stedi. They are also from Australia and on thier website give you some fair insight on what the beam pattern will be like. Woth a look at the least