So... why are the headlights in the front?

[mathey]

2 cheapy w-mart light kits (2 forward, one rearward, one spare), wired directly to the battery (via switch and relay provided with light kit), light bar is a 1x1 aluminum tube attached via sqaure u-bolts.

pros: under ROPS for protection, high mounting, adjustable
cons: shorter ROPS means lights are right behind your head, in summer bugs are swarming around you.

 

[daTeacha]

N80 -- if your FEL blocks the headlights, instead of splicing into the headlight wiring and trying to run both, you could just splice into the hot wire leading to the headlights and leave the headlight side disconnected. Then your new lights would run off the headlight switch and you wouldn't need to put a switch in, either.

Alternately and a bit cleaner, you can probably go to NAPA or Autozone and find a plug to match up with the plug leading into the headlights. Your lights probably have the male plug and your wiring harness the female plug or receptacle. Take a bulb from your headlights and find a male plug to match. Then run wires from that to your new lights and you will have a neat "plug and play" installation. If you want to use the headlights instead of the new ones, just switch the plugs back.

 

[GreenWannabe]

An alternative mounting location might be the sides of the ROPS, high enough to be usable with the loader. JD mounts their optional lights that way. Gets them away from the head a little more, maybe helping with backhoe use and even a little with the bugs.

 

[matthew3120]

I have installed 3 work lights on my JD 3120.I have the forwarding lights that are mounted over the warning lights but due to them blinding me everytime I look to the back I got good dose of light burn.I mount the 3 lights on the ROPS where I had bolts for my beacon light.They work awsome.

matthew3120

 

[Volfandt]

So... why are the headlights in the front?

To lightup the back of the FEL?
They are useless w/the FEL mounted....

I mounted a pr of 35w Northern specials to the underside of my ROPS a couple yrs ago and they've been the trick to operating in Daylight savings time. I mounted them so they could be rotated to the rear when needed and I decided to splice into the existing lighting circuit at the switch inorder to control all lights w/a single switch. I also added a 15amp fuse to the new circuit inorder to protect the OEM in the case of a short etc.

The only bad thing is that they do draw the bugs.

Inorder to determine how much additional load you can add to the tractors electrical system, determine how many charging amps the alternator/dynamo is rated for. In my case my dynamo is rated at 15amps. Add up the total wattage of the lights then divide it by 12 (12 volts). The answer will be the amount of current (amps) the lights require. If you go with lights that pull more than your alternator produces then you''ll be constantly discharging your battery everytime the lights are on and continued use will kill the battery eventually.

 

[LBrown59]

To lightup the back of the FEL?
They are useless w/the FEL mounted....

Replace the bucket
with a clear plastic one.

 

[Timber]

I travel at night with the bucket above or below the headlights seems to work for me. I know it worked last night when I came in after dark

 

[LBrown59]

ADDING LIGHTS TO YOUR TRACTOR < > 59
Here are some thoughts I've been kicking around concerning lights on rops.
1. Use two lights rather than 4 lights. Mount them on a light bar that will swivel the lights up and down. I install the lights on the bar in a manner that will permit the lights to be rotated 360 degrees. The 360 degrees allows you to have light to the rear and front or both to the front or both to the rear.
Use magnets to mount the brackets for the light bar to the top rear edge of the rops instead of on top of the rops or under the top of the rops. Next bolt the ends of the light bar to the brackets with one bolt through each bracket into the bar.
Tighten the bolts just enough to hold the bar in place but loose enough to move it by hand. The swiveling light bar allows:
(A) Allows adjustment of the distance the lights shine out from the tractor.
(B) Gives more clearance above the lights and more head room under them.
(C) Lessens the chance of catching the lights on something overhead.
(D) Allows the lights to flip down if hit rather than breaking them.
(E) You can just flip the lights down to work under low hanging branches instead of having to remove them from the rops. However you still have the option of removing the bar and lights and unplugging the trailer connector.
*Advantages of the 360 degree rotation *
(A) Permits two lights instead of requiring 4 lights, thus reducing current flow.
(B) Lights can be turned both to front or both to rear. Or they can be turned one to front and one to rear. They can also be used for side lighting. Swiveling lights can provide illumination 360 degrees around the tractor.

Adjustment from one position to another is instant by hand. No wrenches or tools required.
A low profile light preferred over high profile lights.

I've been using this system of combining a rotating light bar with swivel mounted lights to install fog and driving lights on my pickups successfully for years.

More thoughts on lights.
Use a dual direction light with a clear lens on both sides that will cast light to the front and rear at the same time.

Thinking about experimenting with a hanging swing light magnetically attached to the cross member of the FEL to illuminate the bucket shadow when using the head lights.

L.B.

I would not disconnect the head lights but would run the extra lights connected to the key on side of the ignition switch and a separate switch in the line between the connection and the lights. You could also use a switch for / on each light if you desire to control each lite separately.
The reason I prefer going through the key switch is because you can't forget to turn the lights off and run the battery down.

I use a 10 AMP Fuse.

www.tractorbynet.com/forums/owning-operating/74262-adding-lights-your-tractor-59-a.html?highlight=rops+lights

 

[LBrown59]

I travel at night with the bucket above or below the headlights seems to work for me. I know it worked last night when I came in after dark

But you still can't do any work on a project at nite that way.

 

[LBrown59]

I have the same problem. So someone give us a step by step on how to get them up on the ROPS. Please describe wiring instructions on a 3rd grade level for those of us who are 'electricity' impaired.
Also, as drilling ROPS is politically incorrect, how to attach the new lights? Were to get the new lights? I'd want something with a headlight type beam rather than a flood or pencil beam.

Magnets