Roof rack lights/wiring

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meatloaf

meatloaf

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So. Austin, tx
I will be helping my brother install a 5x7 conferr rack on his 60...He also got 4 Pro_Comp 8" lights for the front. What, or through where, is the best way to run the wiring for this? If anyone has pictures, it would be great...

Thanks in advance,

Luis:beer: :beer:
 
Does he have a snorkel? Running the wires parallel to the snorkel as a harness is the cleanest way to run wires to the rack IMHO, I don't like to mess with running wires past door weatherstripping that might get permanently flat and then cause leaks.

I'll have my Cruiser back here (Austin, TX) in January if you want to see how I wired mine (no pics).

Cheers!
 
I have wondered the same thing too, would love to have long rangers up high. I saw a 60 in Pueblo, CO sitting at a construction site, with the KC light bar and four KC lights on top. He ran the wires to the drivers side, then they came down the pillar between and under the cowl. He made a metal strip that covered the wires and was painted the same colour as the truck. It was pretty slick.
 
Exiled said:
Does he have a snorkel?

I'll have my Cruiser back here (Austin, TX)...
Click to expand...


Exiled,

No snorkel...Yes, I'd like to look at your Cruiser, maybe get some ideas for mine (which I hope will be running by January) too...What part of Austin do you live?

Luis (Meatloaf)
 
meatloaf said:
Exiled,

No snorkel...Yes, I'd like to look at your Cruiser, maybe get some ideas for mine (which I hope will be running by January) too...What part of Austin do you live?

Luis (Meatloaf)
Click to expand...

I live in Round Rock, off of 620 and O'Connor Dr.
 
Exiled said:
I live in Round Rock, off of 620 and O'Connor Dr.
Click to expand...

I'm way on the other side (south), in San Leanna...that's in between Onion Creek & the little town of Manchaca...
 
Here's the pic. Again, this only makes sense if you are using a roof rack. The best part is, I don't have to worry about water intrusion, putting holes in the body, or running wires through a gap. Sorry, forgot to mention to look for the wiring coming out of the rear vent and going up to the roof rack.
 
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I like that, but what about branches tearing at those lights? A few run ins with the juniper and pinion trees around here and those are toast.
 
Tearing at the lights or the wiring??? If you are talking about the lights, I don't worry about branches down here in San Diego. When I lived back east I ran cable guides from the ARB bumper to the top of the rack and that kept the branches away from the lights. You could always fab up a cage to protect the lights as well.
 
One of the problems with running lights off of the roof rack is the amount of light that reflects off of the hood. It can be obnoxious..

That is why you see people black out their hoods..

a tight beam can help but a fundamentally better location is on the bemper..
 
Mace said:
One of the problems with running lights off of the roof rack is the amount of light that reflects off of the hood. It can be obnoxious..

That is why you see people black out their hoods..

a tight beam can help but a fundamentally better location is on the bemper..
Click to expand...

Yes! I've run lights to roof racks for a long time, and I find that driving lights through out the best beam for mounting up high. Fog lights are the worst, as they disperse light and you end up with a well-lit hood. Blacking out the hood really helps, too.

You can modify the roof rack to add protection to the lights with minimum loss of beam:
powdercoating.webp
 
DBS311 said:
Tearing at the lights or the wiring??? If you are talking about the lights, I don't worry about branches down here in San Diego. When I lived back east I ran cable guides from the ARB bumper to the top of the rack and that kept the branches away from the lights. You could always fab up a cage to protect the lights as well.
Click to expand...

The wires. They are really exposed to the same branches that give me back country pin stripe... I didnt complete my thought in the first post I did up there about the 60 I saw in Pueblo. His wires came down the pillar right next to the windshield and disappeared under the cowl. The metal strip covering the wires would protect them from branches.
 
I have my wires covered with some of that plastic electrical tubing and then taped up. Then from the vent to the rack it is secured to the body in 3 spots with mounting tabs. Even when I wheeled back east I never had any problems with branches tearing at the wiring. Trust me, that wiring isn't going anywhere. There isn't enough room for a branch (of significant strength) to get between the wiring and the body.
 
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