BRIGHTEST landing and taxi lights EVER!

[Mark M]

The photo below does not do reality justice.  Yes yes, I know that there will be the "vintage" Boom Beam Owners who spent lots a cash and do not want to let go.   Yes, the Boom Beam was invented by a brilliant man, and is indeed bright, and they should hang onto them.  But this is with the risk of quickly loosing your valued battery voltage in a night time alternator failure.  (and Boom Beam produces more heat than LEDs)  But for those other owners, listen up.  One year ago, I replace my old incandescent landing and taxi lights on my Ovation and was pleased as they were twice as bright.  But then Whelen recently came out with their new G3s and bragged that they were again 2 1/2 brighter than the prior LEDs.  And less money!  (they should capture all the market)  After installing and doing 3 T&Gs during a very dark night last night at the Mooney birthplace (ERV) with the new 3Gs, I was quite impressed how much farther away my landing lights picked up the runway.  But when I taxied; it was like daytime and compared to my truck with all of its additional LED light bars.

The install took an hour for all 4 and an non A&P can legally do the entry appropriately in the logbook.

Now I have my 1 year old LEDs on EBay if anyone is interested

[Oscar Avalle]

Nice! I had one of these Boom Bean installed in my M20, but one night my alternator went off line and it was incredible how fast the battery started losing power... Luckily the alternator went back online. But at that point I decided to reduce to the max my power consumption. So I changed over to LED. Good to see that the G3 is now a new option. Thank you.

[Austintatious]

Are there any of these lights that fit an M20K ?

[OSUAV8TER]

21 minutes ago, Austintatious said:

Are there any of these lights that fit an M20K ?

Yes if your lights are side by side in the nose. The G3 only comes in the PAR-36 size (4.5" diameter). I have them in stock for $289 a lamp. Orders over $500 ship free and no sales tax. The G3 is an exceptional light for the money. If you have the older Parmetheus or really any other model it is a worthy upgrade. If you currently have an AeroLED Sunspot or the WAT Parmetheus Pro, I'd keep that.

https://www.gallagheraviationllc.com/whelen-aircraft-lighting.html < -- website

gallagheraviationllc@gmail.com <-- Email me

1-833-425-5288 <-- Call me for questions or phone orders.

https://ww 

[Will.iam]

I just ordered both the landing light and taxi light g3’s. They arrived while i was out on a trip but plan to install them when i get back. Will post pics when done. 

[Marc_B]

Its interesting to look at the current draw between the Pro (0.9A at 28V, 0.634#), G3 (1.9A at 28V, 0.8#) and Plus (0.68A at 28V, 0.52#).  I guess that's what you pay extra for with the Pro's...low current and brighter after 5 minutes with the standardized testing.

[OSUAV8TER]

6 minutes ago, Marc_B said:

Its interesting to look at the current draw between the Pro (0.9A at 28V, 0.634#), G3 (1.9A at 28V, 0.8#) and Plus (0.68A at 28V, 0.52#).  I guess that's what you pay extra for with the Pro's...low current and brighter after 5 minutes with the standardized testing.

The Pro is still an exceptional light but it was originally designed with the intended use on turbine aircraft. The G3's target audience is GA. Here is a photo comparing the G3 versus the Pro in a static environment outside of my hangar. 

[Marc_B]

6 hours ago, OSUAV8TER said:

Here is a photo comparing the G3 versus the Pro in a static environment outside of my hangar. 

@OSUAV8TER Looks like pro on top and plus on bottom per file name?  Have you seen mix and match or do you typically see use of same line throughout...curious if anyone has used one model for landing (i.e. Pro) and another for the taxis (i.e. G3)?  Seems like you have options even with the same power output to focus that differently.  Wondering if you see a clearly better pattern/output with landing lights that is different from taxi lights.  I saw a comparison of yours between G2 & G3 taxi lights that appeared to be MUCH better coverage with the G3s.

[OSUAV8TER]

The Pro only comes in a landing light version but the G3 has a landing and taxi light version. Here is the G3 taxi in the same mounting rack. 

[OSUAV8TER]

Here is the G3 taxi light versus a second generation Parmetheus Plus taxi light.

[Will.iam]

2 hours ago, OSUAV8TER said:

The Pro is still an exceptional light but it was originally designed with the intended use on turbine aircraft. The G3's target audience is GA. Here is a photo comparing the G3 versus the Pro in a static environment outside of my hangar. 

Seems like the pro has a more pronounced parabolic shadow line than the G3. Does the G3 light up the side better or is that lightness from the exposure time of the camera getting light  reflected from the main beam hitting the ground?  

[OSUAV8TER]

7 minutes ago, Will.iam said:

Seems like the pro has a more pronounced parabolic shadow line than the G3. Does the G3 light up the side better or is that lightness from the exposure time of the camera getting light  reflected from the main beam hitting the ground?  

The camera settings are the exact same. It was set to manual so same shutter, aperature, ISO, and white balance. I did do a little post production adjustment to color because the Pro and G3 have different light temperature.

[PT20J]

 @OSUAV8TER, according to WAT's independent test data, the G3 is only brighter initially and after 5 minutes the Pro is slightly brighter. What's the pricing on the Pro 28V PAR 36 compared to the G3 landing light?

3 hours ago, OSUAV8TER said:

Here is a photo comparing the G3 versus the Pro in a static environment outside of my hangar. 

Which picture is which light?

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[Will.iam]

3 minutes ago, PT20J said:

 @OSUAV8TER, according to WAT's independent test data, the G3 is only brighter initially and after 5 minutes the Pro is slightly brighter. What's the pricing on the Pro 28V PAR 36 compared to the G3 landing light?

Which picture is which light?

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Pro almost double price to G3 and that test is static not moving at 80 mph so with cooling flow I wonder how far the light output would drop due to heat. 

[OSUAV8TER]

9 minutes ago, Will.iam said:

Pro almost double price to G3 and that test is static not moving at 80 mph so with cooling flow I wonder how far the light output would drop due to heat. 

Yup - you got it. The theory is that airflow on the lamp will help cool it and thus will greatly reduce the amount of power loss due to thermal management. In a static environment the Pro does an excellent job with thermal management. The G3 is okay. The AeroLED Sunspot is atrocious. AeroLED counts on movement of the aircraft to help cool it. I believe there is a balance - you need a good heat sink on the back of the lamp. That is just LED 101 because they do generate a ton of heat. 

The PAR-36 Pro is $499.99

PAR-36 G3 is $289

I still recommend the G3 over the Pro all day. For the money, these trade offs are worth it.

[carusoam]

Welcome aboard to Mark (The OP)…

Are you related to OSU?

Nice pirep for the WAT G3!

Fun first post.

Best regards,

-a-

[haymak3r]

I guess this could be on-topic? ish?? But I recently upgraded from the old incandescent to a parmetheus plus. I was less than impressed, though I hadn't actually used the old landing light when it was dark out.. The only comparison is that my instructors 172 has some 700 dollar led light, and it is super bright on the ground. Sorry, not sure what it is..

But it seems like the light output of the plus isn't really hitting the ground at all. And being as my m20J only has this one light for landing and taxiing, it makes for seeing the taxiway pretty hard. I did notice that there are three screws on the back side, that appear to possibly be adjustment screws? Is it common for these lights to need to be turned down towards the ground more? The post above by Phillip_g seems like his beam is WAY lower looking than mine. Or is the plus just not that great, and I should eat the 300 or so bucks, and then spend some more money lol.

[OSUAV8TER]

30 minutes ago, haymak3r said:

I guess this could be on-topic? ish?? But I recently upgraded from the old incandescent to a parmetheus plus. I was less than impressed, though I hadn't actually used the old landing light when it was dark out.. The only comparison is that my instructors 172 has some 700 dollar led light, and it is super bright on the ground. Sorry, not sure what it is..

But it seems like the light output of the plus isn't really hitting the ground at all. And being as my m20J only has this one light for landing and taxiing, it makes for seeing the taxiway pretty hard. I did notice that there are three screws on the back side, that appear to possibly be adjustment screws? Is it common for these lights to need to be turned down towards the ground more? The post above by Phillip_g seems like his beam is WAY lower looking than mine. Or is the plus just not that great, and I should eat the 300 or so bucks, and then spend some more money lol.

The G3 is a much better lamp than the Plus and I recommend it over the Plus if you fly a bit at night. Actually for the price, just go with the G3. How are your lights situated on your M20J? In the nose side by side? @haymak3r

[haymak3r]

Mine has just the one light up in the nose. So with the g3, there would be a noticeable difference over the plus? Also, it is the par46 light.

[OSUAV8TER]

Just now, haymak3r said:

Mine has just the one light up in the nose. So with the g3, there would be a noticeable difference over the plus? Also, it is the par46 light.

So the G3 does not come in a PAR-46 size, you'd have to go with the Pro, which is what philip_g picked up for his plane.

[haymak3r]

Ya, I really wish I would have gotten that one  Not sure what to do with the plus if I were to get the pro. Dumb noob move on my part lol. 

[OSUAV8TER]

8 minutes ago, haymak3r said:

Ya, I really wish I would have gotten that one  Not sure what to do with the plus if I were to get the pro. Dumb noob move on my part lol. 

If it is in good shape you can probably sell it for $200-$250. The PAR-46 isn't as widely used as the PAR-36 so it might take longer to sell.

[haymak3r]

I've had it maybe a month now.. It's brand new still. It has maybe 5 hours of total on time? I usually don't leave it on while out in the practice areas unless there are others around. So just on takeoff/landing And I suppose I could try.  

[OSUAV8TER]

1 minute ago, haymak3r said:

I've had it maybe a month now.. It's brand new still. It has maybe 5 hours of total on time? I usually don't leave it on while out in the practice areas unless there are others around. So just on takeoff/landing And I suppose I could try.  

Whatever you choose to do, I'd leave it on for most of the flight for day and nighttime VFR recognition. 

[PT20J]

1 hour ago, haymak3r said:

I guess this could be on-topic? ish?? But I recently upgraded from the old incandescent to a parmetheus plus. I was less than impressed, though I hadn't actually used the old landing light when it was dark out.. The only comparison is that my instructors 172 has some 700 dollar led light, and it is super bright on the ground. Sorry, not sure what it is..

But it seems like the light output of the plus isn't really hitting the ground at all. And being as my m20J only has this one light for landing and taxiing, it makes for seeing the taxiway pretty hard. I did notice that there are three screws on the back side, that appear to possibly be adjustment screws? Is it common for these lights to need to be turned down towards the ground more? The post above by Phillip_g seems like his beam is WAY lower looking than mine. Or is the plus just not that great, and I should eat the 300 or so bucks, and then spend some more money lol.

I found that Parmetheus Plus does not illuminate as well as the OEM incandescent bulbs. I am going to replace mine and throw the Plus’ bulbs away — I would feel bad selling them to some other sucker.

There is a procedure in the M20J Service Manual for aiming the wing-mounted lights, but you have to “wing it” for the cowl-mounted light. When I had a 1978 J with cowl light it was aimed high and would not adjust properly. I found that a kit from Mooney that shock mounts the bulb to improve its life had been field installed incorrectly. So you might check that if the screws don’t have enough travel to aim it where you want it.

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