Taxi light ?

[mike28w]

Hi ! 

 

  I fly a '63 M20C.  VFR , day only.....  In other words , I never use my landing light.....

 

     I would like to have a long lasting, low draw , taxi light that I could leave on continuously.  Doesn't have to be super bright , just broad beam.

 

   What could I use that costs less than $200 and lasts longer than a tank of gas ??

 

   I've been looking for hours on the net and in catalogs , and all I'm doing is getting confused.....

 

  Thanks in advance, mike   

 

   PS:  I believe its a PAR46  and I'm not overly dogmatic about TSO, as long as it's safe .......

[carusoam]

You may consider a search for LED landing lights. There are a few reviews on MooneySpace...

Best regards,

-a-

[kurtsnyder]

http://www.strobesnmore.com/Whelen-Par-46-Spotlight-Super-LED.html

This is a GREAT light!! I installed mine under that AC that talks about using non-TSO'd parts in aging aircraft. It's a Whelen light, PAR46 and looks exactly the same as the aviation version, but about $100 cheaper. After shipping, my total was $140.

[N201MKTurbo]

Just replace your 250 watt landing light with a100 watt bulb. It will last forever.

I discovered long ago that my landing light always burned out when I landed. So I started landing with the light off. I haven't lost a landing light sense, and now it freaks me out to land at night with the light on. I turn it off on final and turn it back on on roll out. Sometimes the controllers ask if I'm ok.

[bumper]

Good find, kurtsnyder. That Whelen would cost a lot more if it were on Aircraft Spruce with approvals. Still, it's an 8 degree spot beam, so not the wide pattern needed for a taxi light. Wonder if Welen makes that with a fluted lens?

 

$200 or less for a good aviation LED in PAR 46 (or 36 for that matter) is still a ways off. 

 

bumper

[1964-M20E]

8 degree spot works well for landing and taxiing.  2 degeree spot would be better for landing but 8 degrees works. 

[bumper]

8 degree spot works well for landing and taxiing.  2 degeree spot would be better for landing but 8 degrees works. 

 

2 degrees??  Not meaning to be argumentative, but  I've never heard of a landing light with a beam that narrow. IMO, a 2 degree landing light would provide far too little peripheral lighting. Heck, the old standby 4509 sealed beam (PAR 36 bulb) provides 12 X 6 degrees.

 

 

As an example, the AeroLeds 36LX landing lights on my Husky, one each wing, have a focused beam width of 10 degrees. The 36LX taxi lights, also on each wing, have a pattern of 40 degrees wide by 10 degrees high. The only difference between the taxi and landing lights is the taxi version has vertical fluting on the lens to provide the additional horizontal beam spread. This is desirable as it allows you to see critters and such off to the sides while the plane is in motion.

 

bumper

[rbuck]

Hey kurtsnyder, thanks for the find. I was just trying to find one of these. Looking forward to putting it in

[Seanhoya]

Any idea which AC talks about using non-TSO'd parts in aging aircraft?  I'd love to read that!

[jetdriven]

AC 23-27

[Yetti]

I think there was a beech discussion on using a PAR 46 Grote tractor work light

[leesh]

Thanks for that link, kurtsnyder! I ordered one and installed it yesterday in my '67 M20F. It works great! My initial motivation was that the switch fuse was blowing consistently after a few minutes (often on final). My A&P mentioned an LED lamp might prevent the need to change the fuse. I flew it for an hour and a half yesterday evening and the switch didn't blow. Nice to have a lamp I can leave on. Alisha Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk - now Free

[carusoam]

That pesky landing light fuse only lasted 40 years in my C... Probably the first reason I never flew at night... Followed by the bad aim of the light beam and the light strength and the time between replacements....

Leesh, you made a sound investment in the new light!

-a-

[kurtsnyder]

Thanks for that link, kurtsnyder! I ordered one and installed it yesterday in my '67 M20F. It works great! My initial motivation was that the switch fuse was blowing consistently after a few minutes (often on final). My A&P mentioned an LED lamp might prevent the need to change the fuse. I flew it for an hour and a half yesterday evening and the switch didn't blow.

Nice to have a lamp I can leave on.

Alisha

 

I'm glad it worked for you! I absolutely love mine. I installed it and then didn't have a chance to try it out. I was coming back to Nashville from Tampa about 3 weeks ago and ended up not getting home until 11pm. When I got on short final, I couldn't stop smiling at how much brighter the runway was with the new LED light. It was great!

 

I had a long talk with my A&P whether the 8 degree beam would be an issue since the incandescent are 10 degs. Neither of us thought it would be a problem. Sure enough, the new light seems to have a wider beam even than the old bulb and it's MUCH, MUCH brighter and lights farther.

 

We all need to keep in mind AC 23-27 when we're looking to replace things on our vintage birds. All these little things start adding up!