I just recieved my Zheng 16" Off Road lightbar. I will be doing this review in 3 parts, Part 1 is initial thoughts, Part 2 is going to be night comparisons, between factory headlights on a 2009 Ram, the off road light bar, and a pair of Hellas.
Part 1:
Title/Name of item - 16" Off Road Lightbar
Manufacturer - Zheng Liyue
Model Number - n/a
Link to manufacturer -http://elightbars.org/forums/f13/16-9000-lumens-off-road-lightbar-35329/
How/why you got it - I purchased this light because I wasn't happy with the performance of the Hellas. They are too directionally focused, which doesn't allow me to watch the ditches for moose. Moose are the #1 cause of fatal accidents in Newfoundland.
Purpose/Description - This light was custom made for me with 6 (a), 15 ( B) and 30 9© degree optics. The bar is set up as follows: c b a b c. This light will be mounted on the front of my truck to replace the Hellas that I have, provided night time shots show a distinct improvement. I don't need the throw of the Hellas, although it is nice, I need a more wide spread light. I briefly tested it by shining the light on the wall, and the spread does appear better. I noticed some minor issues with the light, which will be illustrated in the pictures below. I am being extremely picky, because this is a honest review...I did not receive a terribly good deal on the bar, but as MSRP is not yet posted, Zheng asked me to keep the price between him and I.
Pros:
-well packaged, wrapped in about 10 feet of bubble wrap, covered in wrapping paper, and every inch of it was taped. There was no way the light could fall out of the package.
-Appears to be a solid construction (body and mounting feet)
-very bright, too bright to look at, it overwhelmed by Canon Rebel T3i DSLR camera
-long wire, approx 10'
Cons
-rear heat sink is not supported in the middle of the light
-white silicone used instead of clear, not evenly applied.
-wire is black and brown, not the standard black and red
-attached L brackets are secured with just a nut, no lock washer
-LED lenses are black and white, not consistent
Part 1 rating
Rating (1-10, 10 is best)
Durability 6 - concerned about heat sinks vibrating and failing long term
Performance/Usefulness 8
Innovation 7 - I'll give credit for the external heatsinks for the high powered LEDs
Appearance 4 - the different colour lenses make it lose a lot of points, as well as the silicone.
Price n/a
Other (shipping) 9
Total 7
Overall, this light looks like it'll do the job. Review Part 2 will give the rest of the details on light output, and Part 3 will look into it's durability over a 6900km/4300 mile road trip.
Packaging:
Package opened, you can see the lense colours on this picture
You can see the silicone here:
Heat sink:
Light on, aimed directly at camera:
Part 1:
Title/Name of item - 16" Off Road Lightbar
Manufacturer - Zheng Liyue
Model Number - n/a
Link to manufacturer -http://elightbars.org/forums/f13/16-9000-lumens-off-road-lightbar-35329/
How/why you got it - I purchased this light because I wasn't happy with the performance of the Hellas. They are too directionally focused, which doesn't allow me to watch the ditches for moose. Moose are the #1 cause of fatal accidents in Newfoundland.
Purpose/Description - This light was custom made for me with 6 (a), 15 ( B) and 30 9© degree optics. The bar is set up as follows: c b a b c. This light will be mounted on the front of my truck to replace the Hellas that I have, provided night time shots show a distinct improvement. I don't need the throw of the Hellas, although it is nice, I need a more wide spread light. I briefly tested it by shining the light on the wall, and the spread does appear better. I noticed some minor issues with the light, which will be illustrated in the pictures below. I am being extremely picky, because this is a honest review...I did not receive a terribly good deal on the bar, but as MSRP is not yet posted, Zheng asked me to keep the price between him and I.
Pros:
-well packaged, wrapped in about 10 feet of bubble wrap, covered in wrapping paper, and every inch of it was taped. There was no way the light could fall out of the package.
-Appears to be a solid construction (body and mounting feet)
-very bright, too bright to look at, it overwhelmed by Canon Rebel T3i DSLR camera
-long wire, approx 10'
Cons
-rear heat sink is not supported in the middle of the light
-white silicone used instead of clear, not evenly applied.
-wire is black and brown, not the standard black and red
-attached L brackets are secured with just a nut, no lock washer
-LED lenses are black and white, not consistent
Part 1 rating
Rating (1-10, 10 is best)
Durability 6 - concerned about heat sinks vibrating and failing long term
Performance/Usefulness 8
Innovation 7 - I'll give credit for the external heatsinks for the high powered LEDs
Appearance 4 - the different colour lenses make it lose a lot of points, as well as the silicone.
Price n/a
Other (shipping) 9
Total 7
Overall, this light looks like it'll do the job. Review Part 2 will give the rest of the details on light output, and Part 3 will look into it's durability over a 6900km/4300 mile road trip.
Packaging:
Package opened, you can see the lense colours on this picture
You can see the silicone here:
Heat sink:
Light on, aimed directly at camera:
