Underwater led's!!!

We just got the underwater led's in that we all ordered direct from China in the WW Group Buy! Looks like Ken land was wrong again! After all he said we could never get them!

Let's post pics here as we all install them! I'm going to start my install tomorrow!

Robert why did you go through all that trouble when the Malibu 9 LED's are cheaper, smaller, and brighter than those?

Spite is an amazing thing

Thanks Robert. Can't wait to get them.

My buddy has the Malibu lights on his boat and to be honest they aren't as bright and there only available in white. These lights come in white, blue, green, red, and yellow. Most of the lights we ordered where blue. With a few green, red, and white ones!

You rock Robert. Thanks again for letting us in on this buy

I got mine and they work great!!!

Wonder what the yellow would look like under water...

it would probably look yellowish!

I was wondering why it took Robert 10 minutes to post the pictures??? (look at clock in first picture and time on first post) hahaha Just messing with ya Rob!!!!!

Take picture of them in the water when you can. How many LED's are you putting on your boat?

Thanks robert for going to the trouble to get that group buy together. Anxiously awaiting my blue led's !!! slightly dreading the drill....

somehow i think i missed out is anyone planning on doing this again or did you happen to order extra thanks Robert for the info and getting them in thats awesome

Well i screwed up adding the lights for the order and neglected to order my lights!

Some members of the group buy where generous enough to offer me there lights but being there has been so much demand, I had 3 phone calls today from friends who missed out i'm going to order one more batch.

You would think a college graduate could handle simple addition! lol ( inside joke on that one but my buddies know the story and needless to say i'm an idiot) lol

If your interested in lights let me know by next friday and i guess we'll be doing group buy 2. I just ask you check my math because i really want to rock these lights on my boat too!

Robert, what is the scoop on the group buy? Cost details etc. is the original thread still around?

I might be interested...

Send me an email to robert@abilitygaragedoors.com and I can give you all that info. i have it saved in a email. Thanks robert

E-mail sent Robert.

Robert I still don't see how these could be brighter than the Malibu LED's with a lumens rating of like 750 compared to the malibu's at 1080 lumens. You sure your friend didn't have the 6 led's from malibu?

I think they look cool but I was just wondering how often you guys will or do actually use them?

I'm not sure what he had I just know he ordered his boat new last year and got the Malibu underwater light package. Couldn't tell you if it was 6 led's or 60 led's

Do the malibu lights come in different colors or just white? Because white was the only choice they gave him.

I have received about 20 emails, I well send the info out to all of you tonight I am trying to finish of the mailing of everyones lights right now from the previous group buy and do my grocery shopping then i'll respond to everyones emails and questions! Thanks robert

They only come in white which is the major downfall of them.

Okay, I mailed everyone's lights from the group buy number 1. I hope you don't mind but I sent your email address to UPS so they'll send you tracking info. I can now run to the grocery store and finish my errands, then we can get to all the info on the buy number two!

nu bu, I don't doubt there are brighter lights out there, for example the shadow casters which are truely amazing, but in my price range and desired color blue these lights represented the greatest value. Out of all the lights we ordered i believe only 3 where white. If white is the color some people are looking for I'm sure they'd appreciatte any info you could put on here for them.

And once again thanks need to go out to Grant West and Mike who tested all of the lights, with no compensation and little thanks, helping all of us on WakeWorld make an eduacated decsion as to what lights would work best for us.

Bye Bye Lights! All packed and heading out the door!

I even added the clock just for you David B., wonder if my uploading speed has increased? lol

Wow, 4 minutes David! And I managed to get 3 clocks in the picture too! lol

wooohooo!!!! Now that is business!!!!

nice granit pantry ! bling bling

how much were the LEDs?

I sent an email to everyone interested in the second group buy. If you didn't receive an email from me titled "Baller on a Budget Group Buy 2" please send me an email and i'll add you to the new contact list.
We are closing this group buy on july 24th so don't be late I really, really don't want to do this again! In fact i can guarantee I won't do this again as it requires more time then i really care to invest. personally i'd rather be on the water.
This is a factory direct group buy same as last time. If you require more help then these awesome forums on Wake World can provide you may want to buy your lights from a retail vendor who is charging a mark up and has a dedicated technical department to handle all your questions and concerns.
If you want to order with the group send me an email. robert@abilitygaragedoors.com

This goes for you to Johnny, quit calling me and follow the rules like everyone else! lol

Wake_addict thanks for the complement on the kitchen granit my father and i remodeled the kitchen ourselves and it only took 9 months! lol

Were getting faster, mom complained about the bathroom remodel taking two years! lol

In response to Nick's question of how much will we actually use them,
I know I will be using them quite a bit. We are usually out late on the water 1-2 times a week just because it is calm and the interior leds look sick...Can't wait to see how the underwaters look too. I still have to place some in my ventholes, but right now im at 10 interior and 7 cupholder ones, 2 underwater will compliment nicely

Well according to ups some of you guys have received you lights already. Lets see them pics guys!

And a side note. Why is it everytime I get the same questions? You mean the prices aren't for pairs? You mean I have to pay for shipping? You don't have them in stock? Give me a better price?

I remember last time why i said i'd never do this again! lol

So you mean to tell me nobody installed there lights this weekend?

No pics? No satisfaction from all the hard work and waiting?

You guys suck! lol

I guess you just ordered the lights to use them as paper weights! lol Mine are going on the second UPS re-delivers them.

As it turns out I guess I have lights! Wahoo! I had one person who never paid, and like an idiot I mailed the lights to them by mistake! Thanks goodness UPS allows you to stop a shipment and return it to the sender! So i'm playing the waiting game for my lights to arrive. The only thing that sucks is while I caught my mistake the next day, UPS still sent the lights all the way to Kansas before they turned them around and got them heading back to me! And even at this rate it looks like i might just have install pics up before you guys!

Lol, I was hoping to see a couple pics coming up on here but maybe its still early lol...I've ridden all weekend, and then riding again tomorrow...lol...They rescheduled my delivery dates on the lights again, so they won't be in until Thursday now. My buddy is planning on installing his Friday morning and HOPEFULLY mine will go on friday afternoon, I'm actually hoping for rain Friday to be able to work on it ..lol..
Good luck with everybody's installs

Greg, I'm begining to wonder if the first thing out of the UPS customer service reps mouth was what really happened not the second answer after he did more research! lol

Poor UPS driver, driving around San Jose looking for tennesse! lol

Haha Robert,
I'm, kinda thinking that too, especially since it showed out for delivery then back into the system with a re-scheduled date...if he keeps on that route I don't know if he will have much luck trying to find my area...Maybe he was looking for Tennessee Street in San Jose?? LOL

Robert, my lights are due here tomorrow and you can bet that I will be installing them ASAP with pictures. I hate waiting......

Ok, so I have a question, as I am waiting for my lights to come in. I went to Ace Hardware and found the 3M 5200 Sealant and it is showing for tack-less stick it needs 48 hours to cure, and 7 full days to completely cure. Can we use fast cure RTV silicone or anything else or is this pretty much what is going to be needed to use? I would like to use my boat within the 7 days of getting them installed LOL...honestly next day or day after would rock...thought I would see opinions of other options.

They make a fast cure 5200. You can get it any academy sports.

I found that they make that fast cure 5200, looks like lowes about 30 miles away is the only one that carries it. Never heard of any academy sports. Let's hope that the Lowes out there carries it. Takin back this non-fast cure stuff tomorrow.

I would shy away from using 5200, it will take gell coat off if you ever need to remove the light for some reason. 3M makes 4200, which is not as permanent, or you can use silicone, like they build aquariums with.

Geez, I used clear silicone caulk intended for bathrooms. Over a year later & they don't leak.
I think your over engineering it. You know what they say about KISS.

As long as it works and it doesnt leak, i'll use it Just want to make sure I'm doing it correctly.

Bill, did you bevel it out as well or just put the wire through and then stick the light to the boat? I am getting ahead of myself for sure, just wondering so that way when they arrive I will have it all laid out...

I installed the 6 LED Malibu lights. Drilled the screw holes with one size bit, the wire holes with another, and lightly touched the edges with a larger diameter bit to take the edge off. Caulked all 6 holes, inserted the wires & just before I put the light fixture up against the transom, one last dab of caulk over the wire hole. Then screwed them in place. Then hooked my wiring up to my interior LED circuit.
Done deal.

Maybe over engineering, but there is a reason most oem's all use 5200 on any hole in the hull.

Pictures...

I purchased 2 of these lights from Robert that were used as the test lights. I installed them on my boat and each one of them developed water behind the lens. What I found is the white calk they are using is poor and leaks. I pulled the lights apart and the calk was not dry, I dried out the water and resealed with engine silicone and they work great now. I am not bashing the lights in any way, I love them. I just would suggest that you pull the back cover off and reseal them before you use them in water because it will be much easier if you don't have to tear the lamp completely apart to dry them out. You could even just add a thin layer over top of the already exsiting calk without having to pull the back cover off. I wish I would have taken some pictures of the process when I did it. They are still worth the purchase for the price savings. It would not be hard to reseal them if you do it before they become damp inside.

By the way Robert, Thanks again. We did some night surfing and they made the wake glow like it was on fire. Didn't even have to use the tower lamps.
(Message edited by spherren on July 20, 2009)

(Message edited by spherren on July 20, 2009)

Been away from the Computer for a few days.

Sorry for the calls Robert, didn't want to get in trouble by the Group Buy Police. Email sent this morning, asked for a couple more baller 3's on top of the 4 baller 4's from the phone call.

Baller 4's? What are those Johnny? lol Go Back to bed!

Scooter, thats interesting. So they are sealed from behind? So just smearing, or laying a bead around the the rear cover well cure this? Sounds good. When you had the light open did it look like the lights were designed to handle water should they ever come in contact? Were the circuits covered in silicone or something? Thanks for the good tip! Especially going to be easy to do before you actually install it!

Glad to hear the lights worked out so well for surfing!

Mike, Thanks for the pictures too! What type of screw did you end up using?

Robert, when I took them apart there was the back cover which you can see the white caulking inbetween the cover and the actual housing. Inside there is another metal ring that the lamp are seated into, the circut board is sealed with epoxy but the front of the lamps are not. The second ring that the lamps are mounted in is really hard to get out cause it to is caulked into place. Im not sure that moisture in the lamp would be good at all. One of mine filled up completely. I would think it would be played out much safer to have them sealed better.

Then lens is sealed to the housing with clear silicone like used on fish tanks. When I took off the back cover, I found that the white caulk that was used was not cured. I would just take and smear a layer of good silicone over the white ring of caulking that is visable on the back of the lamp and around the hole where the wire passes through.

Ok, so Lights are supposed to come in tomorrow. I have a couple questions to be ready to install them tomorrow. I took some pics to get some ideas of where to mount my LEDS. I really only have one spot to mount them so guess its going to have to go there. Mine are going under my trailering hooks. Also, I wanted to know what gauge wire do I need to use. I was thinking 16 or 18ga wire or can I get away with a smaller wire? I am guessing that it doesnt come with mounting screws, so I also wanted to see what others use, what size and length of the screws used.
Can you tell im ready to put these on haha..

oops, here are the pics...

Crappy camera phone...

Scooter ! thanks for the heads up . mine finally came today.

Nedge, you are welcome. My lights rock!

I should have final install pictures by tomorrow night. I got them mounted and partially run. Will finish up tomorrow......

What size screws are you using? Anyone?

I was doing some research on back threads and somebody suggested 3/4 inch stainless pan head screws....is that an ok size to use.
Brad:
What size wire did you use?
They each use .6 amp.

I am using 18ga. wire to power them. I ran my wires up to the bottom of the deck and mounted the voltage regulators there. I put some dielectric grease in the connectors on the VR also to help with corrosion. I wanted to mount the VR's as high as I could as they dont look waterproof. I am pretty sure I used 1" #8 oval top SS screws. The dont sit all the way down in the beveled area on the light but the fill the hole up all the way. I put enough 5200 in the screw holes so that when I screwed them in there is a small ring of 5200 around the screw like a gasket so it looks good. Here are some install pictures.

Do we have to purchase voltage regulators too? I thought it was built in. I am just getting my list ready as I am installing mine today.

It depends on the light. The Baller 3's require a voltage regulator and come with it. The Baller 2's have an internal votage regulator. All you need to do is hook power up to them! You don't need to buy a voltage regulator for any of the lights!

Thanks for all the good install info. My lights well be here on wednesday. They went all the way to Oklahoma before being redirected back to me! I can't wait to put them on too!

Brad those Baller 3's look good. Thanks for the install tips too! What color where those again? And when might we see some pics of them on the water?

Greg, you haven't settled down one bit! lol You are more excited then I am to light up the water behind our boats! lol

They are the Green ones. I will have some pictures by late tonight. I was up late wiring in the switch last night. Tonight it goes back to the boathouse and on the lift. I will get a picture of the lights and the LED cupholder rings I got from you too. It should look pretty sick......

Everybody, thanks for the tips and installation helps...
I went to lowes and bought a pack of 6x3/4 Stainless Steel pan head screws for less than a buck, so here's to hoping they fit it properly, if not, another trip to lowes lol...
I was thinking that the baller 2's had internal regulators but then wasnt sure.
Robert, I can't believe they took them all the way to OK before turning them around. Though it may have been the same delivery ppl at the warehouse that decided to look for a Tennessee street in Ca, lol...
Also, haha, you know me Robert, another fun project fills my mind with stuff to do to the boat. I am def. excited about getting these installed and running and lighting up the water. Once I see what is in the lake I may want to turn them off haha..

Mikeski- How did the single light turn out? I would like to do the same and wonder if the light looks even? Also I have a friend with a yellow boat and I was wondering if any one used the yellow lights.

Thanks, Nick

does anybody know the diameter of the baller 2's?

3 5/8"

Alright here are the best that I could do. I was so excited to get it in the water I forgot the good camera. These are just iphone pictures.

Wow that looks cool! How'd the install go Brad?

Gonna be neat to see all the different colors lights with the different configurations! You installed two Baller 3's in Green right? Looks really bright!

The new group buy has red and yellow, colors I don't think anybody ordered the first go round. Be cool to see all the different color combo's!

Yes, baller 3's and they are crazy bright. They were not that bright out of the water but in they really shine. The install was pretty easy. The only hard part is making sure you got the holes in the right spot. All in all it only was about a 2-3 hour install. That was with my 3 year old taking my zip ties and make a play guns with them so I had climb out and get more every 20 minutes. Definately worth the time and money. I am so glad I got them.

Brad, wow, looks really good,
Me and my buddy worked on my boat and his Tige. Got both installed in about 2 hours. We just kept booking it and kept moving. I got mine wired and everything a little bit ago. Water test tomorrow so the 4200 cures a little. Oddly enough, one of the lights was wired incorrectly from the manuf. The Red was negative and black was hot. Made for a fun time of chasing down the issue after it was all wired. We pre-tested it and it worked and guess it must have been that way before I i missed it. Anyways, land pics, water pics tomm!
Robert, thanks again for giving us all the opportunity to get these! they are great

Lit up..First is my buddys Tige' and the other 2 are mine...

Greg! The UPS driver finally found TN? Not to bad considering he started searching in San Jose just a week ago! lol

Can't believe you guys installed the lights so quick! I do imagine from your posts you were probably waiting at the end of your drive with a screwdriver waiting for the UPS driver to pull in! lol Can't wait to see the pics on the water!

One question I have is why you mounted both lights so close to your I/O unit? Do you think your lower drive unit well block the light when you turn?

Robert,
Yup he found us finally. Actually he drove out of the neighborhood and turned around because he forgot to drop it off the first time. I was about to go off haha...Yeah, we boogied and got them installed mounted wired, etc pretty much an hour after they came in. Haha thought, I could see me sitting there with holes pre drilled and screwdriver ready to go as he drops them off lol..
I didnt want to mount them so close to the I/O unit but unfortunately I didnt have a choice. It curves outwards to the sides and I couldnt mount them there...I wanted on the extreme outsides but both sides are fiberglassed really well and very thick, so I couldnt get through to pull the wire up. Did find out my hull is about 3-4 inches thick though lol....Once the motor is dropped I dont think it will be a problem at all. When we were testing on land last night, I dropped the motor a little and it got alot brighter....that lower units hides away under the water so I think they will shine just right....I dont think it will block it at all since the only thing in front when turning would be a small piece at the top visible...
We will see tonight or tomorrow night though

Btw Robert,
It was a super easy install. Biggest thing was just the wiring. 3/16 hole to drill for the wire, and I used #6 3/4" Stainless Steel Pan Head screws and they fit perfect. Make sure to use some adhesive. The 4200 worked great. Buy a small amount if possible, we bought the 3fl oz tube and maybe used a quarter on 2 boats and they were coated with it...

So, we got rained out yesterday, and the day before. We got out today, but only got an hour after dark due to rain again! We grabbed a pic on the camera phone...the digital camera was dead...of course lol...hopefully more pictures will be coming...

Looks cool Greg! Like a blue volcano! lol

Those were the baller 2's right?

I was going to install my lights today but a few buddies showed up and instead of enlisting them to help with the install we went riding! lol

Guess I'll have to install them in the morning. I'll try to put a few pics of the install up too!

Robert,
Yeah, its like a blue volcano or blue flames...its pretty bright and id say we probably got about 15ft out with em due to our lake being pretty green....
I had (2) baller 2's and the 4200 sealer works well. It does not leak or anything and they are on there very good.
Good luck with your install and let me know how it goes!
I realized I need more leds inside, so I think im wiring for more of those tonight..lol..

Well I began my install today!

First thing I did was remove the floor in the back to see what was behind where I was drilling! Found a pump for the ballast tank and some lines! So I was extra careful drilling.



After I had an idea of what I was drilling into I made a template of the back of my hull. Wanted to make sure my lights were even on both sides.



I marked the holes and checked the back side again! As you can see there are two holes marked. The first set of holes put the lights to close to the stringers the motor cradle sits on.



I then drilled the center hole for the lights wire with a 3/16's bit. Wires fit like a glove! After drilling the hole I counter sunk it, don't want anymore cracks!



I then grabbed the light and re-sealed the back of the light. Not really sure it's necassary buy one WakeWorlder did mention it as a good idea, and being most of the advice on here is good I decided to take it! I didn't open the light up or anything, I just layed another bead across the factory seam!



I then installed the light by adding silicone to the hole and wire and putting it up. An extra hand would have worked great at this point or even tape but I did the one handed install. Won't be doing that on the other side! I predrilled all the screw holes with a 9/64's bit, with the 1/8 inch hole the screw heads were wanting to bend? 9/64's and they fit like a glove. I also applied silicone to the threads of all the screws before installing them.



Here is what the light looked like powered up in front of the garage.



I still have to install the other side, and run permanent wiring to a switch on the dash.

Hopefully this weekend I can get some time on the water after dark!

Installed mine today!




(Message edited by ajholt7 on July 28, 2009)

Robert, Looking real good so far...Im sure you cant wait to test them out. I was so happy when we finally got to see them lit up at night in the water. I am hoping we can again this Friday and maybe ill have another boat out there so I can take some pictures from another view.

I just got in on the second group buy.. So do you just hook the wires up to any power wire and switch??

I guess you could hook it up to a exisiting switrch for your interior lights or something. I'm hooking mine up to an existing switch that is not being used.

Adam. Whats with the gravel on the trailer? Do you have to weight the trailer down so it doesn't float away? lol

Can't wait Greg. Be cool to see some more pics. I'm ripping the interior out of my boat to fix a leak on a ballast tank so not sure when I'll get a chance to fire them up in the water. All the lakes real close to me close before sunset!