Compartment Lights

[Bender]

I was picking up a few things at the local auto parts store and found some LED "racing" lights on clearance. I planned on adding compartment lights in the future but these were really cheap. Got brackets done and installed tonight:













And had one left so I put that under the console:



The switches are sort of hidden under the console until I can get real Stratos rocker switches to match the others and figure out where to put them. Now a keel protector is next on the list and I will have most of the things done to the boat that I want to do.

[bcklash]

Looks good Bender--I like

[Abbeysdad]

Nice. Do you do a fair amount of night fishing? (newbie leary of staying out on the lake after dark [and seeing the bread crumbs to find my way back]).

[Bender]

No, not usually or as much as I should. Unless you really know the lake, you need a GPS to find your way back easily. I do however come in right as the sun is going down now and put things away and clean up in the dark. Also I used to fish a weeknight league and the weigh-ins were generally after dark. I added livewell lights a long time ago and those make getting fish out 1000 times easier in the dark.

[BigBassin144]

Bender, those look great. I'm sure they'll help a ton when putting grear away in the dark.

BB

[Abbeysdad]

Originally Posted by Bender

No, not usually or as much as I should. Unless you really know the lake, you need a GPS to find your way back easily. I do however come in right as the sun is going down now and put things away and clean up in the dark. Also I used to fish a weeknight league and the weigh-ins were generally after dark. I added livewell lights a long time ago and those make getting fish out 1000 times easier in the dark.

Ah - I hear you, I've been in the same situation several times and lights would come in handy...think I might have a couple of other things a bit higher on my wish list, but lights would be handy...even if just to light up the main deck. Are the lights 'stuck on' or screwed in? Did you put each light on it's own switch? Seems like it would be a fair amount of wiring?

[Bender]

The console light is one one switch and the others are all together on another switch. The wiring was pretty easy, I just had to drill a small hole between each compartment. Just take the red and black wires and tape them together then put that end in a drill and hold onto the other to twist them up so they are easier to manage. Then make runs between each light and use butt splices to tie them together. The gunnel is open to a hole under the console where the fuse panel is so that was easy too. I'll try to get a pic of the switches, but I would like to move them.

[Culln5]

Looks good. I do a fair amount of night fishing but my lights are very handy when preparing to fish in the morning and when comming off the lake at night. You really don't know how much you would use them until you actually have them.

[MississippiBoy]

Culln, that 3rd pic, the one showing the deck lights, is just plain sexy...

[Culln5]

Thanks MB.... I posted some pics before (http://www.bassfishin.com/bassfishin...ad.php?t=21510).

Bender, are they like driving lights on a bracket?

[Bender]

Yes, the big one in the center compartment is so it was really easy to mount. The others had a piece of double sided tape on the top. I had to cut some steel and epoxy up under the lip so that there was a flat surface to mount them to.
I do have Blue Water LEDs in my livewell and they are a lot better suited to the boat, I had to seal these all up before installing. Do you have any pics of the deck lights on your boat with them off? My gunnels are really low and I would like to see how they can be mounted. That might be a good winter project for me.

[Culln5]

The light itself is 1/2" wide and is adhered to the gunnell (or wherever you decide) by 3M adhesive. They can be placed just about anywhere you can run wire to. You can send me an email anytime if you like.