LED Strobes/ Nav Lights

I would like to hear from others what they have found for Nav Lights and strobes. I developed a beacon for the top of my vertical stab which should work well... http://www.azshowersolutions.com/Vertical_Stab7.html
Before I dive into my McGiver box of tricks, it would be great if there was something out there already designed. I know there are some out there, however, I'm not up for paying $600 for the pair. I made my tail beacon to avoid Whellen's inflated prices (made it for less than $40) and I'll do it again unless I find an alternative. Someone on the RV site used to sell LED kits, but I'm not sure that they would work out on the wingtips of the Kitfox. Any ideas would be appreciated.
Thanks,

Dan,

I've already started a load planning spreadsheet for my Super Sport and realized that one of the early decisions builders will need to make is whether to live with the capacity of the 912's internal alternator which will only provide 18 amps max, 14 amps continuous, or to add the optional 40 amp alternator at nearly $1,000 and have all the power you want. I'm still pondering this issue and have not decided pending further investigation but would love to avoid the cost and weight of the external alternator.

I've identified some lighting options as follows...

Here are the CreativAir LED kits that you're referring to...
http://www.creativair.com/index.php?...8a5ccf36c89abf
Looks like they now have a strobe option which is new. I have not yet assessed the light output or anything, but this looks to be an affordable option.

AeroPULSAR from AeroLEDs
http://www.aeroleds.com/index.php?ma...=index&cPath=6
This company is located in Boise and the new kit, which is not yet available, looks like a good, if expensive, solution at $649 for nav and strobes.

AveoFlash from AveoEngineering in Eastern Europe...

Looks to be in the same price range as the AeroPULSAR setup, sold in the US through Aircraft Spruce

Kuntzleman Electronics...
http://www.kestrobes.com/
Looks like one could put together a combination of nav and strobe lights from this line too, haven't checked the prices yet.




Lastly, I haven't yet decided whether to install landing light(s) or not, still need to get a better handle on my total electrical load first.

I'm willing to bet that Rotax uses a standard automotive alternator of some kind. I refuse to believe that ANY alternator is worth $1000! What we really need is a mounting bracket and a good quality Japanese alternator.

Good Morning..

We (Kitfox Aircraft) are distributors for both the Aero Pulsar and the GS-Air... We have had the Proto-Type Aero Pulsars on the factory aircraft since July and they are a nice unit with a clever install. The new lenses are very clear although the proto-type ones need to be replaced. The non-Tso'd units are $650...

GS-Air is sending us a set of proto-types as well.. should be here next week. Will let you know what we find out.

Hello Everyone,

I just joined this forum, and am available to answer any questions you might have about our products.

Dean Wilkinson
CTO, AeroLEDs LLC

Dean,
Welcome, it is great to have manufacturing reps on the site. I bought a pair of your wing-tip nav/strobes, my plane is not flying yet but they work great in the shop.

Welcome Dean. Enjoy the site.

Hi Dean and welcome to the site. I was looking on the Vans Site recently and noticed a post you made there. It had some great shots of your nav-lights as well as landing lights taken at AirVenture this year. I enjoyed seeing them and wondered if you could place those here as well? I know most are shots of RV's but it could give some ideas to the Kitfox community as well. Thanks

Dan,

It appears that I am limited to four photos per post, so I will have to submit several posts to show you these pictures:

This is the AeroLEDs 1600 installed in the Remos GX:
http://www.razorsedgesoft.com/Remos1600_1.JPG
http://www.razorsedgesoft.com/Remos1600_2.JPG
Here is the new Pulsar NS90 installed in a newly completed RV8:
http://www.razorsedgesoft.com/PulsarNS90PortRV8.jpg
http://www.razorsedgesoft.com/Pulsar...arboardRV8.jpg
Here is a short video clip of the Pulsar NS90:
http://www.razorsedgesoft.com/PulsarNS90RV8.MP4
Here is a video clip of Aveo strobes on the Dynali helicopter and the My Sky MSONE:
http://www.razorsedgesoft.com/AveoDy...oLEDsMySky.MP4

This is the My Sky One with the Pulsar EXP and Sunlite:
http://www.razorsedgesoft.com/MySkyMSONE1.JPG
http://www.razorsedgesoft.com/MySkyMSONE2.JPG
http://www.razorsedgesoft.com/MySkyMSONE3.jpg
Here is a video on the My Sky website that shows the Sunlite wig-wag and Pulsar EXP in flight:

http://www.mysky.aero/video-takeoff-...aft-msone.html

Here are some other pics as well... Also there is no power external power supply needed.. just wire, switch and fuse.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by mickey

I'm willing to bet that Rotax uses a standard automotive alternator of some kind..

---

Mickey - For what it is worth - I have and use the 40 amp aux alternator - I could be wrong; however, the alternator looks an awful lot lot like the Nippo Denso unit on a 84 Toyota pickup except for a different driven pulley and the alternator housing rotated 90 degrees. There is more to it than the alternator, mount and belt though - the drive pulley is a three piece unit composed of the sheave screwed to split plates so that the pulley can be slipped over the prop flange, assembled to the split hub behind the prop flange and then held together to the back side of the prop flange with the collar nuts anchoring the prop bolts - I am betting the machine work going into the drive pulley accounts for a considerable amount of the cost of the aux alternator kit in addition to the mount and brackets - the whole works does fit well :) under the series 7 cowl - but then there is the extra weight issue.


Dave S

I will be building an S7 SS (the kit is on order). Since I will be attending AirVenture next week, I thought I'd try to purchase a nav/strobe lighting system while I'm there, because sometimes the vendors offer show specials and free shipping. I have been looking online at both the AeroLED and the AveoFlash LSA systems. It appears that the AveoFlash system has been further improved since their original system came out. It appears to be slightly lower in weight, and if I am reading the technical information correctly, it may use slightly less amperage than the AeroLED system. Also, it is about $155 cheaper than the AeroLED system. Does anyone have any current experience with both systems? Is there any good reason not to consider the AveoFlash system over the AeroLED system? I'd appreciate any guidance you can offer.

First I have the Aeroled system and it seems to work well, as for the answer you didn't ask for I would wait on this purchase. Unless you are a speed builder there will likely be another Oshkosh (or 2 or more) before you are done and there may well be continued development in these technologies. In general don't buy the techy bits until you need them (including radios, gps systems and other "glass" stuff)
I know, 2 cents you didn't ask for.

Dvanlanen, You're a ways off on needing the Led system. I'd probably wait until closer in the build to needing them. Things are changing quickly in that industry. Led products are rapidly improving. AeroLED's are great and the company is easy to deal with. Kitfox Aircraft are dealers and will be at Oshkosh so you could get their impressions of the systems.

Congrats. on your 7 Super Sport order. You're going to love flying it.

Steve,

Thanks for your suggestion to wait on purchasing tech items until needed. It makes sense. But in this case I expect to be building the wings as one of my first steps, so wouldn't I need to install the lights before cover?

Thanks,
Dave

If you build with removable wingtips (I believe thats recommend), you can install lights easily at any time.

Good point, but I would need to at least install the wire in the wing before covering, if I want to properly secure the wire along its route through the wing. The only risk there would be that I might install the incorrect wire for a lighting system that I purchase at a future point in time(?)

Wings seem to be the first item everyone wants to build but my experience shows they probably should be about the last. Usually they get covered and hung up in the shop/hangar for 1 to 2 years or longer all the time prone to damage and many do suffer some damage. Fuselages take the bulk of the building time. Easily wheeled out of harms way when time to build the wings. Wings have suffered drop damage, vermin damage, overspray, burned fabric from grinding or welding near by ect. You get the picture.
Some builders have had to move several times during their builds and the wings again the most fragile part gets subject to possible damage during transport. If you want experience in covering you can always start with the elevator, rudder and horizontal stabilizer. Smaller parts and easier to redo if you don't like the results. Van's always starts out new builders with the vertical stabilizer to gain experience. We can do the above mentioned items at less risk than something large and fabric consuming like the wings. You'll be practiced and good at covering by the time they come around in the build process. Gives you time to sweat learning the rib stitching knot. ;) Something to think about.

theres not much you can do to secure the wiring . it runs inside the aft spar . when i aquired my kit the wings were already covered and there was a pull cord in the aft spars tied off at both ends . when i installed the wiring for the strobes and nav lites i put them in that black split flexiable conduit to protect them in the spar . maybe yours will be different .
good luck with the project , youll certainly learn a lot

I didn't realize that the wiring is routed through the rear spar, but in thinking about it, that makes sense, since the rear spars are the pivot points for the folding wings.
Thanks to everyone for their helpful advice. I'll hold off on purchasing the lighting.

The best thing is to come by our booth at Oshkosh and see our products. There is a lot of engineering that goes into making an all LED position/strobe light that actually meets the TSO requirements for light output and DO-160 test requirements. Our products are rugged and high quality and will last a long time without any maintenance. We have submitted our TSO applications to the FAA for the Suntail and Pulsar NS series lights and are hoping to have them approved by August.

We will be having some show specials and a "scratch and dent" sale, so if you are price sensitive, you might find a deal that is to your liking. Also, a pair of our LED nav/strobe lights is less than the cost of a Xenon/Halogen set of traditional Whelen lights by the time you include the strobe power supply.

I have measured a light from one of our competitors that claims it meets the TSO light output (all over their fancy box and glossy instruction sheet), but found that it did not. The forward candela intensity requirement for red and green position lights is a minimum of 40 candela, but the particular units I measured were only around 10 candela. The AeroLEDs Pulsar NS series are up around 100 candela in the forward direction so they are well above the minimum requirement.

Dean Wilkinson
CTO, AeroLEDs LLC

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by DanB

I would like to hear from others what they have found for Nav Lights and strobes. I developed a beacon for the top of my vertical stab which should work well.

---

Dan,

What did you make your beacon out of? Descrete led's?

Pete, Sorry I can't find the vendor URL.

I bought my kit in '97 and I am hopefully about to get it done. At the time I bought the Whelen wingtip lights and strobes. The NAV lights alone used about 6 amps. I just recently replaced all the NAV bulbs with plug compatible LEDs and that dropped to less than 1 amp! My original power budget had no slack when flying at night without the landing light. Now I am in great shape. I have an overhead unit with map lights that I have also converted to LEDs. My post lights are still incandescent but their wattage is low and they are connected to a variable voltage dimmer so LED's won't work there.

Soon I'll be looking for some sort of LED landing/taxi light that will work in the nose of my IV. If any of you have any suggestions . . I'm listening. Also any suggestions on a good place to mount it in an aircraft with the bump cowl and air scoop?

henrysamson- check out our website sponsors AeroLed's site.

Great products and really super people to deal with. I have their Sunlite's in my model 4 wing tips. Click on video of my model 4 with AeroLed's installed and operating - http://youtu.be/2pJKs8X5ag0
Love the wig wag feature and they use so much less power than the 55 watt halogen's I removed to install the AeroLed's. Their microsun's would be a great choice too.

Henry,

Your best options are the Sunray Plus (currently available):

Which puts out a very tight beam at 30,000 peak candela on 10 Watts of power.

Or our new Sunbeam which puts out a very tight beam at 60,000 peak candela on 25 Watts of power (equivalent to two Sun Ray Plus units in a single light).

The Sunbeam will be available very soon, and measures 4" by 2.75" by 1.4" deep.

Dean Wilkinson
AeroLEDs LLC

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by henrysamson

I bought my kit in '97 and I am hopefully about to get it done. At the time I bought the Whelen wingtip lights and strobes. The NAV lights alone used about 6 amps.

---

Here is a sneak peak at the Sunbeam:

http://www.razorsedgesoft.com/sunbeam_angle.jpg

I'm still looking for led lights small enough to fit in my airscoop. I found these on ebay and was wondering if anyone has any experience with this type of light.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/400252975296...ht_6885wt_1042

Taxi lights? maybe, but with a 60 deg viewing angle and relatively low output power they'd definitely be out of the running as landing lights.

-- Paul S

I believe John at the factory has the Microsun lights in the air scoop on his Super Sport 7 demo plane. He said it has not caused any cooling problems.

Jim

That's a good point about the 60 degree angle. Although I find the 10 degree angle of many landing lights way too narrow. I'm hoping it has a bright core. My main concern with having a landing light is the possibility of an off field landing during night x-country flying. I usually don't use them for landing at night.

The light output is similar, perhaps even a little higher than the small aeroled light. It does not have the blinking feature but I'm not interested in that.

If I give a couple of them a try, I'll let you know how it goes.

Henry