G'day everyone! Thought I would join this as I am getting more into shooting as I get better at shooting! I hale from the Vic southern mallee and enjoy spotlighting and sitting off warrens and pingin off rabbits as they poke their heads out! I am using a .17HMR and I love it! Will be getting some more firepower later on if the harvest is OK but for now it's great.
I am also looking for some advice from anyone in the know about through the roof spotlights. I am going to put one on my cruiser and am looking for a good light but not wanting to pay a mint for it. Was thinking about a powabeam spotlight but was wanting to put a lightforce handle on it. Is this possible advisable?
Anyhoo Just got back in from a look about tonight and did nail a fox and a rabbit Bloody fox came runnning out of the houseyard about 20mins after I went out looking for the bugger! She want be annoying the dog anymore!
With regard to the lights i think james270 might be your man when it comes to spotlights as he has a tidy collection. I havent used a poerbeem but they seem very well made and i would imagine hold up to a permanent mount better then a lightforce etc. As for interchangable handles im not sure its possible. Also from what i have heard the powabeem has a better system for mounting and a more consistent resistance to movement etc. Some people have issues with the lightforce being overly loose/tight.
GriMo wrote:
With regard to the lights i think james270 might be your man when it comes to spotlights as he has a tidy collection. I havent used a poerbeem but they seem very well made and i would imagine hold up to a permanent mount better then a lightforce etc. As for interchangable handles im not sure its possible. Also from what i have heard the powabeem has a better system for mounting and a more consistent resistance to movement etc. Some people have issues with the lightforce being overly loose/tight.
MISSED and I have a fair collection of lights between us and have used both Lightforce and Powabeam mounts. IMHO the Powabeam is a much better design. As Grimo said the Lightforce ones always seem to be either too loose or too tight. The handles on the Powabeam setups a better to use as well, especially for a long nights spotlighting.
I'm defiantly a Powerbeam man, have had a 9" Powerbeam spotty for many years (10 or more). It lived a fair amount of its time on an old Nissan with Lightforce handle, have now swapped over to a Powerbeam handle and the old light on my cruiser.
As said the Lightforce handle just didn't cut the mustard as far as ability to hold the light, either to loose or would freeze/lock up.
The new Powerbeam handle is great, holds well and it is one of the fold up ones so you don't bang your head when you get it and out, very very important imho .
If i was going to buy a hand held one just for poking out the car window then i would go for a 170 Lightforce, nice n light being plastic and i reckon it doesn't bang your interior up as much. For extended outside hanging onto the roof i would go another Powerbeam if i needed one.
Cheers for the advice fellas! Seems as though I will have to go all powabeam then! I mainly shoot alone as the old fella is not really up to goin out chasin the reddogs now so a roof mount is what I need. Hate those suction cap bastards as a mate has one and it comes loose 5-6 times a night. Also after my little look tonight mt hand was numb by the time I got one! Not doing too bad here atm. 4 this week all within 3km of the house! no wonder the chooks look nervous! The one tonight would have to be up there with the best of the shots I have done at night. Will step it out tomorrow but I reckon it was about the 150m while holding a bloody handheld spotty. Didn't go and look for him tonight due to hypothermia but I did heard that nice thud/pop sound of the vmax hitting head!
Just one other thing. Would it be wise to have the light permanently hooked up to the batteriy or should I have a kill switch in there somwhere? It will stay on the ol crusier so I don't want to be using alligator clips or lighter plug crap.
Thanks for the welcome fellas! Will be on here a bit methinks!
Mate the hardest but probably best way would be hooking up a relay. Have a little two way switch on your dash or some such, wire a fuse in and you should be good. It might not be 100% needed but gives you a little bit more safety having a fuse in there and its not an overly complicated task provided you can find a convenient place to install a switch / steal power from under the dash.
Bloody fox came runnning out of the houseyard about 20mins after I went out looking for the bugger! She want be annoying the dog anymore!
.
Also after my little look tonight mt hand was numb by the time I got one! Not doing too bad here atm. 4 this week all within 3km of the house! no wonder the chooks look nervous! The one tonight would have to be up there with the best of the shots I have done at night. Will step it out tomorrow but I reckon it was about the 150m while holding a bloody handheld spotty. Didn't go and look for him tonight due to hypothermia but I did heard that nice thud/pop sound of the vmax hitting head!