**This Same post is also on GMTNation under my account MikeJunior
Email:
msrobertjr@gmail.comAfter installing 50" LED light bars on a couple of my friend's trucks using aftermarket brackets and seeing how well they perform, I knew I had to have one for my Trailblazer. Only issue was that there are no aftermarket brackets designed to mount a light bar to the roof of a Trailblazer...So I decided to design and build my own. The brackets turned out very well and are very solid. Compared to some aftermarket brackets I have seen that are not very solid and allow the light bar to bounce quite a bit, these brackets don't budge.
***My friend and I are considering starting a small business, and depending on the response to these brackets, we would like to produce and sell them. So please respond and tell us what you think so we can see if this is a viable option and how many people may be interested in a set. They would be sold as a complete package including hardware and instructions. These brackets are designed for use with a curved light bar, a straight light bar will contact the roof in the middle.
Bracket Details:
1.Made of 1/8 inch thick 5052 aluminum sheet
2.Painted in spray on bedliner
3.designed to mount a 50 inch CURVED LED light bar across top of windshield
4.Mount using one existing screw as a locating point, and 3 new self-tapping screws
5.tuck behind the weather strip at top of windshield
6.width between brackets is 50"
Possible concerns:
1.I bought the typical cheap light bar from ebay. At medium to high speeds the bar made this really loud high pitched resonance. I tested the bar in several locations and distances from the windshield and could not get it to stop. I did some research online and realized that it is Not necessarily result of placement but that the cooling fins on the back of the bar were vibrating due to air flow, and would happen no matter where I placed it. Apparently there are rubber islolators that you can buy which insert between the fins to stop this vibration. I cannot say for sure why only my bar made this noise, because two of my friends have light bars, both in almost identical positions, and neither of them have this issue. I simply placed small lengths of tubing between the fins about every 8 inches, and it solved the issue. From what I have read online and tested this is an issue with the light bar itself.
2.Is there wind noise?... Simple answer is yes. But it is not at all bad, and is to be expected if you are mounting a light bar or any other item to your roof. It is something I have already gotten use to, and it can not be heard with the radio on. The benefits of the light bar make it worth some wind noise.
3.The seam that the door seal slips over must be bent outward because the width of the bracket prevents the seal from slipping back on the seam.
4.Some people complain about hood and windshield glare with roof mounted light bars. The placement of the light bar with these brackets and the fact that our hoods slope down quite a bit, with proper aiming I have not had an issue with glare
- side view bracket
- bracket
- front view day
- night
Low Beams Only
- low
Low & High Beams (quad headlight mod)
- high
Low & High Beams AND LIGHT BAR
- full