Sooo i just bought 409 dollars worth of lights :D
#22
Hey Mohawk, If you get an actual HID kit that comes with ballasts you will not burn out you switch or anything else for that matter. An actual HID kit that comes with ballasts, the ballast is powered by your headlamp harness and not the bulb itself, therefore there is no serious draw on your switch.
You're right, it should not burn out the switch, but your reasoning is off.
The reason that HID conversion kits (they should all include ballasts) shouldn't burn out your switch is not because of the ballasts, but because they draw less current overall than normal halogen bulbs. You may still need to wire them up so they draw current straight from the battery (with relays to the headlamp switch) because the HIDs do require a greater initial startup power than the stock halogen bulbs. However, you may not. Some trucks need it, others don't. I'd try it plug and play first, and only relay it if necessary.
I'll be ordering my HIDs sometime here relatively soon from the same company Viper got his. I really disliked that guy, but he did know his stuff when it came to lights.
#23
The 3rd gen guys go crazy with this company.
#24
Don't worry your not being a dick. However, I would tend to think that my Masters degree in Electrical Engineering would lead me to believe that I do have a clue when it comes to electricity. I am also a licensed Master Electrician who happens to run his own electrical contracting business. A ballast is nothing more than a transformer and capacitor assembly that takes a lower voltage and transforms it to a much higher voltage( some are dc to dc, some ac to dc and dc to ac) and it is stored and used as necessary by the component that is drawing the current. The bulb actually uses a much higher voltage than your electrical system could provide. The ballast takes the 12 volts(+ or -) and transforms it to the higher voltage in order to excite the lamp to give you light. It is the same principle that is used in Metal Halide/Mercury vapor, or Sodium lamps and more commonly "flourescent" lights which are actually lamps filled with gas which is Mercury vapor and Argon. Here are two decent descriptions of how they work. Oh and I just learned something myself in that they(Xenon lamps) ARE Metal Halide lamps with a few other gases added to the mix in order to create the XENON lamp. The other thing that seems to be confused often is that most people thing the higher the Kelvin temperature the brighter they are which is wrong. the lower the Kelvin temperature the brighter they are, however the added colors to some of them like yellow or blue allow your eyes to see more clarity in objects. I don't mean to be a dick either but when it comes to electricity and electronic components I know my stuff. If you have any questions feel free to ask.
http://ezinearticles.com/?What-Is-Xe...ght?&id=800732
http://www.howstuffworks.com/framed....%7Edon/d2.html
http://ezinearticles.com/?What-Is-Xe...ght?&id=800732
http://www.howstuffworks.com/framed....%7Edon/d2.html
Last edited by speeddemon31176; 06-13-2009 at 04:01 AM. Reason: Edited for clarity.
#25
#26
Don't worry your not being a dick. However, I would tend to think that my Masters degree in Electrical Engineering would lead me to believe that I do have a clue when it comes to electricity. I am also a licensed Master Electrician who happens to run his own electrical contracting business. A ballast is nothing more than a transformer and capacitor assembly that takes a lower voltage and transforms it to a much higher voltage( some are dc to dc, some ac to dc and dc to ac) and it is stored and used as necessary by the component that is drawing the current. The bulb actually uses a much higher voltage than your electrical system could provide. The ballast takes the 12 volts(+ or -) and transforms it to the higher voltage in order to excite the lamp to give you light. It is the same principle that is used in Metal Halide/Mercury vapor, or Sodium lamps and more commonly "flourescent" lights which are actually lamps filled with gas which is Mercury vapor and Argon. Here are two decent descriptions of how they work. Oh and I just learned something myself in that they(Xenon lamps) ARE Metal Halide lamps with a few other gases added to the mix in order to create the XENON lamp. The other thing that seems to be confused often is that most people thing the higher the Kelvin temperature the brighter they are which is wrong. the lower the Kelvin temperature the brighter they are, however the added colors to some of them like yellow or blue allow your eyes to see more clarity in objects. I don't mean to be a dick either but when it comes to electricity and electronic components I know my stuff. If you have any questions feel free to ask.
Laramie, as far as that site goes... that figures that many 3rd gens would be all over it, being its at almost $300! Holy crap.
http://www.ddmtuning.com/index.php?p...=101&parent=85
This place has them for just over $100 shipped.
EDIT: Or, if you don't mind a 1 year warranty rather than Lifetime, they also have their "Raptor" brand HID kits for well under $100.
http://www.ddmtuning.com/index.php?p...=102&parent=85
Last edited by jasonw; 06-13-2009 at 03:51 PM.
#27
Oh ok then. I apologize. Oh yeah they only draw a maximum of 8 amps which is way less than the 20 amp circuit should be able to handle. That kind of a current draw is way below what the headlight switch is currently being subjected to by standard Halogen lights. I guess what I am saying is that if you are having issues with burning switches with HID type lights then you are having a more serious issue in the background somewhere that if not corrected could ruin your whole day if your truck burns up.