19 replies to this topic

[pkemper1]

I was thinking of doing this and would like pics(close ups) and any advise/tricks. The hardest part I can see is running the wire in the boxed frame.

[thtrog]

I have not, but would contact Jerry Jones at Boatmate. He is very good to respond with helpful advise, plus they sell the kit.
jerry at boatmatetrailers dot com

[Gaffster01]

I was thinking of doing the runway kit also. Ill be interested to hear what you find out.

[Pistol Pete]

My link

[blk93jeepzj]

Read the post by Pete, good info there. However instead of hasseling with a float switch or a manual switch located in the tow vehicle or elsewhere why not use amber LEDs and tap them into the running lights? You then could leave them on all the time running down the road and thew will thow off more light underwater than the red ones. If you want add a few red ones along the back, like tail lights for the full effect.

[wdr]

Boatmate makes an OEM aftermarket kit of 12 each for $135.00 or $15.00 for a complete single light kit. They look like the bullet interior lights in the bow on my '10 LSV.

[Malibuzer]

Read the post by Pete, good info there. However instead of hasseling with a float switch or a manual switch located in the tow vehicle or elsewhere why not use amber LEDs and tap them into the running lights? You then could leave them on all the time running down the road and thew will thow off more light underwater than the red ones. If you want add a few red ones along the back, like tail lights for the full effect.

Actually most of the runway lights I have seen are white. But the amber idea may look bada$$ with an orange boat!

[thtrog]

Actually most of the runway lights I have seen are white. But the amber idea may look bada$$ with an orange boat!

The BMT kit and from the factory LED's are white, they are on dim when your tow vehicle's running lights are on. They turn go bright when the electronic switch hits the water and are effective. BTW, it's a $400 list option on a new order.

[rammer998]

I have yet to see them in person but i like the idea.

$400 option from the factory, say what? Thats retarded!!! Thats an option that one could save $$$ and buy the kit after the fact and do it themselves.

[a92harley92]

You can buy some LEDs, resistors, wire, a fuse holder, some liquid tape, and clear silicone. With a little "know how", solder, soldering iron, and creativity you can do this for around $2 - $3 a light (especially if a few people go in together and buy the components in bulk).

I even found a site that had the LEDs soldered to resistors and 18" of wire so all you would have to do is hook everything up (in parallel) and waterproof all your connections.

[Fman]

How difficult would it be to fish the wires through the trailer? Maybe someone here could chime in and post some pictures and how they did it. I like this idea, we are usually the last ones off the water, not uncommon for us to pull the boat out in dusk/dark. Would be nice to have the additional lighting while wiping down the boat, I did hear the runway lights cannot be turned on while towing if they are clear, only if they are red? Anyone have confirmation of this?

[thtrog]

How difficult would it be to fish the wires through the trailer? Maybe someone here could chime in and post some pictures and how they did it. I like this idea, we are usually the last ones off the water, not uncommon for us to pull the boat out in dusk/dark. Would be nice to have the additional lighting while wiping down the boat, I did hear the runway lights cannot be turned on while towing if they are clear, only if they are red? Anyone have confirmation of this?

See Pete's link above for install information. I'm sure you can source all the parts, I just suggested Boatmate since they have the kit. I'm sure the switch is the most expensive part; I'm pretty sure it's a Johnson bilge switch, activated by water contact and not a float. I don't know the regs about the color of lights, but do know some have bypassed the actuator and leave them on all the time.

[blk93jeepzj]

Amber on the sides and red on the back would be the only legal color scheme to run on the roads. Think of a tractor trailer unit, these would just be additional running lights.

[Pistol Pete]

How difficult would it be to fish the wires through the trailer?

Piece of cake. I fished wires the entire length of my box tube trailer using a plumbing snake.
A fish tape wold work too.

[Entangled]

I purchased the runway light kit from BMT ... it arrived today with little to no instructions ... the switch instructions are in a lil booklet, written in the tinyest typeset and in several different languages. There was also a one page instruction sheet with very little info. Anyway, I wrote Jerry at BMT asking about where to place the 12 LEDs, the switch and where to tab into the trailer's wiring harness. Jerry responsed very quickly with this, hope it helps the next guy:

We do not provide instructions.

You can choose your own location for the lights, just make sure there is enough wire in the harness to reach you chosen location. You can plan that in advance by lightly taping the harness to the trailer frame and see where the plugs fall. We put the first light at the very rear of the frame and then space them evenly every 3’ to 4’….depending on the length of the frame.

The switch can be mounted in a multitude of places, but we mount it under the right rear step (bolted to what would be the license plate bracket on the other side) and that’s where I recommend mounting it.

The left and right sides of the harness plug together at the front of the trailer, inside the tongue. Then you’ll want to tap into the running light circuit (brown wire) and that has to be done wherever you mount the switch (underneath the right rear step). The power from the brown (running light) wire needs to feed to the switch, then the switch will feed the purple wire on the runway light harness. Tie the white wire (ground) on the runway harness into the white wire on the trailer.

Thanks,

Jerry

[Pistol Pete]

I purchased the runway light kit from BMT ... it arrived today with little to no instructions ...

Sounds like a good place to not buy anything from.

[jgriffn]

This is what I did instead of individual lights. I have only had it in the water a couple times, but it looks good. The pictures are before I actually installed the lights which explains why they are not straight at the back. These are just 5 meter led strips.

[Big Jay D]

This is what I did instead of individual lights. I have only had it in the water a couple times, but it looks good. The pictures are before I actually installed the lights which explains why they are not straight at the back. These are just 5 meter led strips.

I like this idea. Makes loading at night a breeze and even provides light when moving around in the dark.

[Fman]

I like those blue LED strips, looks great! but what happens if someone steps up on the trailer to look in the bow of the boat? Will they sustain someone stepping on them?

[jgriffn]

I installed them towards the inside top edge so they should not get stepped on too much, but yes with too much abuse they could probably come loose or get broken.