Metcraft tower light LED bulb replacement- a brief how to.

[DRAGON88]

This is a very easy job, but sometimes its nice to know what a project looks like before you jump in. There have been some good posts on this before, but I didn't really find a how to, or much follow up on people actually installing the bulbs.

What you'll need:

• MR16 LED bulbs (I would recomend buying a 35º bulb unless you're hoping to mostly illuminate the bow).
  • The bulbs I used were the standard 50mm x 50mm or about 1.97" x 1.97" size. Pay attention when ordering because some bulbs were deeper and some have lenses that protrude out the front (I'm looking at you Phillips). I don't know if deeper sizes would fit/work, but the standard size worked for me. Part of the fitment may depend on how long your wiring rats nest is.
• #2 Phillips screw driver (stubby can be helpful if you have all four forward facing lights)
• #1 Philips screw driver (optional, but a better fit for the plate holding the lights in)

Step 1: Remove the two screws holding the glass bulb assembly:

Step 2: Pull the bulb out and admire the fact that this janky rats nest has not burned down your boat yet, make a personal promise to yourself that you will fix this over the winter. Also, next time I would mark the downward facing side of this plate with a sharpie- as noted below the plate and housing seem to go back together easier if they're in the original orientation.

Step 3: Remove the four black phillips head screws holding the mounting plate to the glass housing (protip- you can actually remove three of the screws and just loosen the fourth one most of the way to slide the plate out):

Step 4: Remove the silicone ring from your old bulb and transfer it to your new bulb, the ring is tapered and should sit flat once installed. Now is also a good time to clean out any crud from inside your lens.

Step 5: Put bulb in housing and work steps in reverse.

Other reinstallation thoughts:

• Although the orientation of the bulb doesn't really matter, I installed the new bulbs in the same orientation (i.e., made in china facing down relative to the bracket) so they look consistent when mounted up. 
• Start all of the screws before cranking them down. Sometimes you need a little extra play to get that last screw in.
• Be kind to the rats nest of wires you find when putting everything back in. 
• If the mounting tabs are not lining up with the housing you may need to flip the glass bulb assembly 180 degrees. Things tended to go back together easier if they went back in the same orientation as they came out.

Finished (new vs. old):

New:

Revel in your scum line from 4 hours of boating:

 

Final thoughts:

As expected, the LED bulbs are brighter than the 16 year old halogens. Projection is still not great, but they still work fine for docking and getting trailered. These are glorified outdoor spot lamps, not actual automotive style lights.

Going from a 55w x 8 draw to a 5w x8 draw is great. At idle voltage drops about .2 volts with both sets of lights turned on vs about 1.2-1.4 volts with the halogen bulbs. I ran the lights for about an hour and they were much cooler than the halogens.

No idea on longevity, how they'll cope with boat vibrations, etc., but for $18 I purchased 10 bulbs so I have a few spares.

 

Thank you for attending my TEDx talk.

Edited August 21, 2022 by DRAGON88