Toyota Nation Forum banner

Interesting find (back-up light)

8K views 47 replies 27 participants last post by  hoofhearted 
#1 · (Edited)
I was at the local Tractor Supply Store today looking for some lights when I came across something that looked interesting called the "Light Buster". It's a 50 watt light that fits directly into the 7-pin plug on our trailer hitch and has two different modes that you can set it in:
1. You can set it to come on with your back-up lights
2. You can set it to come on with your running lights

I bought it ($30.00) and just plugged it in and it seems to put out a fairly decent beam.....I'll get a better idea of what it can do tonight. I also found it on Cabela's website: http://www.cabelas.com/prod-1/0040961522115a.shtml . It has received some mixed reviews on there (people either love it or hate it) but it seems to be made fairly well. I'll see how it works for the next month or so.....if I don't like it I'll just take it back.



It sits about even with the hitch:



The camera makes it look dim in this picture, but you get the idea:

 
See less See more
3
#2 ·
Thanks. I saw those too and I was wondering about them after the mixed reviews on cabela's site. 50w seems like a LARGE bulb for tha housing.... I've had 50w fogs melt their housings. Or maybe that was after I swapped in 100w bulbs.... :lol: Either way $30 for plug-n-play rear lighting without wiring anything is a good deal!
 
#4 ·
So, how exactly does it work? Do you have to turn the truck key on to get it to light up? I thought Cabelas had them listed as coming on by themselves, which I didn't think possible in our hitch plug. You say running lights, so the ignition could be off, as long as the parking lights are on? I've been eyeing on.

Thanks
 
#5 ·
RTFM said:
So, how exactly does it work? Do you have to turn the truck key on to get it to light up? I thought Cabelas had them listed as coming on by themselves, which I didn't think possible in our hitch plug. You say running lights, so the ignition could be off, as long as the parking lights are on? I've been eyeing on.

Thanks
He said you can set them to be on with your parking lights, or on when you're in reverse.
 
#6 · (Edited)
I have this light and it is great. When connected to the 7 pin connector you can rotate the lens housing to either reverse or on, something like that. Obviously, reverse denotes that when the vehicle is placed in reverse it comes on and the other setting if the vehicle is "acc" with parking lights or head lights on and you just need light back there, turn it and it will come on, no reverse neccessary, like a 7 pin powered flashlight.

Edited: I just went outside and tried mine out. I've never used it with the vehicle off or not in reverse. Acc and Parking Lights are the minimum requirement.
 
#7 · (Edited)
Well, I got a chance to see how well it works at night and let me just say that for $30.00 (and not having to do any wiring) I think this is a VERY good value. It doesn't throw out a huge beam, but for it's size it is very bright. It lights up things between 20-30 feet behind the truck very well.

I took a few pics with my cellphone; both of these pics were taken in "Running Light mode" so that my back-up lights wouldn't take away from the brightness of the light:



This is a pic of it lighting up my garage.. the only light (in the garage) is from the 'Light Buster':


In "Running Light mode" you can use it with the key not in the ignition, all you have to do is turn the running lights on. I plan on using it mainly in "Reverse mode" so it will only come on when my truck is in reverse.

PiercedTiger said:
Thanks. I saw those too and I was wondering about them after the mixed reviews on cabela's site. 50w seems like a LARGE bulb for tha housing.... I've had 50w fogs melt their housings. Or maybe that was after I swapped in 100w bulbs.... :lol: Either way $30 for plug-n-play rear lighting without wiring anything is a good deal!
Yeah, 50 watts is a decent size bulb for this type of housing. Using it in back-up mode shouldn't give you any heat problems, however if you leave it on for a long extended period of time I could see it getting pretty hot. The bulb looks like you can change it out....I bet you could find an LED bulb replacement if you looked around, then heat wouldn't be a problem no matter how long you left it on for.
 
#9 ·
screeber said:
Hey - there's a turkey lurking in your garage.:lol:
Spring Gobbler season opens on the 14th!!!

 
#14 ·
TacomaUSSS said:
I just went outside and tried mine out. I've never used it with the vehicle off or not in reverse. Acc and Parking Lights are the minimum requirement.
Thanks, will be ordering one soon for the parking light use.
 
#15 ·
Sorry to bump an old thread, but for those that are interested, I'd thought I'd give another thumbs-up for this device. I was reading about it on another forum and ordered (2) of the from Cabelas. They arrived today. It's really a nice addition. It's much brighter than I'd thought it would be. I'd like to keep mine mounted, unless I'm pulling the camper, so I'm going to devise a way to lessen the risk of someone walking up and yanking it out. Except for the wires in the casing, it's pretty hollow. I'm thinking of drilling a hole and mount a bolt to hold a thin wire/chain that can be mounted to the underside of the truck. Something that an average passerby can just take out without having tools with them. This item was really a great find for me. Thanks for sharing.
 
#16 ·
7 months later and mine has held up great, it has come in very handy on quite a few occasions. I've had a lot of people ask me about it and where they can get one. :thumbup::thumbup:
 
#18 ·
#20 ·
#22 ·
Thanks. I think that's what I'm going to do too. I just need to figure out something to try and jury-rig it to make it a bit more difficult for someone to pull out and put in their pocket.
 
#23 ·
I bought one from Lowes and it does a good job. I would like to see a third setting that runs off a battery or rechargeable battery so you could also use it as a flashlight. For those of you that leave it in all the time how's the contacts holding up?
 
#24 · (Edited)
I found a good deal on Amazon.com

Light Buster Trailer Hitch Accessory Light
$18.87 - Quantity: 1 - Usually ships in 4 to 6 weeks
Condition: new
Sold by: Amazon.com
Shipping & Handling: $5.34

Total Before Tax: $24.21
Estimated Tax: $2.07

Order Total: $26.28

Edit: They are not kidding about the 4 to 6 weeks. What, do they have to go stalk the light bulbs?

Items not yet shipped:
Delivery estimate: November 28, 2007 - December 14, 2007
  • 1 of: Light Buster Trailer Hitch Accessory Light
    Sold by: Amazon.com, LLC</SPAN>
Edit: Amazon cancelled my order in December. I have not re-ordered.
 
#27 ·
That's cool!! Nice Find! :thumbup:
 
#31 ·
Where did you get the $5 coupon?
 
#33 ·
Did you find these on Autozones website? If so where on the website?
 
#35 ·
to: mikenilson:

I got the coupon from a Harbor Freight catalog (Spring 2008) that just happened to arrive around the same day when this thread started. It is on back cover of the catalog and says "get a free attache and $5.00 off any order over $59.99. Now, I did not give a crap about the attache (whatever that means in their lineup) and I did not order more than $59.00.

I only ordered the Light Buster for that $19.99 price and figured, hey why not try the coupon thing. So, I put in the code when I entered the order and it worked. Pretty good deal for the LB, shipped for $22.98.

Oh, by the way, the answer to your next question is: Coupon # 211-453-313

Give it a try. Good luck.
 
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top