Properly aiming my new fogs

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CHMP

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Just installed my kit from @4x4TruckLEDs.com , very helpful vendor who answered all my questions. Ended up going with BD SAE white wide cornering, Amber wide cornering, and pro driving/combos.

What is the standard operating procedure for aiming each set properly? I might have missed it but after searching through threads I couldn't find anything definitive.

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Troutrad

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Same question. I’m installing the new 360’s with amber backlight from SPV. Assume loosen and re-point perhaps directed on a garage door in the dark, then go out in real world to make sure they’re symmetric? A little trial and error? Anyone have experience with this?
 

CobraJay

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I did trial and error, adjusted the horizontal first using my lowbeam as a guide against my garage door up close. The vertical was a little more of a PITA since my drive is sloped down towards my garage door.

I swagged the first few adjustments and backed all the way to the end of my drive to make sure nothing was above my lowbeam hot spot. Also if youre having a hard time seeing the hotspots of the lights for adjustment turn on the front camera. Hopefully you got the horizontal nailed, locking those down was a serious PITA.
 

Oldfart

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The biggest help is to aim one light at a time. Tape a rag/hand towel, painters tape, cardboard, whatever you have, over all the lights except the one you are aiming. Makes it MUCH easier to see what you are doing. I start against one of my garage doors and when they look good I have a nice straight, level, back road near me that I'll go to for finishing touches. For SAE's, the left ones should dip very slightly and be slightly to the right to help prevent blinding.
 
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smurfslayer

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Adam has posted about this previously and has a slightly different / higher aim than i run but...

generally, I find a spot where i have a flat surface to aim at and on level ground. Using headlights as a reference, mark your headlight “hot spots”. the distance is somewhat significant and the truck needs to be unloaded for this- no cargo. Your headlights are aimed to hit the pavement not terribly far out, so they’re not aimed level with the ground.

Your fogs are lower than the headlights. Measure your distances
ground to center of fog light center of lens
ground to low beam center of lens.

I aimed mine at about 10 yards, the wide corner lenses may make this more challenging. Move in if you have to.
Using painters tape, i marked the wall with my center of hot spot reference points for the headlights on low beam.

fire up fogs one circuit at a time and cover 1 lens. Aim the other. I want the hot spot of the beam just slightly lower on the wall than height to center of the lens. aiming 1x1, measure the hotspot center height and relation to the low beam hot spot so they are pointing straight ahead. when you’re done, pull the painters tape and go try them out in real life situations.

You may want them aimed somewhat differently, depending on your intended use, but this method will get them in the ball park.
 

JohnyPython

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Use ramps or a jack to level the truck. Against the garage door is best. As mentioned by @Oldfart do one at a time by covering the other side.

It’s all trial and error and we got tons of time and no one to bug us lol
 

4x4TruckLEDs.com

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What we do at the shop that works well is..

-Park the truck about 20-25' from a solid wall (try and do this on level ground)
-Turn your headlights on and now take some painters tape, and put a piece of tape on the bottom most part of the low beams cut-off. Do this on each side, and put the tape in the center of the output (you only need about a 2" piece of take or so)
-Turn your headlights off

-Wide Cornering: If you plan to use these on public roads, I like to make sure the light gets centered for each side (driver's side, centered [left and right] on driver's side low beam tape). Make the top of the wide cornering pattern right at or below the tape mark you made. This ensures you have full coverage from your wide cornering and then up to the low beams. IF you don't plan to use them on public roads, you can go a little higher if you want, but i like my wide cornering to cover the road in front of the truck

-Spots: Centered left to right, centered vertically (you may need to turn the headlights back on which makes this part easier to dial that spot pattern centered, maybe SLIGHTLY higher so that it goes upwards a tiny bit)

-Driving/Combo: Same as the spots actually. I try and keep the spot pattern dead center so that the wide cornering sits a little lower (you won't get the wide cornering portion of a driving/combo as low as a 100% wide cornering light).


That'll ensure everything works perfect.
 

4x4TruckLEDs.com

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Just installed my kit from @4x4TruckLEDs.com , very helpful vendor who answered all my questions. Ended up going with BD SAE white wide cornering, Amber wide cornering, and pro driving/combos.
View attachment 140232

I see you also opted for the extension brackets. Makes installation pretty easy doesn't it (not having to remove the bezels/lenses to get them right-side up)

upload_2020-3-28_13-33-46.png

BTW you can see in this close-up how I have my inner and outter lights aimed down (those are wide cornering, below my low beams cut-off) and the center driving/combo is aimed higher.
 

smurfslayer

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-Driving/Combo: Same as the spots actually. I try and keep the spot pattern dead center so that the wide cornering sits a little lower (you won't get the wide cornering portion of a driving/combo as low as a 100% wide cornering light).

Only aim the spot lenses of the driving combo light.
cover 1 of the lights.

cover the cornering lenses of the light you’re aiming. I used gorilla tape, with the middle portion stuck to something; a folded piece of tape, anything non-sticky, because you don’t want that glue on the b/d lenses.

aim the light as you would a spot lens. remove the tape from the light.
tighten; test in live conditions.

finally tighten if expectations met.
 

4x4TruckLEDs.com

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Yeah I used painters tape to cover the light im not working on. Should have mentioned that. Then used my hand to ensure they both looked good (blocking it/unblocking it)
 
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