cockpit stowage bin lighting - suggestions?

[Justin_NSA]

I'm in the process of installing an electrical subpanel in my aft cockpit bin/battery compartment and also cleaning up a couple poorly installed accessories. I was thinking. while I'm at it, wouldn't it be handy to install some lighting in the 3 large, 2 are deep, bins. Flashlights are never handy when I need one and are too dim most times.
I would like something I can mount but could be detached in order to be able to look around and/or shine closely on something. Anyone found something that works?

 

[BlowMeAway]

My favorite lighting recommendation for anywhere/everywhere dark on the boat:

 

[rgranger]

What about something like this...

http://www.brookstone.com/pd/9-LED-...ch&bkeid=compare|mercent|googlebaseads|search

If you installed them with velcro instead of a permanent sticky, you could detach them and use them to look around.

 

[Sailor Sue]

A free LED flashlight from Harbor Freight hung from a 3M Command hook. Easy to remove or relocate.

 

[JRacer]

I'll send you some pictures of what I did. Used a waterproof puck LED light, about 3 inch, from Marinebeam and put a rocker switch inside the lazarette. Pics are on the office computer so have to send later.

 

[Justin_NSA]

I like the puck ideas. We have and old 'Grimes' light over the map table. That's what we called them in our Phantoms back in the service.
I have one of the forehead lights. Used it in the BVI's this last month.

 

[JRacer]

Here are the pics of what I did. The box for the switch was made by laying up fiberglass over one of those bubble packs that you get electrical connectors in then spray painted black. The switch is a marine rated switch, I'd have to do some digging to find where I sourced them. It's red indicator light is lit continuously when power is supplied to the circuit so it's easy to find when you open the lazarette in the dark. The two conductor cable you see leads back to the DC Panel to a separate breaker for "cockpit lights".

 

[Justin_NSA]

Pretty nifty!

 

[Justin_NSA]

I like the puck ideas. We have and old 'Grimes' light over the map table. That's what we called them in our Phantoms back in the service.
I have one of the forehead lights. Used it in the BVI's this last month.

Here's a pic of my map table light. These work. I'd like and LED version or a removable puck type

 

[capta]

I'm with Blowmeaway on this one! If necessary, hang a headlight in the locker, easily accessed when you open it. Change the batteries twice a year whether they need it or not and it should always work.http://forums.sailboatowners.com/index.php?members/blowmeaway.133146/

 

[DAVA390]

My second car was a 1962 Pontiac Catalina. The trunk light was riund,mounted in a metal bracket and had enough power cord wound up in the base of the light that it would reach anywhere on the car. For 3 years it was under the hood of my CJ 7 jeep. Going in my cockpit hatch this winter, very old school metal toggle switch for off/on.

 

[centerline]

the velcro idea is the best.... and if you have trouble with a flashlight being too dim, you obviously havent used a larry light before....

buy a few of these lights and stick them with velcro where ever you might need light.
if a moment of thought is put in to it before sticking the velco in the compartment area, you can place it strategically so that you can leave the light in place after turning it on and it will point in the right direction for hands free operation.... or pull it loose to search the far corners, or in case its needed elsewhere in the boat... and the shape allows it be held in your teeth (for hands free operation) much easier than a conventional flashlight... the batts last a long time and they give a super bright flood beam.

the larry lights are all I will buy since they came out with the new technology LED panel. they are so much better than the multiple small diodes that make up a lot of the flashlights...