Thoughts on the STL 450 working well for automotive under-hood work?

bwehman

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Been in the market for a nice light for working under the hood of our old Land Rovers and if I could double duty the purchase and get an inspection light out of it, all the better. I already have the stand and SYS DUO (rip to that epic light) and was thinking I could use the boom arm attachment to hold this over the engine bay? Just not sure how the light would be cast and if anyone has any insight?

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I think that would be plenty bright enough for engine work. However, if I still had my old S1 Disco, I think I would prefer something like the Braun (Harbor Freight) because it would have a good amount of light but also clip/magnet up on the hood so nothing would be in the way. I would find the tripod stand and cable to be irritating while moving around the engine bay and back and forth to the toolbox.

 
I think that would be plenty bright enough for engine work. However, if I still had my old S1 Disco, I think I would prefer something like the Braun (Harbor Freight) because it would have a good amount of light but also clip/magnet up on the hood so nothing would be in the way. I would find the tripod stand and cable to be irritating while moving around the engine bay and back and forth to the toolbox.

Good point about the tripod... I wonder if there's a way to clip it to the hood? Its aluminum (D2) so magnets are unfortunately not an option, which is what most of these lights seem to use as a means of staying put.
 
As someone who does this for a living, you almost can't have too many lights... :giggle:
For prolonged under the hood work, or dash/interior work, the style of light we most often turn to is a spring loaded bar that grabs the body as a hanging bar, and your work light clips onto a carriage/holder on that Bar, in turn you pivot the light as needed, or grab the release tabs and move the light side to side as also needed. I have that Festool Light and the stand, I think the lighting pattern would be your biggest regret , followed by the base being in the way as noted by onocoffee. But try it, might work for you.
But for all other work, under the hood as noted, the Braun style work light is smaller, gets into tighter spaces than a big hanging assembly, and is closer to something you need to really shine a light on. And they're cheap, esp if you manage a discount coupon for purchase.
They have a spot light on the end that you can switch to, or not, like other style work lights of this type have. And the Main 'bar' light has two lumen settings, so it's adjustable to save battery life if needed while on a job.
I have a Braun at home that I'll still use for that purpose , but at work I've switched to a version made by Snap-On. Folding style, so it's more compact than the older Brauns/Harbor Freight lights were. Not round , so it doesn't want to constantly roll if you can't secure it with the magnetic base for a given task. Lights of this type are slim enough that you can actually fit them inside a door of a vehicle , in case you need to see latches or cables or something once you've got the Door Panel Off.
The other problem I had with the Brauns was just that as a day to day light, we'd wear them out. The upper section would break off from the lower battery section- sometimes the battery would just go bad and no longer take a charge. Occasional users aren't going to run into this, so it's mainly a Pro Shop/usage issue admittedly.

Here's a link to the Bar Style Underhood lights that I'm talking about. This is the straight light bar, my style is that the light is a POD, and is moveable across the length of the bar, which I prefer since I might need the most Lumens in one area, and not the whole engine. I also prefer corded vs rechargeable, I've seen people lose the light when they least needed to. :(

 
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As Leaky said - and take my thoughts with some salt because it's been A LONG TIME since I've wrenched on a vehicle.

Another alternative to the Braun might be the Icon, which can hang from the hood.


And if you're not in desperate need, as Leaky noted, Harbor Freight stuff goes on sale throughout the year, so you might have to wait awhile but these lights will go on sale at some point. I buy most of my HF stuff that way.
 
That amazon light looks compelling. The Icon does too since it'd work great on the D2 hood, but the other needy boy is an L322 with the clamshell style hood and I don't think those ends would work well with it. I'm going to swing by the local Festool dealer today, they have an STL on the floor, and see if I can try it out and examine attachment options too. Will report back, but can see myself most likely ending up with that Neiko.
 
That amazon light looks compelling. The Icon does too since it'd work great on the D2 hood, but the other needy boy is an L322 with the clamshell style hood and I don't think those ends would work well with it. I'm going to swing by the local Festool dealer today, they have an STL on the floor, and see if I can try it out and examine attachment options too. Will report back, but can see myself most likely ending up with that Neiko.
Yes, my Snap On Light Bar has much larger padded hooks that worked on any Land Rover hood I needed to hang the light bar on. But, once you're in that price range, it's way more than HF. 🫣 🫣 The good news is that the large padded hooks work equally well with the body of the vehicle, open your front doors, and hang the bar from the body to work on the dash , or rear doors if the project is back there.
 
Yes, my Snap On Light Bar has much larger padded hooks that worked on any Land Rover hood I needed to hang the light bar on. But, once you're in that price range, it's way more than HF. 🫣 🫣 The good news is that the large padded hooks work equally well with the body of the vehicle, open your front doors, and hang the bar from the body to work on the dash , or rear doors if the project is back there.
The STL is more than any of the Snap On lights haha, so I'm pretty much down for any of those options. Which SO did you end up with? They appear to have a lot of options. Feel like the premium is worth the cost difference over the Neiko?
 
Maybe a little overkill but I bought a 10k lumen Scangrip a while ago and it's hands down the best work light I've ever used. With the tripod it can light up a very large area clear as day. The sparkies loved it in the roof when they rewired my house, and I find it invaluable whenever I'm working on anything in low light.
 
The STL is more than any of the Snap On lights haha, so I'm pretty much down for any of those options. Which SO did you end up with? They appear to have a lot of options. Feel like the premium is worth the cost difference over the Neiko?
The light I first bought isn’t offered anymore by Snap On, they have a newer version which I also own, but keep at home as I ended liking it less than the original unit.
The bar is weaker and flimsier than the rectangular tube of my original light system unfortunately.
 
I'm over here thinking my KBS C would be one heck of a under hood light, provided there's a ferrous surface to stick it on. If you haven't seen one, it's stupid bright and super even diffuse light.
 
I'm over here thinking my KBS C would be one heck of a under hood light, provided there's a ferrous surface to stick it on. If you haven't seen one, it's stupid bright and super even diffuse light.
I thought the same thing. I have the KAL II, and the KBS's and they're great lights but not good for top down work in the engine bay. They're fantastic for working under the car though.
 
I'm not sure how many of those commenting actually have one...
The STL 450 has a very narrow beam of light, is designed for inspecting flat surfaces - for any other use it is frustrating as you need to keep moving the light around so the right area is lit up.
I use mine for drywall sanding, but also sanding large flat surfaces like kitchen worktops.
Not much use for working under the bonnet (hood) - other than it is of course a light and is better than nothing, I certainly wouldn't recommend buying one to do this.
 
I'm not sure how many of those commenting actually have one...
The STL 450 has a very narrow beam of light, is designed for inspecting flat surfaces - for any other use it is frustrating as you need to keep moving the light around so the right area is lit up.
I use mine for drywall sanding, but also sanding large flat surfaces like kitchen worktops.
Not much use for working under the bonnet (hood) - other than it is of course a light and is better than nothing, I certainly wouldn't recommend buying one to do this.
Yes, I noted the light pattern for the OP would be disappointing as a Shine down Task light, I own that light, it's great for its intended purpose as an Inspection light, but as you noted, super narrow focus on the beam.
 
Without a doubt the Neiko was the correct choice. Thanks for all the input fellas!

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