Rough country light bar??

i have a 2011 taco and I wanted to buy a 30 inch rough country light bar the one that goes in the bumper. I wanted to see any pics of your truck with one. I also wanted to see what y'all think about a 30 inch rough country light bar, is it good,descent, or bad??

 

I imagine it's similar quality to everything else they put their name on. So, likely it's functional but there are better options.

If the warranty is good and their customer service is good then try it. If one of those sucks then don't bother. Too many people selling cheap shit these days, you can spend less on the same bar from Huj Wang Company out of China on Amazon or spend some more for a company with a better warranty and better reputation.

 

That is true. But I wanted to see the reviews of the ligh bar because I haven't seen no reviews on that ligh bar.

 

Hardware and construction looks identical to the generic branded bar I bought off Amazon for 1/3 the cost. CREE emitters are industry standard. Their website says 30* deg spot pattern - but you can clearly see that the outboard sections has different reflectors than the middle. Probably more of a flood/spot combo. I seriously doubt this is a true Rigid competitor considering how much it looks like the china made generics. 3 year warranty if you buy it through RC or a RC vendor.

 

Did you have to take off the bumper or did you just do it to make it easier to install.

 

I don't know that I could get the mounting bolts drilled in where they needed to be on the crash bars with the bumper in place. You can get the light bar in place with the bumper on, but there isn't much room to work with a drill.

I took all of mine apart and drilled/tapped the crash bar arms for the mounting bolts directly. Otherwise, there's no way to get a backing nut onto the mounting bolts. I suppose a bracket could be made to allow it that could be bolted to the assembly, but I was fine with my method.

 

I did a write up on my Rough Country install (Kinda crappy write up but you should get an idea of the process)https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads/rough-country-30-led-with-hidden-front-bumper-mounts.388378/.
I didnt have to remove the bumper but the 7mm end bolts were tight and I used an end wrench to tighten and adjust the light.
The picture I've attached is the Rough Country installed with my winter driving covers over the light bar (Westin, single row, amber light covers).
The RC is a single row light that provides decent lighting for what I use it for; mainly looking out for unexpected pot holes and rocks getting to duck hunting places in foggy weather.
Because it is mounted in the lower bumper valance the light projects straignt and flat but really does not illuminate the front "corners".
The 3" cube lights (also in winter driving amber) are Baja Designs, Squadron Pros in their new amber wide cornering lens. (I'll get the clear wide cornering lenses for summer driving later). The BDs compliment the single row RC light bar nicely and because they are higher in the grill, the BDs throw out plenty of light than compensates for the areas not illuminated well by the RC single row light bar. http://www.bajadesigns.com/ProductDetail?ItemNumber=490003
If you are not a serious off roader like me and need extra, but not dominating light, then the RC single light bar will do fine. I was not all than impressed with the fit of the RC bumper brackets (I had to hog them out to get them to fit my 2015 bumper mounts) and the knowledge of the customer service for my single row amber light covers was pretty bad.
Other than that, the RC is ok for the price.
Sorry, the pic didnt come through from my phone yet, I'll post it later when it gets through our server.

 

Now - I wasn't aware that RC made a special mount for our trucks - that does sweeten the deal a little, but still not $200 better. I agree with Chet's opinion of the output - my china-clone does put out a lot of light, but not a big focused beam like I used to get out of my old 6" procomp 100W halogens.

I also wonder how much having the light mounted down that low, and recessed into the bumper opening is affecting overall spill and throw. I did not cut my "fins" in my bumper, as my light is mounted just behind them.

 

I was lazy and just cut my fins...took about 15 minutes with the dremmel. The crash bar mount is a lot cleaner look but I'm sure I would have screwed something up trying to dismantle and install the light like Chris did.
I really like Chris' double row lights and the light patten it throws. The RC is a straight spot beam pattern which is probably why it doesnt illuminate the front corners as well.

 

photo of my RC light bar installed in the lower bumper

 

We can all agree people who drive on the road/highway/streets with these on are A-holes, yes?

Its a horrible lil fad in our area. Everything from '98 Civics to jacked up trucks ha e these on front bumper. Its actually atrocious how blinding it is on the jacked up trucks. I hope none of them receive a warning when pulled over.

 

I'm assuming that when you say "on" you mean illuminated and not "installed". I agree with you that people who drive on the street with incorrectly adjusted off road lights simply to show them off while blinding oncomming motorists are assholes.
I dont know if you noticed but my fogs (Light bar included) are adjusted downwards. This allows the fog light beam to hit below the headlight beam. Anyone who has driven at night with snow pounding down can tell you that fog lights incorrectly adjusted too high will blind you worse than your high beams.
I will turn my fogs on on those cloudy rainy days as they do help others to see my grey truck, otherwise, I see no need to turn these on while travelling on city streets at night in good weather.

 

Why does the ligh bar look yellow??

 

Correct. Illuminated while on streets/highway is instant D-Bag status.

 

Mine isn't rough country it's a knock off from Amazon but it looks the same. I used the rigid brackets to mount to the crash bar.

 

The light bar looks yellow because it has removable yellow/amber covers for wintertime driving in fog/snow while getting/returning from duck hunting. Same with the 3" cube lights. When the weather clears up, everything goes back to clear lenses.

 

Ohh ok. Makes sense now

 

I just purchased one of these about a week and a half ago with their mounting kit. I'll post up how everything goes.

 

Alright let me now how it turns out @VAMass83

 

VAMass83,
I had some issues with the size of the "hidden bracket" bolt holes that slip over the threaded 14mm bumper mounts. You may want to check that out for fitment first thing and be prepared to enlarge the holes on the hidden bumper mounts.
The RC install guide recommends a sawzall type saw to cut through the fins which I did not feel comfortable using because of the way my sawzall jumps around...maybe a short blade will work but I didn't want to risk damaging the inside of the lower bumper cowling.
Make sure the damned end bolts fit into the light bar right after you unpack everything. One of my end bolts would not thread properly once I got everything put together in the lower bumper. Everything is a tight fit so trying to insert, thread and tighten the end bolt containing a spacer, flat washer and lock washer once the light bar is in is a PITA.
Good luck and have fun! https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads/rough-country-30-led-with-hidden-front-bumper-mounts.388378/