Aeroled or Ztron nav/strobe/taillight setup?

[tomhanaway]

I'd like to hear from users as to Aeroled vs Ztron for nav/strobe/tailight combo.

The Aeroled kit is $1100. The Ztron kit is $340.

What am I missing for a difference of $760?

Thanks,
Tom H.

[rleffler]

I don't have an opinion or experience with Ztron, or know anyone that has.

My recommendation is to do some due diligence, just like you are doing. When I was shopping for lights several years ago, the major issues were RF noise generation and light output. Many of the roll your own and less expensive units failed in both categories.

If they have a good return policy, you may want to give them a try to validate all their claims.

I have the AeroLEDs and they work as advertised, although admittedly cost a little more than I would have preferred to pay.

Bob

[MikeyDale]

I tested my Ztron strobe lights a couple of days ago. They are very bright and I have 0 noise in my headphones. When I first turned them on, the tail light was very dim. I turned them off quickly thinking I had made a mistake in my wiring and I didn't want to damage the lights. After several hours of troubleshooting, I finally gave up and emailed the Ztron support at 6:15 PM Central time....... To my astonishment, Warren replied within the hour. He explained the Tail Light strobes 40 times before going to full brightness. He said the newer tail lights (I bought mine back in the spring) go to full brightness much quicker. He also told me if I couldn't correct the problem, he would quickly repair the light or send me a new tail light. The next morning I turned on the strobes and sure enough, after 40 strobes, the light went to full brightness! My only complaint is that I couldn't find this in the manual. I'm not flying yet, but so far, I'm impressed with Ztron.

[Joe]

The Ztron unit look like a cost-effective way to add a tail light to my homebrew wingtip lights.

Can the Ztron lights be used in a "strobe-only" mode? The tail light user manual explains how to operate without strobes, but I'd also like to be able to operate with strobes-only for daytime use.

Thanks,
Joe

[ppilotmike]

Wow, it's been almost a whole 24 hours since this thread was started. I was sure that Dean from AeroLEDs or someone from AveoLabs would have chimed in by now. While they market a seemingly excellent product line, I'm very interested too.... in why theirs cost soooo much more than some of the competitors. (i.e. offroad racing guys, homebrew mom-n-pops, etc).

[Steve Melton]

ztrons work for me. zero noise.

[NASA515]

The AeroLed interface with the customer is beyond outstanding.

I have an RV-12 - during the build, one of my buddies said it appeared my tip lites were missing their o-rings. I called the factory and they said they had changed to a no-O'ring configuration, but insisted on sending me a replacement pair - "just in case".

They arrived practically overnight, and when I checked them against my units - they were the same - no O'rings. So, I sent their units back - at their expense.

There was zero paperwork - no RMAs - no nuthin'. Just First Rate customer support.

Oh! Their lites work great too - flawlessly after 113 flights.

Just a data point, or two.

Bob Bogash
RV-12
N737G

[Dean_aeroleds]

I typically don't respond to threads like this, as we make it a policy not to post about our competitors as doing so can reflect poorly on our company if we come across as attacking or criticizing them. Since the question was asked about the difference in price between the AeroLEDs Suntail and the Ztron tail light, here is a technical only comparison:

This is a photo of the Ztron Tail Light:


This is a photo of the AeroLEDs Suntail:


In the Ztron unit, you can clearly see the circuit board and all the components. There are 4 Philips Lumileds Rebel LEDs on this unit. These are 3 Watt LEDs. There are no optics in this unit for directing the light from the LEDs to increase the intensity in the horizontal plane (+/- 5 degrees vertical) where the FARs call for the highest intensity. The peak current for the strobe mode is 1 Amp. There is also no cutoff shield to cut off the position light from being seen forward of 110 degrees aft of the nose.

In the Suntail, you cannot see the circuit boards due to the proprietary lens that we use to gather and focus the light from 18 Rebel LEDs. The peak strobe current is 2.5Amps, and we need all 18 of the LEDs and the lens in order to meet the 400 effective candela requirement for the strobe mode. The Suntail has TSOA approval from the FAA for both the position light and strobe, and the unit that we sell to the expermental market is identical to the TSO'd articles. The side shields on the heat sink are there to cutoff the position light at the 110 degree aft angle as required by the FARs/TSO for the rear white position light.

The reason that the Suntail is more expensive than the Ztron unit is because of the higher bill of material cost of making it. The PCAs, LED count, lensing, and heat sink design all contribute to a higher material cost. We charge less for the units that don't have the TSO paperwork since we don't need to charge builders for something that they don't need, and it costs us less to build non-TSO units due to a lower overhead cost.

The fact is, that in the experimental market, it is totally up to builders to determine what they want to use, and they have the freedom to choose which product and which manufacturer they want to purchase. Ztron is providing a product at a price point that many builders will find more appealing, and if that is what they choose to go with, that does not bother us. We do appreciate the support that we receive from builders that choose our product, and strive to provide excellent customer service and support. There is overhead associated with running a company, and providing ongoing support for products, and that requires that we charge enough for our products that we can sustain our business.

Best Regards,

Dean Wilkinson
CTO, AeroLEDs LLC

[Don Patrick]

I just picked up my wingtip lights and the tail light from Ztron. I was surprised at how bright they were and the ease of which to adjust the strobe pattern.

The tail light didn't work and a quick email to Ztron ended up with a quick response from Warren and a new tail light being sent out.

Excellent customer support and for the price, I feel that they are bang on for what I need.

Cheers,

Don

[Smilin' Jack]

I have the AeroLed's and am extremely pleased. They are super bright, and the local mechanic is now installing them on his customers aircraft.
Smilin' Jack