Consult Daniel Stern Lighting
Oct 8, 2020, 12:47 PM
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Hi, Carl. Thanks for writing.
First: I hope you and yours are safe and well.
Now:
> Hi, I'm looking to upgrade the headlights on my 2005 RAM 3500. I'd
> like to get the brightest bulbs possible.
Before picking bulbs, Take a hard and critical look at the headlamps
themselves; when plastic headlamp lenses are yellowed or clouded or
fogged, it's really time to replace the lamps with new ones—most
headlamps do not have replaceable lenses, though a few of them do. There
are various polishing/restoration kits and techniques, none of which
will do anything but postpone your need to install new headlamps (until
even that stops working) because "polishing" the headlamps strips off
the anti-UV/anti-scratch hardcoat that was applied and crosslink-cured
under cleanroom conditions when the lamps were manufactured. With this
coating gone, the surface degradation will come back faster and worse
than before, and the polycarbonate itself will progressively break down.
Many of the kits contain what they call a coating, lotion, wax,
protectant, sunscreen or other such; none of these does much of anything
to slow or stop the degradation, because there is really no
field-applicable coating that can duplicate the factory coating's
performance (which itself is inadequate to the task, as a walk through
any parking lot shows—the regulations are too lax).
If you need to buy some time and try to renew plastic lenses that aren't
severely hazed, try the technique at
http://goo.gl/1VEuus .(or swap out
the brush-on stuff they used for 2-part/catalyzed clear in a spray can,
Amazon product ASIN B0043B7UQY ).
But even without haze, really look closely at the lenses. Cracks and
holes are obvious enough, but the pitting/sandblasting that accumulates
over the years on glass and plastic lenses alike worsens headlight
performance much more than might seem obvious.
And even if the lenses look nice, they're not the only part of the
headlamp that ages badly. Headlamp reflectors are shiny by dint of a
super-thin layer of vapor-deposited aluminum with a super-thin
protective clear topcoat. With years of headlamp usage the topcoat
eventually breaks down and allows the aluminum to begin oxidizing.
Optical degradation of the reflector is severely advanced well before
you can see it with the naked eye—which you sometimes can't; on some
lamps the reflector is not visible clearly, or at all. But hidden or
not, looking at it wouldn't do you much good; by the time the reflector
has degraded enough to be described as "just a little imperfect" the
lamp is past dead. For mental calibration on this point: even the most
costly, beautiful chrome plating, the kind that makes bumpers look 10
feet deep on a show car, is only about 67% reflective. That's not nearly
good enough for optical purposes; an as-new headlamp reflector is over
99% reflective, and there is no bulb that can compensate.
Another note about the (hidden) reflectors in projector-type lamps: when
the reflectors roast, the result is a correctly-shaped beam pattern but
without much light in it.
Replacement headlamps, if you're due, need to be made by the original
supplier (genuine Chrysler Mopar parts
Amazon product ASIN B007O3AA06 and
Amazon product ASIN B007O3AAEM ) if possible,
because all of the aftermarket off-brand items—TYC, Depo, DJAuto, Eagle
Eye, Helix, Anzo, 1AAuto, and a long list of others—are of much poorer
quality, performance, and durability despite bogus claims like "OEM
quality" and "SAE/DOT approved", and nice-sounding but empty,
practically meaningless ones like "CAPA certified" and "NSF certified".
This is the case whether they're lookalikes of the originals or restyled
units with halo rings, LEDs, blackout, projectors, or whatever. It's
worth a careful look at your present headlamps, too, in case the vehicle
received aftermarket replacement headlamps sometime in the past.
If genuine headlamps aren't in the budget for this car, or they're no
longer available, then it'll take some careful, choosy shopping to pick
out the best of the aftermarket lamps. I'm happy to help in detail with
that on request.
With preferably-genuine headlamps in perfect condition, then comes time
to pick bulbs. Each headlamp takes one 9007 bulb. The best 9007 bulbs
presently on the market are the Philips Xtreme Vision:
Amazon product ASIN B00U1OLNUG
Do not buy blue or "extra white" bulbs (Silver Star, Crystal Vision,
TruView, Hoen, PIAA, etc.); despite the heavy advertising push and
claims of "brighter and whiter" light, they actually produce _less_
light due to the blue glass they use. Also, the "LED bulbs" and "HID
kits" all over the place are fraudulent, unsafe, and illegal; steer clear.
New lamps or old, new bulbs or old, Lamp aim is by far the main thing
that determines how well you can (or can't) see at night with any given
set of lamps, so this is crucial: you will need to see to it that the
lamps are aimed carefully and correctly per the "VOR" instructions at
http://www.danielsternlighting.com/tech/aim/aim.html .
Cheers DS
Attention: TDR Forum Junkies 
Ozy, I have no doubt those are great lights and if I ever have to replace the whole light I will purchase them on your recommendation. However, I am pot committed to a set of upgraded bulbs that are working great for me and for $20 to try to restore the lenses I figure what do I have to loose. This will be one of my January projects.
