Hello everyone! New to the forum, as well as to trucks and working on them (but excited to get into it!).
I recently picked up a beautiful little Mazda and am working on getting some QOL/safety upgrades.
I've been looking around and want to know if there are any recs for good headlights since the OEM ones are almost as bad as not having headlights.
Does anyone have a set they particularly like, or have experience with bad ones I should steer clear of?
Will any 5x7 housing fit, or are there other things I should be looking for?

My specs:
'91 B2200 SE-5, Carb, Manual
Regular Cab, Short Bed

Pics:

 

I ended up ordering . I'll update once I install.

 

You have a GEM of a truck there! Very nice shape on the exterior!!
Please let us know how the LED headlights work out for sure......I kinda like those.

One thing that happens with all of these 5x7 headlights I've noticed......is when they are getting older (sometimes in as little as 5 years old!) the mirroring on the rear of the bulb will have faded or simply fallen off and the reflecting ability of the bulb will be severely reduced......and therefore they won't project the light down the road. You can tell the bad ones when you look at the truck from the front, during the daytime, with the headlights OFF. The bulbs that have lost the mirroring, will look darker than a bulb that still has the mirroring on them.......also, at night when you raise the hood, the bad bulbs will light up the engine bay real good!

 

As far as other upgrades that I'd like to make, the A/C is also non-functional. I've been digging and found a bunch of talk about drop in r12 replacements as well as r134a conversions, but I just came across a refrigerant called freeze12, which appears to be the answer to my prayers!

Does anyone have experience with this stuff? I've got a buddy who's going to check with one of the local spots to see about an A/C overhaul, but if I can just use freeze12 instead of going through the whole song and dance, I'd love to. It looks cheap, available enough, and the easiest possible solution, which makes it sound very... cool.

 

I would have recommended you look at the HOLLEY 5x7 lights.

freeze12 is not anywhere as good as R12 and if your system is not completely service updated you may find yourself spending time and money instead of upgrading your AC system .

We will not use freeze 12 even if a customer brings it for us to install. Previous use in customer vehicle had them unhappy and naturally always thought it was our service not the freeze 12 .

 

Disclaimer: my B2200 is still on R-12, and I have zero experience with Freeze-12.

Freeze 12 is a blended Refrigerant containing R134a and R142, an HCFC. The use of R142 allows it to be put into a mineral oil based system used for R12, which is why it makes a better conversion than straight R134 (R134a alone requires PAG oil or maybe ester oil)

Mazda Mitch, who runs a large Facebook Mazda site uses Duracool, 8.5 oz. in his Mazda AC
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1d4Y...YuoPF1Qyb/view

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Good to know about the AC stuff, I'll have to see what kind of quote my buddy comes back with from the local spot!
Those lights look great, I'll keep them in mind when I need to replace the new ones

 

Another thing about Freeze-12 since it is a mixture: a small leak can affect the proportion of R134a and R142, as the molecules are different sizes. So that can affect both cooling effectiveness and movement of the oil through the system.

I still have some R-12 for myself from the "old days" for my '88 B2200; but I imagine should I need additional R-12 and not able to buy on Facebook Marketplace (Ebay has banned refrigerant sales), I'd choose the Duracool route as I have much faith in Mazda Mitch.

 

Ok, headlight update: I got everything down to the two bottom screws for the headlight brace, gave them a good spray of penetrating lube and ended up stripping them anyways.
They were so stubborn that I decided get a Speed Out screw extractor kit, but that didn't work at all! It was getting dark and I was frustrated, sweaty and ready to call it a night on attempt #1, so I put everything back on and gave up for the night.

I'd love a tip or two on old tiny screws... should I ditch the extractor and just go with some kind of drill bit? I have replacements, so I don't need to save them.

 

On Phillips screwdrivers.......a Klein #2 Phillips screwdriver is one of the best tools for theses trucks. I do use a small battery drill/driver also, but it seems that you have more control with a screwdriver when the fasteners are hard to remove.

On the A/C in these trucks.....I use 134A on all of mine.......but I use a flushing canister and clean the entire system out first......put in the correct amount of oil, hook up the vacuum pump and pump the system down, then charge with 134A. This has been working for me for nearly 20 years now.