Shawl Single Adjustable Spike Spotlight - 225mm Spike Solid Brass

Shawl in solid brass is bought for the material and it should be specified for the seal. The brass is genuinely solid, not plated — it tarnishes to a deep warm brown outdoors, and Havit says so on the datasheet rather than hiding it. A scratch weathers back in instead of exposing something underneath, which is why solid brass ages well in a garden and coated finishes eventually do not. The number that decides where it can go, though, is not the metal. It is IP54.

IP54 on a ground spike — read this before you place it

Most garden spikes in this range are IP65. Shawl is IP54, which means dust-protected and splash-resistant, and that is a materially lower seal for something that lives at ground level. In practice: it is fine in a bed watered by hand or by drip, under eaves, along a dry path or in a raised planter. It is not the fitting for a spot a pop-up sprinkler sweeps directly, for a lawn edge that gets hosed, or for any low point where water sits after rain. If that describes the position you have in mind, choose an IP65 spike instead — the metal will be the least of your problems.

The globe is replaceable, and it sets the beam

Shawl takes a 5 W MR16 tri-colour globe, supplied, with the socket rated to a 20 W ceiling. Because the globe is replaceable, the fitting has no beam angle of its own — the beam is whatever globe is in it. The MR16 that comes with it is a 120° spread, which is a wash rather than a spot; if you want to uplight a trunk, buy a narrower MR16 and check the figure on the box. Output is 270 lm at 3000K, 285 lm at 4000K and 300 lm at 5500K, and on brass 3000K is nearly always the right choice — cooler settings fight the warmth of the metal.

The details that make it easy to live with

• 90° tilt and 270° swivel — you can re-aim it fully without moving the spike.
• An anti-syphon water stop on the cable, which stops water tracking down the lead into the fitting. On an IP54 product this is not a nicety.
• Male and female connectors already fitted to the cable, so replacing a unit later does not mean cutting and re-sealing a buried joint.
• A surface-mount base is available (Havit part HV145-BR-BASE) if you later need it on a wall or deck rather than in soil.
• The spike is plastic, not brass. That keeps cost and weight down and it does not corrode — but do not expect the buried part to match the head.

12 V DC, from a suitable 12 V DC LED driver; do not connect the fitting directly to 240 V. Two conditions come with the low voltage and Havit states both as warranty terms rather than advice: the fitting must sit no more than 25 m from its driver, and the supply must stay within ±5% of 12 V. IK08, protection class 3, CRI above 80, a 225 mm spike, and a 3-year replacement warranty. Licensed electrician for the wiring, as always with a buried run.

Lights For You will tell you honestly whether IP54 suits the spot you have in mind — it is the single most common reason a beautiful brass fitting fails early, and it is entirely avoidable.