A brighter instrument gauge light bulb

[BOBBYR]

Hi Greg,
Keep me in mind when you find a cure.The only thing I worry about ,is the amount of heat these bulbs might produce.Thanks for the imfo.
Bobby R

 

[GregW]

gregw, interesting and sexy but in my opinion very dangerous, youd never know who on any given sidewalk might carlesly whip out thier light saber as you drove by, a natural reaction i spozz. /bcforum/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/jester.gif

I just tell them these aren't the droids they're lookin' for.

 

[AUSMHLY]

Hi Bobby R,
Neon and LED's create no heat and they use less power too. Plus the LED's turn on instantly and have a very long life of about 100,000 hrs, 10+ years. All good.

 

[BOBBYR]

Hey Ausmhly,
Thanks for the imfo.Let me know what you guys come up with. I really like where you're headed with this.
Bobby R

 

[GregW]

So I wired up one of those Luxeon LEDs I was talking about earlier. I have plans to use this amber one for the turn signals, and I have reds for the stop/ running lights. Below is a shot of the LED, its running on 2 AA batteries @ 3v. So 1 in each gauge run in series with a pot as a dimmer should work quite nicely. Here is a link to a video I took of it lit. The fire extinguisher is about 2’ from the LED when I’m waving it to give you a sense of the distance. Look carefully, it’s a subtle change. <span style="color: #CC33CC">LED video</span>

 

[Dave Russell]

I've found this to be a lighting improvement over the original. Not so good when used with the ruler type gas gage though. Attached.
D

 

[GregW]

/bcforum/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/lol.gif How do you mount those? Duct tape to the knee caps?

 

[AUSMHLY]

Greg, I think you and I are over engineering our approach.
Dave is going with the tried and true KISS approach.

However Greg, I must admit I am impressed with where you are going with the LEXEON leds. And more impressed that you actually beat me to my "punch line" in my second post.

"OK, I'm on a mission. When I'm done, I'll post another topic. How to install a dimmer switch for the dash lights, lol."

Dude, you rock!

Cheers,
Roger

 

[tahoe healey]

Any one know what happens with a generator where the brightness reduces when the engine idles?

 

[GregW]

It would get a little darker.

 

[Dave Russell]

Any one know what happens with a generator where the brightness reduces when the engine idles?

Assuming that you are serious, a generator doesn't put out much voltage at low rpm such as idle. The battery is likely at about 12.5 volts & the generator is putting out about the same or less. As engine/generator speed is raised, the generator will put out more like 13.5 to 14 volts. Not only do the lights get brighter, but this is the only time that the battery actually gets charged.

An alternator will put out quite a bit even at engine idle & thus keep the battery better charged. One of the main reasons for converting to an alternator.
D

 

[AUSMHLY]

Hi Bobby,
As it is right now, I wouldn’t use this on my gauges, I don’t think it’s bright enough. I might get a couple different colors of the high intensity wire from the site that Ooman found, just for fun. The inverter is enclosed in a small plastic housing that could be mounted anywhere safely. Way up under the dash, with the motor running, it most likely wouldn’t be heard.
I’ve been very impressed with the new LEDs coming recently. I bought a dozen of the LAPDs new tactical flashlights. Literally, you could read a book if the flashlight was forty feet away from you, it has one LED in it. The Luxeon LEDs I mentioned earlier have a very wide dispersion. I had spots on my retina immediately when I lit one up. Even 90º off axis.

Hey Greg,

Are you still working on this project?
I keep truckin on. I've found some more sites that sell different types of LED's. I have quite a selection now. The different bulbs dictate what type of socket to use. So there's that challenge to add to this project.

What have you come up with?
Maybe we could put our heads together and make a lot of people happy here.
Maybe PM me with your finding?

I'm sure most people would be interested in knowing a way to make their gauges readable at night.
Especially if it was a fix they could do themselves.

Cheers,
Roger

 

[GregW]

Good morning Roger,
I haven’t done anything recently. Been busy at work, which saps my strength by the end of the day. Today is the last day for this job, so I’ll be able to turn my head back to it.

Cheers,
Greg

 

[MadRiver]

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Quote:]
An alternator will put out quite a bit even at engine idle & thus keep the battery better charged. One of the main reasons for converting to an alternator.
D
[/QUOTE]

But don't convert to original 1968 Lucas alternators like the ones found on my 250 and C. They remind me of generators! /bcforum/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/smile.gif /bcforum/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/laugh.gif

 

[AUSMHLY]

Well guys, I'm finally finished with this bright idea.
I started this project on 12.28.07.
Here it is 02.03.08

I tried a lot of different bulbs.
The 8 watt filament bulbs got to hot. Even the stock 2.2 watt bulbs give off some heat. Feel your fuel gauge.

Led's seem to be the answer. No heat, instant on, use a fraction of the power and most likely will out last the car.

I've learned there are a lot of new types of led's out now. I'll be attaching a photo that shows some of the ones I tested.

I replaced all the stock E10 filament bulbs with led's.
The led that worked the best was the one that reflected a light pattern of 180 degrees. The color made a difference too. The white/blue (cool white 8000k) lit up the gauges the best. The stock filament bulbs give off a soft yellow-ish (warm white) light.

Painting the insides of the speed and tach barrels gloss white also helped reflect the light to the front of the gauge. Nothing could be done about painting the inside of the fuel gauge because of the way the light reflects off of the two piece gauge front. I did not take the oil/water gauge apart. It appears to get light the same way as the fuel, via a straight shot down the light tube in the back.

Here is a believe it or not. The green directional arrows can be clearly seen....in daylight. Whodathuhk.

Same goes for the blue and red plastic gems in the bottom of the speed and tack. Clearly seen in daylight.

To balance out the reflected light (from the effort of the single bulb) in the top of the speed and tach, I added one more led to the back side, bottom of each gauge.

OK, enough blah blah blah. Show me the before - after /bcforum/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/wink.gif
These were taken at night, in my unlit garage. No flash

 

[Randy Harris]

Wow! Great job Roger. Got pics of the other gauges?
Randy

 

[Dave Richards]

OK Roger, I'm sold! I'll take one kit of the bulbs and necessary accouterments , do you take PayPal???

 

[GregW]

Nice work Roger. I had done a little more digging into the EL wire and found a couple minuses. The wire undergoes a color shift, around 24 months, depending on the type. Not sure how dramatic the change is, but something LEDs don’t really do. Ease of installation is another plus for LEDs, and if desired, a dimmer can be added. Shouldn’t be long before we’ll have the option of replacing our headlights with LEDs. One question: did your camera color (in)correct the photos? The LED shots look more neutral in their white than the 8000°K you mentioned.

I've changed your shot a little to reflect what I'd think the color would be in real life. How far off am I?

 

[Patrick67BJ8]

Well guys, I'm finally finished with this bright idea.
I started this project on 12.28.07.
Here it is 02.03.08

I tried a lot of different bulbs.
The 8 watt filament bulbs got to hot. Even the stock 2.2 watt bulbs give off some heat. Feel your fuel gauge.

Led's seem to be the answer. No heat, instant on, use a fraction of the power and most likely will out last the car.

I've learned there are a lot of new types of led's out now. I'll be attaching a photo that shows some of the ones I tested.

I replaced all the stock E10 filament bulbs with led's.
The led that worked the best was the one that reflected a light pattern of 180 degrees. The color made a difference too. The white/blue (cool white 8000k) lit up the gauges the best. The stock filament bulbs give off a soft yellow-ish (warm white) light.

Painting the insides of the speed and tach barrels gloss white also helped reflect the light to the front of the gauge. Nothing could be done about painting the inside of the fuel gauge because of the way the light reflects off of the two piece gauge front. I did not take the oil/water gauge apart. It appears to get light the same way as the fuel, via a straight shot down the light tube in the back.

Here is a believe it or not. The green directional arrows can be clearly seen....in daylight. Whodathuhk.

Same goes for the blue and red plastic gems in the bottom of the speed and tack. Clearly seen in daylight.

To balance out the reflected light (from the effort of the single bulb) in the top of the speed and tach, I added one more led to the back side, bottom of each gauge.

OK, enough blah blah blah. Show me the before - after /bcforum/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/wink.gif
These were taken at night, in my unlit garage. No flash

The tach & speedo look so good with the LED that you'd be tempted to think the electrical system wasn't Lucas..

 

[Ed_K]

Roger,
Excellent job !
When you get a chance would you post the exact p/n LEDs and sockets that you used ? And the name or URL of the supplier(s) ?. Who says you are not the brightest bulb in the box ?
/bcforum/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/jester.gif
Ed