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Anyone have fog/driving lamps on their Spridget?

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vagt6

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I like the look of driving lamps on a Midget and I seek photos of non-rubber bumper Midgets or Sprites with them mounted.

I had 55W generic driving lamps on my MINI and they really threw out a piercing light on these dark, windey VA roads at night. They're a big safety factor, IMHO.

I may not use a badge bar for the mount, maybe mount them to the bumper or to a bracket in the grille somewhere.

Anyone have a photo of how yours are mounted? What kind of mounting hardware and brackets did you use? Any advice on mounting them?

Thanks, ladies and germs. :thumbsup:
 
Mine are some NOS Lucas. One is a fog the other is a driving light. The driving light is a pavement melter.
They are attached with some small "L" shaped powder coated brackets. A hole is drilled into the bumper to attach the bracket on the front of the bumper. A relay insures 12 volts to them. A small pressure switch is located on the driver's side interior tunnel up near the dash and lights to alert the things are on. The snap on covers also have a little window so
you can tell if they are left on by accident.
Closeup pic is the pavement melter.
:jester:

I can take some closeups and measurements of the brackets
tomorrow if you need 'em.
 

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vagt6 said:
Anyone have a photo of how yours are mounted? What kind of mounting hardware and brackets did you use? Any advice on mounting them?

Thanks, ladies and germs. :thumbsup:
Click to expand...

A request for photos! I love photos!


I attach brackets directly to the bumper mounts; no drilling required:

PICT0100.jpg


I know I've likely mounted more light than the norm, but I travel broken, gravelly, critter-infested tracks, and I need 'em:

PICT0088.jpg


PICT0080.jpg


The weight of these lamps, and their height, has required a need for a <span style="font-style: italic">very</span> stout mounting, and some support braces, which a normal installation, and normal person, shouldn't need. {The lamps are mounted high so as not to interfere with cooling, BTW}


However, when I ran a mere <span style="font-style: italic">two</span> lamps, I used the same general method, but with 'L' brackets and a crossbar:

PICT0018.jpg


My mounts are heavy, because I travel rough terrain. Hence the crossbar. Also, the crossbar was intended for multiple lights, but I found the lamp location (with four lamps) did interfere with cooling.

Found everything by scrounging hardware stores and picking up likely pieces.

I see no reason why you couldn't use simple 'L' brackets alone, as long as they fit dimensionally, and are stout enough not to wobble under the weight. A crossbar hidden behind the bumper would be a good idea, however, to prevent rotation of the mounts.

Wiring as Gundy said: 12V relay, in-cabin switch. I used an illuminated switch. Two of them. They glow in the dark. Pretty.


EDIT: <span style="font-style: italic">And Gundy, I really like your car. Bravo.</span>
 
Mine is attached like Bill's is - piece of flat stock attached to the bumper bolt.

Mine is switched through the wiper stalk - it is the same stalk as the MGB where the forward/backward motion switch is for the overdrive. It also runs with a relay.
 

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vagt6 said:
Thanks, all.

I'd like to get the Luca repros, but they're not cheap.

These Wipacs typically seen on Mini Coops are interesting.

Opinions on these, how'd they look on a Midget???

https://www.minimania.com/InvDetail.cfm?item=S6007%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20&googlebase
Click to expand...

Wipacs are fine, and should look good. Narrow, too. Used them on Minis a few times. Here's one of mine with two different sizes (air flow, you know)

MiniBeige3.jpg




lbc_newbie said:
Any pics of them on an RB car? I have not seen a "clean" looking installation yet...
Click to expand...

Came across this:

MidgetRuberBumperLights.jpg


On a Rubber Bumper car, no real choice but below the bumper. However, using round lamps as above could result in clearance issues.

Were it me, I would use rectangular lamps below the bumper, Ă  la Classic Porsche:

PorscheLamps.jpg


Zoomy.
 
I agree rectangular is the way to go on an RB. The other thought is I have seen small modern blue hued lights that are sort of oval and small. I suspect they would fit in the rubber slot on the bumper. I've also seen an RB with a bumper badge bar with lights - did nothing for me.
 
Bill,

I really like your grill. Can you comment on construction? I would like to eventually mount fog lights in the grill of my car, and starting from scratch looks like it might be more inline with my limited metal working skills.
 
Morris, I see that two grills are pictured.

On the light bracket close-up, you see my 'temporary' grill, which is simply mesh obtained from Lowes, surrounded with an edging material.

You can get the edging material on eBay here:

https://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/1-8-Black...sQ5fAccessories

It's really great stuff, by the way. Used it for lots of things.


On the other grill:

PICT0017-2.jpg


{You can see I used the same edging on both grills}

It is grill material I purchased on eBay, here:

https://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/CCG-UNIVE...sQ5fAccessories

HOWEVER...while it looks great, it is rather restrictive, and on a hot summer day in Tennessee, my engine temp ran about 10 degrees higher than with simple mesh. Not a <span style="font-style: italic">big</span> deal, but when coupled with the lights, which added even more restriction, it made me a little nervous.

Their grill quality is very good, and it cut easily with tin snips. Absolutely make a pattern with cardboard first. Please don't ask me how I learned this.

The same eBay seller also carries some very nice mesh-style material, <span style="font-style: italic">much</span> less restrictive, which I will be changing over to once I get around to ordering some. Check out their eBay store; pretty good selection.

Meanwhile, I'm running the Lowes stuff; it may not be as pretty, but it's cheap, flows well, and it keeps the sparrows out of my radiator.
 
When I was looking for lights, I didn't want them too big. I found these 5" Wipac lights at MiniMania. They have small, push in bulbs, not the H4 type, but are still quite bright and light up a long way. I made brackets out of flat steel and mounted to the bumper supports similar to Bill. Not sure if you can see the detail in the pictures. (The blue towel is to block the reflection in the bumper.)
 

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