Restoring vs Replacing rear & front lights?

[Grizz1963]

Another one of those topics I guess could come up from time to time.

Some of you may know that my truck will be getting a comprehensive tear down some time soon.
I have bought a complete E-Z Wiring loom.
So the original plan of re-using all the lights has gone south.
My rear brake light lenses and bodies are cracked and rusty
Park lights are very crusty
Headlights are milky on the lenses.

So it seems I will be biting the bullet and replacing much of them.
Of course restoring is an option as well but I have no set opinions or views.

So what is the collective opinions?

Also, if I went on to replace, are there specific dealers/brands to avoid etc??

I know that my side mouldings are being sourced from Mar-K.

Any pointers at better deals/dealers will be appreciated

Thanks as always.

[crowdaddy]

grizz1963, not sure of the difference, but I'm going to do my 2 cents worth. Replace and get them working right, then update the lenses and rear metal pieces. If they function, then take the worst one first and replace. I'm new so you have to figure that in. Also, I put ge halogen headlights in front. I didn't really give it much thought so I won't know what they are like until I get my engine rebuilt an drive at night.

[Tx Firefighter]

Restoring lights is one of my favorite projects.

I like to fully disassemble them and sand blast the housings, then paint them.

New bulbs, lenses, gaskets, and screws to finish off. I buy all my stuff like this from Classic Parts.

And pack the cavity full of dielectric grease to ward off corrosion.

When you start from scratch with clean blasted metal housings and the new gaskets to keep water out, they will last another 40 years of good reliable service.

[ssxty8]

Originally Posted by Tx Firefighter

Restoring lights is one of my favorite projects.

I like to fully disassemble them and sand blast the housings, then paint them.

New bulbs, lenses, gaskets, and screws to finish off. I buy all my stuff like this from Classic Parts.

And pack the cavity full of dielectric grease to ward off corrosion.

When you start from scratch with clean blasted metal housings and the new gaskets to keep water out, they will last another 40 years of good reliable service.

In addition to this, on some old cars with dim tailamps &/or marker lamps, I use shiny aluminum foil tape inside the housing, to better the reflection. Not original, but works great.
https://sp.yimg.com/ib/th?id=HN.6080...42908&pid=15.1

[pdxhall]

I would restore as much as possible but I would replace the lens. After 40 or 50 years the plastic gets very brittle. There are new ones that are very nice and plastic has gotten better in recent years.

[Grizz1963]

Originally Posted by crowdaddy

grizz1963, not sure of the difference, but I'm going to do my 2 cents worth. Replace and get them working right, then update the lenses and rear metal pieces. If they function, then take the worst one first and replace. I'm new so you have to figure that in. Also, I put ge halogen headlights in front. I didn't really give it much thought so I won't know what they are like until I get my engine rebuilt an drive at night.

Thanks for the reply.

I am definitely going the crystal halogen route on my headlights.

The rest will be made up as I get info or advice.

Originally Posted by Tx Firefighter

Restoring lights is one of my favorite projects.

I like to fully disassemble them and sand blast the housings, then paint them.

New bulbs, lenses, gaskets, and screws to finish off. I buy all my stuff like this from Classic Parts.

And pack the cavity full of dielectric grease to ward off corrosion.

When you start from scratch with clean blasted metal housings and the new gaskets to keep water out, they will last another 40 years of good reliable service.

Thanks Kevin, I do agree, the feeling after a good resto is great.

Our problem living over in England is that nothing comes cheaply overnight like in the USA.

My rear red lenses and front side lights are all cracked, faded or marked/scratched. Their inner bowls are rusted (which can be restored) and the wiring and sockets are 50 years old and brittle and some damaged. The rear lower light bezels as well as all others are typically aged too but excluding the chromed ones, can be polished back to life.
And as mentioned about my headlights, one glass is milky and I would prefer to fit modern crystal style units.

Originally Posted by ssxty8

In addition to this, on some old cars with dim tailamps &/or marker lamps, I use shiny aluminum foil tape inside the housing, to better the reflection. Not original, but works great.
https://sp.yimg.com/ib/th?id=HN.6080...42908&pid=15.1

I have previously used "chrome" spray on old car light reflectors and its always been a huge improvement.

I think the ally foil is a great idea if you apply it right.

Originally Posted by pdxhall

I would restore as much as possible but I would replace the lens. After 40 or 50 years the plastic gets very brittle. There are new ones that are very nice and plastic has gotten better in recent years.

Thank you, I think that is probably the way to go.
Restore what I can, re-use things like rear glass lenses and even dome reflectors and replace wiring, sockets and outer lenses.

Next stop...... Find best value for money and quality suppliers.

[Grizz1963]

PS:

Been looking at the little things on the truck that will need seeing to when I do the rebuild.

Lights......

Lenses and internals of both rear lights are pretty bad.







And all together now.....

I will be restoring parts and replacing the plastic lenses and all the rubber seals.

[Todd W. White]

Regarding Headlights:

The smartest thing I've done with regard to my truck as it relates to safety is to upgrade the headlight system. In a nutshell, here's what I did:

1. I replaced the original wiring setup with a modified upgrade. This modified upgrade included a new, high-temperature friendly set of sockets and wiring for the headlights themselves. The original wiring is usually brittle and the sockets are almost always cracked and burned from years of use, especially if some dimwit has installed halogens and run them on the original wiring.

2. I installed headlight relays for the high and low beams, powering them according the instructions written by Mark of M.A.D. Electrical. Even though the bulbs I chose draw WAY less current than the halogens, and perhaps, even the original sealed beams, I used the headlight wiring upgrade sold by Mark. Click here to read about that, it is a "must read" - http://madelectrical.com/electricalt...adlights.shtml

3. I selected Bosch 7" in diameter H4 European Lenses (no elements inside).These have more of a vintage "look", yet have very nice pattern control. A lot of the VW guys use them, which is where I heard about them.

4. For the bulbs, I ended up using HID (bi-xenon) upgrade bulbs for the H4 Halogen that would have otherwise been installed with these lamps. They are 35W, 4300K bulbs. These are field replaceable, and fit the Bosch units perfectly. They are also not that ANNOYING blue that you see today on so many cars - it's a BRIGHT, but not annoying, white.

5. For the ballasts, which I purchased separately (rather than entire kit), I used these:

http://www.mobilehid.com/proddetail....iversalBallast

Here's what they look like:



Most of the ballasts that come with the kits are junk. Also - I didn't get a kit because of the unique wiring requirements I needed to retrofit this new type of system to my truck.

6. I also had to order several special connectors to make it work. If anyone wants details on that, they can send me a personal message. I can even send you a schematic of what I did. Suffice to say that it was time consuming to do it right, but not difficult.

7. AS FOR WIRING, I used Mark's "New System", which gave me two relays (one each for the high and low beams), which I used thusly:

A. The HID bulbs are one-filament units, not two like we're used to. Therefore, I didn't want it going on and off momentarily when I pressed the dimmer switch on the floor. I wanted to keep the bulbs powered all the time when the headlight switch is pulled out completely. This also increases the life span, I believe, of the bulbs, as they're not being turned on and off each time I go from high to low, or vice-versa. Dad always said that "Every time you turn something on, it's one more time closer to the day it will fail", so that was my guiding principle here.

B. To keep the bulbs burning all the time I am using the headlights, I simply removed the wire and terminal that fed the original low beam side of the headlight system from the dimmer switch connector, tapped the power output from the headlight switch, and connected the supply of power to the Low Beam (tan) wire that runs to the horn relay area.

C. I installed the proper power and ground distribution points, per MAD's instructions.

D. I connected what would have been the Low Beam Relay to the supply (tan) wire that originally came from the dimmer switch - this now activates a relay whenever the headlights are supposed to be on, and keeps them on as long as the main switch is pulled all the way out.

E. Power to the actual headlights is drawn from the Positive Power Distribution Point, feeds through what I am calling the "Bulb Supply Relay", then into the ballast shown above (one per side).

F. The wiring scheme for the High Beam circuit is identical to the MAD design, except it feeds the HID Bulb's small "high beam" connector, which causes the bulb to pivot internally using a solenoid, thus refocusing the beam from where the Low Beam Element focuses through the lens, to where the High Beam Element would normally be projected through the lens. This requires no change in the original wiring inside the cab - the (green) wire that fed the original High Beam part of the circuit from the Dimmer Switch now feeds a relay that tells the headlights to re-aim themselves when I hit the Dimmer Switch.

Conclusion -

* I now have HID bulbs in new glass lenses that are not that annoying blue of so many HID systems.

* I know have modern, relay-controlled and fuseable link protected power supplying my headlight system.

* My original wiring system, though a reproduction from AmericanAutowire, is protected against high current flowing through the Headlight Switch and dash area, thus prolonging the life of the jacketing and minimizing the heating of the wires.

* And MOST OF ALL, MY LIGHTS WORK AND ARE NICE AND BRIGHT!

[Grizz1963]

Thanks for the comprehensive reply Todd.


I have been looking at the LMC and Brothers websites and it seems they are the only ones offering complete replacement units for the rear lights.

Anyone else worth looking at??

I do not know all the other dealers available in the USA.

So if you have a favourite dealer, other than the two mentioned above.... let me know please.

$39.00 at Brothers

http://www.brotherstrucks.com/prodin...number=TLA66FS

$35.00 at LMC

http://www.lmctruck.com/icatalog/cbe/full.aspx?Page=108

[Paul Y]

Todd,

Just sent you a pm regarding the schematics.

P;

[crowdaddy]

I erroniously mentioned or suggested halogen lights in trucks not taking into consideration voltage drops and old wiring. I do appologize. I put halogens in mine and will be considering relays. The halogens were at my local hardware and I wanted to get my truck on the road asap. By all means listen to the electrical experience on here and not someone like me overanxious to drive it at night. Good luck with your trucks lights.

[corvettejim1968]

when i took my tail lenses off i cleaned the bucket the best i could stuck ear plugs in the light socket and painted the buckets Chrome Aluminum. its basically high content metallic silver. the lights look so much better and brighter too.

Originally Posted by Grizz1963

PS:

Been looking at the little things on the truck that will need seeing to when I do the rebuild.

Lights......

Lenses and internals of both rear lights are pretty bad.







And all together now.....

I will be restoring parts and replacing the plastic lenses and all the rubber seals.