The Ford Barn

my4dv8 · 08-05-2012, 01:03 AM

Just a question as we have found the answer but not the solution. We have a 32 v8 with 1930 model A headlights and this weekend while on an early morning run ( very early) the lights stuck on what appeared to be high , well indicator light was on and ammeter was show pretty low.Chased the problem here and there but found the bulb holders we got from Macs were touching terminals. The contacters that slide throught the red insulator in the bulb holder were not straight ,we fiddled around and got them bent to stay apart kind of but has anyone else had this issue ,and found a better way. Car is 8 months on the road.

Barry B./ Ma. · 08-05-2012, 06:07 AM

Repro three pin contacts are terrible. I had to grind down the OD of the contacts so they wouldn't touch, also the pin guides are sloppy allowing them to move around. No good solution for that unless you use the originals. I didn't have any problem after I ground down the diameters.

tdlmomowers · 08-05-2012, 07:48 AM

We had the same problem on my son-in-law's 28 Model A. The repo sockets are junk. We hard wired the sockets with spade connectors so we could dissassemble the lights easily. Now we have good tight connections. I don't like working with 90 year old technology. Sorry, to all the purists, but some things have been improved over the years.

KGBnut · 08-05-2012, 09:50 AM

I agree, the repros don't have the required tolerances. I made the mistake of installing them on mine. I've now decided to try and recondition my originals and reinstall them. Failing that, I will hard wire them like tdlmomowers said.

Good luck,

Ken

Franchise_24 · 08-06-2012, 01:29 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by tdlmomowers

We had the same problem on my son-in-law's 28 Model A. The repo sockets are junk. We hard wired the sockets with spade connectors so we could dissassemble the lights easily. Now we have good tight connections. I don't like working with 90 year old technology. Sorry, to all the purists, but some things have been improved over the years.

One of the best things we did to that car

Very frustrating trying to get those lights to work properly with that new harness.

sethkestenbaum · 08-06-2012, 01:50 PM

Sponsored Links (Register now to hide all advertisements)

Does anyone have any images of how they did their hard-wiring or newer connectors? I am looking for suggestions on how to do mine.

08-05-2012, 01:03 AM	#1
my4dv8 Senior Member Join Date: Aug 2010 Location: New Zealand Posts: 1,131	Headlights stuck on high Just a question as we have found the answer but not the solution. We have a 32 v8 with 1930 model A headlights and this weekend while on an early morning run ( very early) the lights stuck on what appeared to be high , well indicator light was on and ammeter was show pretty low.Chased the problem here and there but found the bulb holders we got from Macs were touching terminals. The contacters that slide throught the red insulator in the bulb holder were not straight ,we fiddled around and got them bent to stay apart kind of but has anyone else had this issue ,and found a better way. Car is 8 months on the road.

08-05-2012, 06:07 AM	#2
Barry B./ Ma. Senior Member Join Date: May 2010 Location: Southbridge, Ma. Posts: 1,614	Re: Headlights stuck on high Repro three pin contacts are terrible. I had to grind down the OD of the contacts so they wouldn't touch, also the pin guides are sloppy allowing them to move around. No good solution for that unless you use the originals. I didn't have any problem after I ground down the diameters.

08-05-2012, 07:48 AM	#3
tdlmomowers Senior Member Join Date: May 2010 Location: Mansfield, Ohio Posts: 409	Re: Headlights stuck on high We had the same problem on my son-in-law's 28 Model A. The repo sockets are junk. We hard wired the sockets with spade connectors so we could dissassemble the lights easily. Now we have good tight connections. I don't like working with 90 year old technology. Sorry, to all the purists, but some things have been improved over the years.

08-05-2012, 09:50 AM	#4
KGBnut Senior Member Join Date: Jul 2011 Location: Southwestern Connecticut Posts: 934	Re: Headlights stuck on high I agree, the repros don't have the required tolerances. I made the mistake of installing them on mine. I've now decided to try and recondition my originals and reinstall them. Failing that, I will hard wire them like tdlmomowers said. Good luck, Ken __________________ Style beats speed any day, and with a lot fewer tickets.

08-06-2012, 01:50 PM	#6
sethkestenbaum Senior Member Join Date: Jun 2011 Location: Westchester County, NY Posts: 632	Re: Headlights stuck on high Sponsored Links (Register now to hide all advertisements) Does anyone have any images of how they did their hard-wiring or newer connectors? I am looking for suggestions on how to do mine. __________________ Seth Kestenbaum www.oldcarroadtrip.com