Tail light brightness

[luckyal]

I was recently pulled over by a police officer and he suggested my tail lights were not bright enough. I have GE # 1129 bulbs which is 17 watts.
In Mac's I see they have 23 candle power bulbs. How does watts and candle power compare and is a 23 candle power bulb brighter than a 17 watt bulb. Thanks
Al

[BRENT in 10-uh-C]

You are probably better to go with the LED lights instead of the halogen or higher CP bulbs. Unless the license plate lamp lens is removed, that lamp can sure get hot (dangerously hot) which hurts when someone touches it and will shorten the life of the bulb. Also note that the original lamps do not have much of a way to reflect light rearward either.

One other thought I might share which we do on Model-T's is use the flashing LED amber lamps (available at sporting good and tractor supply stores) on the back of our cars after dark. Depending on the size, (from bicycle to farm machinery) these magnetic based lamps can be placed on the back of your Model-A during a ride home to warn traffic you are ahead ...and when you do not need them, you can stow them under the seat.

[FL&WVMIKE]

You can brighten your tail-lights, some, by spraying the inside of the shell with white paint. Some people use silver, but white is brighter.
MIKE

[pat in Santa Cruz]

I put a pair of the LEDs in my pickup. WOW, they're bright. My sedan has a halogen tail light. Its bright, but not as bright as the LED, and it pulls so many amps that the headlights go dim at idle, with a 6 volt alternator. The LEDs hardly pull any amps.

[Tom Wesenberg]

I'm surprized to hear the tail light isn't bright enough. I painted the inside silver, as was done originally, and my standard bulb really lights up the road. Guess some night I'll have to have someone drive my car while I stand outside and see how it looks as they drive away.

A lighting store owner explained lumens and candlepower to me and the difference in terms, but I'll have to visit him again, because I just don't remember the details. Watts of course is a measure of power used so the LED's would take fewer watts for the candlepower produced. It does make it confusing when one sell lists candlepower and another lists watts. Candlepower would be the correct term to use for comaring one bulb to another.

[Joe K]

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Candlepower would be the correct term to use for comaring one bulb to another.

And that would be the best comparison of brightness. However, given an apples to apples comparison of incandescent bulb TYPE, watts would be a close correlation. In the case above if both bulbs are incandescent, non-halogen, and similarly arranged filament wise, then one bulb would be about 1/4 brighter than the other - the ratio of 23 to 17.

Probably the best solution to keep the police at bay would be to go with LEDs. Watt for watt LEDs provide about 6x the lumens per watt than incandescent - plus they're more efficient and result in less life shortening heat.

Another advantage of LEDs in this instance is that the light from these devices tends to be "monochromatic." They are RED and don't make light of any other wavelength. All your power goes to making RED. Thus you get even more of what you want (red light) without all that green, blue, yellow, magenta all combining to white light stuff that incandescent bulbs make and red lens normally blocks anyway.

Hope this thought helps.



I wonder what they use?

Joe K

[BILL WILLIAMSON]

Originally Posted by luckyal

I was recently pulled over by a police officer and he suggested my tail lights were not bright enough. I have GE # 1129 bulbs which is 17 watts.
In Mac's I see they have 23 candle power bulbs. How does watts and candle power compare and is a 23 candle power bulb brighter than a 17 watt bulb. Thanks
Al

Al, Any increase in candlepower will help. Take a few minutes & spray the inside of 1 tail light with APPLIANCE WHITE & see the great difference!! Even in the daytime, with no lights on, the lens looks more VIVID RED! Been doin' this since the '50's, I think that's about the time "they" invented "SPRAY BOMBS" GOD! I'm gettin'OOOOLD Bill W.

[Hunter]

My tailight was extremely dim and I found the problem to be a poor ground between the fender and tail light bracket. I removed the bracket cleaned out the paint in the three mounting holes and found the light to be significantly brighter. Just a thought...

[luckyal]

Thank you to all you learned people. As usual you have the right answers !
My first step will be to paint the interior and see what happens. This was my first night ride in 7 years and I got pulled over !
Much obliged !
Al

[Bruce Lancaster]

Do some searching on the HAMB...one guy over there posted a thorough series of tests done with a light meter on different approaches to this, and there are also some postings on the ranges of available bulbs of various types. Or go get the white paint, which is where all the testing led...
Chrome turns out to be a lousy reflector, and I suspect the same would apply to stainless taillight cups.

[Franchise_24]

Originally Posted by luckyal

Thank you to all you learned people. As usual you have the right answers !
My first step will be to paint the interior and see what happens. This was my first night ride in 7 years and I got pulled over !
Much obliged !
Al

Did he give you a ticket or just advise you that they were too dim?

[luckyal]

He gave me a warning and said he had no way of testing to see if it met minimal standards. I think he just needed a reason to pull me over to have a look at the car.
All is well that ends well ! I compared it to 2 friends cars and we all seem to be the same brightness !
Regards, Al

[luckyal]

So are the Ohio State police ! ( Nice try Mr. Palin ! )
Al

[Chuck Sea/Tac]

Interesting! Silver, the color isn't reflective, but silver, the metal is. Why is that?

[Rock Hornbuckle]

Originally Posted by Tom Wesenberg

I'm surprized to hear the tail light isn't bright enough. I painted the inside silver, as was done originally, and my standard bulb really lights up the road. Guess some night I'll have to have someone drive my car while I stand outside and see how it looks as they drive away.

A lighting store owner explained lumens and candlepower to me and the difference in terms, but I'll have to visit him again, because I just don't remember the details. Watts of course is a measure of power used so the LED's would take fewer watts for the candlepower produced. It does make it confusing when one sell lists candlepower and another lists watts. Candlepower would be the correct term to use for comaring one bulb to another.

1 candle power is the amount of light cast on one square foot of surface one foot away from a burning candle flame. Lumens and candlepower are 1:1. Candle power is somewhat subjective, because not all candle flames are equal, so a more scientifically measurable lumen is used to measure light. Because the public has become accustomed to CP it is still widely used.

[FL&WVMIKE]

Originally Posted by Chuck Sea/Tac

Interesting! Silver, the color isn't reflective, but silver, the metal is. Why is that?

Chuck Sea/Tac ..................
The color of silver paint is just a shade of grey paint. A brilliant white is much more bright.
MIKE

[Rock Hornbuckle]

Originally Posted by Chuck Sea/Tac

Interesting! Silver, the color isn't reflective, but silver, the metal is. Why is that?

It is beacuse of the CRI (color rendering index) of different surfaces. Silver paint is a mix of pigments, whereas the shinny side of aluminum foil is a substance. Without getting too technical. Light is measured in degrees Kelvin. A reflective surface will reflect radiant energy (heat) therefor it will reflect degrees Kelvin, where the paint absorbs radiant heat, therefor it absorbs light, but not as much as a dark paint. A simple experiment that you would be familiar with. Three objects placed in the sun (radiant heat) a black object gets very hot (absorbing the energy) a silver objects gets warm, but not hot, a piece of aluminum foil stays at ambient temperature, reflecting the energy. I know there will be some that will want to add more tech. to this, but it is a simple explanation, and not a college class on illumination engineering. Chuck, if you have been in the Macy's store in the SeaTac mall, I designed that lighting system in 1976, and was given a DOE award for the first energy efficient department store.

[Bruce Adams]

My LED's are as bright as most modern car's taillights. I have gone ALL RED since I believe I can't teach the world about amber brake lights versus turn signals. The Third Brake light is helpful too.
Here is a photo of the right turn signal on with the taillites also on.

[luckyal]

are the LED's available in 6 volt and if so do you know where ?
Thanks, Al

[jkeesey]

6 VOLT RED AMBER RIGHT L.E.D. ONLY For Year(s): 29-31

THIS IS A 6 VOLT DIRECT LED REPLACEMENT FOR THE MODLE A. This amber red lense with the clear license plate light (left side) are easy to install, just remove your old bulbs and plug in these new led’s. You might need to use a die grinder to enlarge the lens holes on your bezels. This set up is epoxy coated and fully sealed to keep mosture out of the electronics. This set up WILL NOT fit the Drum Tailight. Used 1929-31

Straight from the Brattons website. $32 and its the entire lens not just a bulb behind the glass.