Thread: Turnsignal Bulbs

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The turnsignals on my 1930 Chevy are not very bright, nor are the brake lights. Is it as simple as changing to led bulbs to get brigher lights?

Are you running a 12V system, and what bulbs are you using now? What type of lights are you running, and are the reflectors inside clean and shiny to reflect the light as intended? Is your wiring sound, and do you have good grounds at every point? Many times dim bulbs points to a grounding problem.

12V system that has been recently rewired with a Painless wiring harness with standard auto bulbs.

Ya gotta be careful when grabbing the 'standard' bulbs, as most of them are available in a low and high watt (power). The higher power will make more heat, the led s run cool. However! Led s can cause trouble for your turn signals. Mileage may vary.

OK, we're half way there with 12V and new Painless wiring but first lets talk about the lights and grounds. Are your light assemblies new, or old OEM's from the '30's? Reflectors bright & shiny? Most important, when you wired in that new harness did you pay special attention to grounding? Is the battery ground to your engine, but with a like sized cable from that terminal to the chassis? Is the body grounded to the chassis other than by the body bolts, with bonding straps across all body joints where you expect electricity to flow? Are you relying on socket to body contact for your light circuit ground, and if so have you checked that you have good contact to clean metal? What's the number on your bulbs? A 2057, 1157 or 2357 all fit the same socket (if you have the old style sockets), but like firebird says, the candlepower ratings vary, sacrificing some bulb life for more brightness (see the table below):

2057 Low: 2 CP 5000 hour life
2057 High: 32 CP 1200 hour life
1157 Low: 3 CP 5000 hour life
1157 High: 32 CP 1200 hour life
2357 Low: 3 CP 5000 hour life
2357 High: 40 CP 400 hour life

Since you've said that the problem is your turn & brake lights changing bulbs is not going to fix your problem unless you go to the 2357 which has very significant reduced life. Have you confirmed that you wired your sockets right, using the "high" position for signals and the "low" for your park/tail light circuit? If you have them reversed you'll have drop dead bright park & tail lights, but your signals & brakes will be all but invisible.

Not meaning to be negative in any way here but the solution to your problem could be any of several areas, and to get to the bottom of it you've got to look at everything.