Headlight circuitry ?

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Model T Ford Forum: Forum 2013: Headlight circuitry ?
Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Bill Robinson Salty Bottom, AL on Thursday, September 26, 2013 - 09:26 pm:

2 Model T's- both with double contact sockets.

Car #1:
On DIM- one element burns.
On ON (bright)- both elements burn.

Car #2:
On DIM- one element burns.
On ON (bright)- the other element burns and switches the focal point on the wall. In other words only 1 element burns. Still 1 element, just switched left to right.

Question: Which switch is functioning properly?


Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By John F. Regan on Thursday, September 26, 2013 - 09:38 pm:

Car #2


Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Cameron Whitaker on Friday, September 27, 2013 - 12:14 am:

John's right.

However, they beam should not switch right to left when you switch from bright to dim. Some may say otherwise, but that's not true. It should shift up and down.

Basically, the new reproduction sockets are 90 degrees off. The filaments in the light bulbs should be positioned horizontally, not vertically. The headlight housing just needs to be modified a little so that you can rotate the socket 90 degrees.

Long story short, I always complained that with my stock 6-volt headlights, I could never see anything at night. I know that they are dim, but you should be able to see something at least. Especially in a rural road on a cloudy night. I tried adjusting them as per the Model T Service Manual instructions but could never get the right pattern. I wound up doing the modifications so that the filaments were oriented horizontally, not vertically.

Lo and behold, I was able to adjust the beams so they were exactly like the book said. Not only that, I could actually see where I was going at night! It was SO nice!


Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By John F. Regan on Friday, September 27, 2013 - 01:40 pm:

"I could actually see where I was going at night!"

That's cheating.


Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Bill Robinson Salty Bottom, AL on Friday, September 27, 2013 - 02:05 pm:

Thanks, I must now look at the switch & wiring on car #1.


Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Royce in Dallas TX on Saturday, September 28, 2013 - 08:39 am:

Should be like this:


Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Bill Robinson Salty Bottom, AL on Saturday, September 28, 2013 - 02:28 pm:

A neighbor and I found the problem.

After tracing, testing, and re-connecting the wiring we found lights work perfectly on dim & bright UNTIL the light switch is wiggled a bit. At a certain point, while the switch is on bright, we noticed the lights got brighter. At this certain point the bulbs were removed and both contacts in the bucket tested hot. This problem now points to the switch being defective.

A new question- If the car was run at night with both filaments burning, would the extra amperage draw put such a load on the generator that the fiber timing gear failed? Is this a possibility?


Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Royce in Dallas TX on Saturday, September 28, 2013 - 02:34 pm:

Fiber timing gears fail any old time. I had one fail on my '15 after less than a thousand miles from new. It doesn't have a generator at all.


Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Bob Jablonski on Saturday, September 28, 2013 - 03:35 pm:

Fiber timing gears NEVER fail in the garage..... just on the road.


Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By John F. Regan on Saturday, September 28, 2013 - 08:58 pm:

Bill:

Quick answer is no the extra load of additional light would not have caused the fiber timing gear to fail. It would only cause the battery to go dead quicker. A lot depends on what size battery you have in this setup. Maybe you could start by telling us the year of the car?


Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Bill Robinson Salty Bottom, AL on Saturday, September 28, 2013 - 09:30 pm:

John- the car is a '21 (Depot Hack).

I have always noticed that the ammeter registered higher on bright that on dim, but never put much thought to it. This past weekend I led a group back from an eating spot in country-road darkness and I realized how poor my headlights lit the road. Upon return, I decided to cleanup and focus the headlights on my cars. That is when I found that the hack lit both filaments on bright and the '26 coupe only lit one filament on bright.


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