[rick1276]

Hey all,

I have a '66 GTO and have some eBay LED rear brake lamps. They are not that bright and have 68 chips in them. Does anyone else have a '66 GTO with LED's installed with some pics? Mine are ok at night, but on a sunny day with the chrome eyebrows, I'm told that they are very dim. I don't mind spending $25.00 or so per bulb if they will work on the 66 Goat.

Thanks

[Scott Stoneburg]

What brand did you buy.? Im about to switch to LEDs on my 67 firebird but dont want to run into any issues?

[rick1276]

Mine are eBay Chinese brand. The problem I am having is that my rear lights are obstructed by the factory engineered chrome eyebrows, and the fact that the lights are skinny to begin with.

[lust4speed]

Originally Posted by rick1276

Mine are eBay Chinese brand. The problem I am having is that my rear lights are obstructed by the factory engineered chrome eyebrows, and the fact that the lights are skinny to begin with.

Think you nailed the problem with the chrome eyebrows. Have a friend that has just about run out of ideas with his '66 making his brake lights visible during the daytime. Figure my '67 only has two bulbs a side and not three, but the '67 stop lights are much more visible to the car following in daylight hours -- and mine aren't that great.

[Schurkey]

1. How much voltage is getting TO the bulbs when the bulbs are LIT?

2. How much resistance is on the ground side of the bulbs?

3. How bright are they when you use the CORRECT incandescent bulbs?

[rick1276]

I know him..He's a great guy has a cool looking Orange 66 GTO...

Originally Posted by lust4speed

Think you nailed the problem with the chrome eyebrows. Have a friend that has just about run out of ideas with his '66 making his brake lights visible during the daytime. Figure my '67 only has two bulbs a side and not three, but the '67 stop lights are much more visible to the car following in daylight hours -- and mine aren't that great.

[rick1276]

Originally Posted by Schurkey

1. How much voltage is getting TO the bulbs when the bulbs are LIT?

2. How much resistance is on the ground side of the bulbs?

3. How bright are they when you use the CORRECT incandescent bulbs?

I can only answer number 3) they are a lot brighter than the stock Correct 1157 incandescent bulbs.

[Schurkey]

Originally Posted by rick1276

I can only answer number 3) they are a lot brighter than the stock Correct 1157 incandescent bulbs.

Bright (but not bright enough) with LEDs, dim with incandescent lamps?

First Guess: Rotted harness (high resistance) on the supply side, poor ground(s) or both. Low current delivery to bulbs.
Back probe the harness until you get suitable voltage, and then repair or replace harness/connections/switches as needed.

[wolf]

Mine are bright during the day and will blind you at night, with regular 1157 incandescent bulbs. New harnesses/sockets, cleaned and polished lenses, and cleaned and chrome painted the housings.

[rick1276]

Do you have a 66 GTO?

Originally Posted by wolf

Mine are bright during the day and will blind you at night, with regular 1157 incandescent bulbs. New harnesses/sockets, cleaned and polished lenses, and cleaned and chrome painted the housings.

[wolf]

I have two actually. There was an article in the May 2007 issue of HPP on restoring '66 GTO tail lights you might want to check out.

[rick1276]

I did restore my tail lamps and painted the housings white as it showed to do. If you have some pictures of your '66 brake lamps operating during the bright daylight that would be helpful so I can see how yours work compared to mine. Since you have two of them, that should be fairly easy.

Thanks

Originally Posted by wolf

I have two actually. There was an article in the May 2007 issue of HPP on restoring '66 GTO tail lights you might want to check out.

[wolf]

Originally Posted by rick1276

I did restore my tail lamps and painted the housings white as it showed to do.

That may be part of the problem. The housings need to be chrome painted, not white. Check the article again if you have it handy.

Originally Posted by rick1276

If you have some pictures of your '66 brake lamps operating during the bright daylight that would be helpful so I can see how yours work compared to mine. Since you have two of them, that should be fairly easy.

Not in the winter, unfortunately.

[67gtospud]

[QUOTE=wolf;5325442]That may be part of the problem. The housings need to be chrome painted, not white. Check the article again if you have it handy.



From what I have read, painting the inside of the housings flat white actually reflects more light than chrome

[wolf]

Originally Posted by 67gtospud

From what I have read, painting the inside of the housings flat white actually reflects more light than chrome

Flat white has diffuse reflectivity, so it's scattering the light in all directions, most of which you don't want for a tail light. Chrome has specular reflectivity (i.e. like a mirror). Since the housings have parabolic reflector surfaces designed in around each bulb, you want the surfaces to be specular, so the parabolic reflectors can vector the majority of the light in the proper (parallel) direction, normal to the lens. The lens design then further vectors the light in any additional intended directions. In the 40 or so years I've been doing this, I've never seen any automotive light housings painted flat white by the factory - they're all specular.

[67gtospud]

Originally Posted by wolf

Flat white has diffuse reflectivity, so it's scattering the light in all directions, most of which you don't want for a tail light. Chrome has specular reflectivity (i.e. like a mirror). Since the housings have parabolic reflector surfaces designed in around each bulb, you want the surfaces to be specular, so the parabolic reflectors can vector the majority of the light in the proper (parallel) direction, normal to the lens. The lens design then further vectors the light in any additional intended directions. In the 40 or so years I've been doing this, I've never seen any automotive light housings painted flat white by the factory - they're all specular.

Thank you for clearing that up, now I have to get around to restoring my housings

[Chris65LeMans]

Anybody have a suggestion for chrome paint to use on the housings?

[rexs73gto]

If you want the full effect of the chrome painted insides of your tail lamps there are several companys that can do the real chrome look paint on the inside of your tail lamp, because as you should already know the chrome paint that you get in the parts store when sprayed on any plastic surface looks more like a flat silver paint rather then chrome, but you can send in your tail lamp housings & there are companys that can do the what looks like actual chrome on the inside of them so the bulbs will reflact much better. There are some paints out to that have a metalic fleck in it that reflects light better but I've never used it for that reason. It may work better to if you use a white color of the metalic fleck paint.

[wheelspin]

Originally Posted by Chris65LeMans

Anybody have a suggestion for chrome paint to use on the housings?

Chris,
I used Dupli-Color's "Chrome" when I restored the Goat's rr lights. Shine up the lenses with plastic polish, clean the light buckets with Acetone before painting , & install along with new lens gaskets while you have the buckets off the car.

[lust4speed]

Given the severity of the tail light problem and the lack of a solution, my '66 owning friends might consider the following...

The funny part is there is absolutely no reflector, one bulb, and they're still really bright.