There's a pretty cool article in the tech section for headlight relays in older model Ford pick ups.
Anybody tried it yet? If so, how difficult was it? And was it worth the trouble?
Mike

 

I havent tried it, but I would say it'd be worth it. Lights hooked up through a relay get 100% of the power.

Once I get the body on and start reworking the electrical, i'll have the headlights, all auxilary lights and some accessories (maybe even the parking lights) on relays along with a newer fuse box.

 

Yes Doc, It works like a charm.

Although there are a couple of other articles that do a neater job of wiring it all up.

I'll see if I can find them.

The one we have here is called : Whiter Whites <> Brighter Brights

 

Dennis,
Yes...whiter whites is the article I was looking at. I didn't know there were any others. Thanks for your help.
Mike

 

Aside from these two, there are others already posted in the forums.

http://members.iweb.net.au/~pstorr/r...ric/switch.htm

Headlight swap

EDIT:

http://www.danielsternlighting.com/t...ys/relays.html

http://www.rowand.net/Shop/Tech/Wiri...ightRelays.htm

Search " Headlight Relays " to find them.

 

Ok Dennis, thanks a bunch for the help.

 

I did it to my '79 about a year ago. I used to dread driving it at night. I have a light meter and I tested before and after and the difference is amazing. I can't remember the readings I was getting, but it seems like it was around 50% more light. I then replaced the lamps with some from wally world (the ones in the red box) and got even more and whiter light. Well worth the $30 (including new lamps) and a hour or so it took to do it.

 

If you want a really trick setup check your local boneyard for newer crown vics or Lincolns. They have a killer fuse/relay box that can be used for this to make a super clean looking electrical system and it works great for accessories too.

 

Jim, Thanks a bunch for the feed back. I work from 11 PM to 7 AM and needless to say, my eyes aren't what they once were. This relay thing may just be what I need.
Ivan, Thanks for the tip on the crown vics and the lincolns. I went to the local auto parts stores a couple of weeks ago to start getting an idea on prices and what parts I needed. The prices weren't bad at all, but I didn't realy see anything that I would like mounted up on my fender well. If I can scrounge up some type of factory part, I'm all for it. Where is the fuse/relay box located in these cars?
Does anyone have a picture or 2 of the relay set up in a truck like ours to get a visual on where things are located and how they mount?
Mike

 

For $29.95 you can buy a complete kit from LMC truck catalog that will convert your existing wiring harness to a heavy duty harness with two separate relays (one for low beams and one for high beams) it also features the OE style headlight sockets for easy installation with no splicing or cutting required. For the price and a clean install this is definitely the kit to get.

 

Thanks for the info Ivan.

 

I would rather support my local electronic's store

http://www.be-electronics.ca/

My system wiring was under $11.00 cdn

 

I did the relay conversion to my 76 highboy and changed to H-4 conversion headlights with new headlight sockets and dimmer switch
I mounted a fuse black and the relays on the inner fender between the battery and the starter solenoid, the 4 circuit fuse block spares were used for the hoist feed and brake controller and with some plastic loom it looks almost "factory"

 

Highboy, I apreciate the tip, but I don't do business with LMC.
Brownfoot, Thank you for that description. That gives me a pretty good mental immage on how it should be.
Mike

 

I did the headlight upgrade using relays to my 1979 yesterday. Ivan gave good advice about using the power distribution box from a Lincoln. A generic "Bosch-type" relay fits perfectly into one of the 4 relay openings. I didn't use the Lincoln's metal bracket that holds the box to the inner fender, but one from a Mustang. The bracket from the Mustang has a cutout for the wires to pass through coming out of the box and originally in a Mustang was mounted to the side of the fender so there was no need to drill more holes in the bracket to mount it in the truck.