dash lights
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Freshman User
Joined: Aug 2001
Posts: 48
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From: san diego
dash lights
i having problems with my dash lights and any info would be appreciated. when i turn on my head lights the dash lights are dim and when i adjust the brightness to make them brighter they go dark sometimes and i have to fiddle with the light switch to get them to work. my headlights and all my other lights work fine. could this be the headlight switch getting worn out?
dads77 f250 2wd custom
dads77 f250 2wd custom
Postmaster
Joined: Apr 2000
Posts: 2,881
Likes: 1
From: North of Tulsa, Oklahoma
dash lights
I was wondering...Can these light switches just be taken apart and cleaned internally? What would wear out inside the switches? (My dash lights are too bright either, so I was suspecting the bulbs to be the problem?)
Posting Guru
Joined: Jun 1999
Posts: 2,415
Likes: 3
From: Comox Valley, Canada
dash lights
>I was wondering...Can these light switches just be taken
>apart and cleaned internally? What would wear out inside the
>switches? (My dash lights are too bright either, so I was
>suspecting the bulbs to be the problem?)
The bulbs do burn out eventually, as do all bulbs. If there are dark sections on the dash, even with the lights turned to full bright, you may have some bulbs burnt out. If the entire dash doesnt go very bright I would suspect the rheostat in the headlight switch, or a great amount of dead bulbs.
You could always pull the instrument panel forward and see if the bulbs are working and going full bright. When you turn the headlight switch all the way the light should be full bright at the end of the switch travel, and as soon as you move the switch the other way you should see the lights dim some.
The rheostat does get dirty and gummed up, usually the wire coils break though.
Since you have to remove the headlight switch to change it you could always try and clean the rheostat before you get a new switch. The rheostat is the circular coils of wire you will see near the front of the switch housing.
But for the cost of it a new one is a good solution. Hope this helps.
Sparky
>apart and cleaned internally? What would wear out inside the
>switches? (My dash lights are too bright either, so I was
>suspecting the bulbs to be the problem?)
The bulbs do burn out eventually, as do all bulbs. If there are dark sections on the dash, even with the lights turned to full bright, you may have some bulbs burnt out. If the entire dash doesnt go very bright I would suspect the rheostat in the headlight switch, or a great amount of dead bulbs.
You could always pull the instrument panel forward and see if the bulbs are working and going full bright. When you turn the headlight switch all the way the light should be full bright at the end of the switch travel, and as soon as you move the switch the other way you should see the lights dim some.
The rheostat does get dirty and gummed up, usually the wire coils break though.
Since you have to remove the headlight switch to change it you could always try and clean the rheostat before you get a new switch. The rheostat is the circular coils of wire you will see near the front of the switch housing.
But for the cost of it a new one is a good solution. Hope this helps.
Sparky
Postmaster
Joined: Apr 2000
Posts: 2,838
Likes: 6
From: SD
dash lights
[font color=red size=2]I had very dim dash lights on my '73 F100, so I finally tore the panel apart to see why. I removed the guage cluster and took it apart. There are plastic covers over the bulbs that make the light greenish colored, these plastic covers weren't very transparent anymore, very cloudy. So I removed them, and cleaned the inside of the cluster (very dusty). That made a huge difference. The guages have white lights, but are very bright, no trouble seeing them now! And if you want colored guages, you can get tinted bulbs to make it what ever color you want...blue, green, red...
Just a thought.
Marty
'73 F100 390[/font]
Just a thought.
Marty
'73 F100 390[/font]
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Thread Starter
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Freshman User
Joined: Aug 2001
Posts: 48
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From: san diego
dash lights
i went out and bought a new switch for $14.99 and it took me about 10 minutes to change out. and now they work like they are supposed to, with out going out.
dads77
dads77
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