I'm going to convert ny head lights to the brighter head lights using the tech article on this forum. My question is that I coundn't find the 20 amp relay the closest I could get was a 30 amp would this make a difference I have a 55 f100 with EZ wiring 18 circuit harness.
Thanks in advance

 

In my very humble opinion the 30 amp would work just fine, in a relay the more amps it is rated at the better, but I have been wrong before.

 

You, like I, may have been wrong before but you are correct this time
The higher a relay is rated in amps the more current it can handle.

 

I guess the recommendation is using at least a 20 amp relay and fuse accordingly.

 

There was some discussion on the forum a while back about what lights to get to replace the original sealed beams in our trucks. I have not bought any yet but I seem to remember someone complaining about significant pitting/scratching problems of the lenses on some of the new ccc (cheap china crap) lights. Anyone with experience good or bad?

 

Thanks for the info Guys; I have some updated light that are suppose to be sorta blue however, my current wiring doesn't provide the power needed to make them bright enough. I guess I'l rewire them next weekend if all goes well.

 

I tried those headlights in my late model and was very unsatisfied with them. They were not as blue as advertised, no brighter than my stock headlights, and burned out after about six weeks of use. I put the stock lights back in my truck...

 

If you are 6 volt there is no help, if you are 12 volt I like the Bosch flat faced conversion with 40 (?)/100 watt H4 bulbs via relays, but I have been wrong before.

 

Here is a Brite idea I found on the net.
It shows wireing up relays for the newer lights, both one (upper) and two bulb systems.

 

A great Bright idea and safer. It keeps the high amp draw circuits out in the engine bay and not under the dash or in the fuse panel. I think we have all seen melted fuse panels on older vehicles. If I had a shorted wire fire on a high amp circuit I would rather it be on the engine bay than in the cab area. Lights, electric radiator fans, hoist ect. on relays are the way to go. Have a great day,chuck

 

one word of caution..... well, really more than one word... I can't do one word

relays ?? use as large as you want ...the higher the rating - the larger the contacts and the less chance of burning out the relay points... translation ---- it last longer..


fuses ??? fuse them for the correct amount. the fuse is your safety equipment. if you over fuse, i.e. 30 or 40 amp you lose the protection the fuse is supposed to give you to prevent over current conditions... translation --- if you have a short - there will be smoke and possibly fire.

I don't know the wattage rating of the lamps you want to use, but if they are say 100 watt headlamps then

Current =100 Watts / 13.5Volts which = 7.4 Amps. Two would give you a 15 amp draw... I wouldn't fuse more than 20 amps...

another consideration is the voltage drop of the wire you're using... it can be considerable.

there is an excellent chart (linked below) that explains this much better than I can

Electro Tech



Personally I disagree slightly with the diagram that Penn Dick offered. I like my grounds to be the same gauge as my power feeds.... just personal preference. The difference in cost is negligible. I know the Big 3 use lighter gauge grounds but I think if it's in the path... it should be the same but hey, if I had an EE I wouldn't be doing what I do now

later
John

 

John,
I see that web site is originally for Land Rovers, makes perfect sense they would have a site about wiring, the early Land Rovers, like most English cars had wiring made by Joseph Lucas & Company, ……….also know as “The Prince of Darkness”.
<O
I was talking to a old mechanic one day and he sad that the smoke that comes from electrical wires is “Factory Smoke”, because every wire comes from the factory with that smoke built in.

Ray.

 

I recently added HD headlights to my 56. They use separate halogen bulbs (white or blue) and a heavy duty relay harness. I bought all from LMC. The headlights were $35 each and the harness was $30.

The harness plugs into one of the regular headlight sockets to use the truck's switches (high and low beam), then routes all through the relays. It requires two 30 amp fused wires to the harness for power. The harness is a little bulky, but I managed to fit it all withouts modification into the driver headlight bucket so that all of it is contained within the grill. The install was very easy.


The truck isn't on the road yet, so I don't know how long they will last, but I think they look cool, and bright is good.

 

Time for my re-statement of the smoke theory
Electricity is a theory.............. so with that in mind there is no such thing as electricity, aka little miniature electrons floating around in wire and electronics. Everything electrical is powered by smoke. This can be proven by the fact if you short out a wire, electrical appliance, electronic device etc smoke is produced....well actually not produced it leaks out. Then you will find said device no longer works, as the smoke has leaked out. Also you can try and catch the smoke, but no matter how hard you try you will never catch it all............... as once it is free from its container, aka wire, appliance etc, as it disappears quickly. Furthermore you will never be able to get it back into the container as this a only possible at the factory.... I believe it is a Union job so you can not do it at home LOLOLOLOLOL

 

My friend installed the HD lights on his truck. I didn't see much difference from before as far as brightness. I have the halogens in mine and leaving them that way. They are bright enough for me. I actually think mine are as bright as my friends.