Tail Light Sockets

[Chris]

Thought I'd pass this link onto you guys.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/65-66-67-SKYLARK-TAIL-LIGHT-BULB-SOCKET-W-PIGTAIL_W0QQcmdZViewItemQQ_trkparmsZ65Q3a12Q7c66Q3a2Q7c39Q3a1Q7c72Q3a1171Q7c293Q3a7Q7c294Q3a50QQ_trksidZp3286Q2ec0Q2em14QQhashZitem56330dc683QQitemZ370223728259QQptZMotorsQ5fCarQ5fTruckQ5fPartsQ5fAccessories

Someone on Ebay has a supply of replacement 65 tail light sockets.

This is a major problem area with the older cars when the metal contacts wear down over age and use and some of the latter year sockets do not interchange.

Year One also has a supplier that will build you a complete rear harness, just be prepared to wait six months as they are being made. 

Chris

[Loren At 65GS]

Chris,
I've allways rebuilt, restored, my own wireing harness' . Have been able to pickup the sockets at a couple of local parts stores. When I do the taillight harness, I add a ground to the circuit. One of the greatest problems I've found is the poor ground at the socket point.

I've done harness' for a couple of the guys cars.

Loren

[Chris]

Loren... now you tell me!    ;D

My new harness from Year One is on order.

John E. might want to know about your wiring skills (if he doesn't already).

I  think I remember him having some taillight issues a with his white coupe a couple of years ago at the Nationals (might be fixed by now).

What I'd really love to see is a LED replacement harness and bulb set that is just plug and play. 

These would be more reliable, burn brighter, longer and not operate as hot as the originals. 

Because of the location, most people would not even be able to tell that they were there.

Any takers on that project?   ???

Chris

[WkillGS]

What I'd really love to see is a LED replacement harness and bulb set that is just plug and play. 

These would be more reliable, burn brighter, longer and not operate as hot as the originals. 

And then add a sequencer to blink the lights like the old Cougars did! ;D
I always thought that was sooo cool.

[Loren At 65GS]

Chris, I plan on doing the taillight harness for his current restoration  and have allready told him so. I do have to reuse the main connectors, plastic pieces, when I do the harness' . When done, the end product looks allmost exactly like the original.

Walt, I agree, the taillight sequencing is cool and the same thought has run through my mind also.

Loren

[Chris]

The sequencer has run through my mind as well.

I remember the first time I seen this on a 60's T-Bird... so cool!

If anyone is listening.. we want these in two flavors.. LED lights with and without sequencers.  They should be plug and go with any of the circuitry as part of the harness so it all tucks away nicely in the trunk area.

Any takers?    ???

Chris

[Joe65SkylarkGS]

Sequential lights don't belong on our beloved BUICKS. Besides only 2 of the 3 are for blinking and brakes.

It's a Mercury thing. Gay.

And they have 1157 replacement LED bulbs out there allready. Granted it's not a system to replace

the whole harness but they have to run cooler and not draw as much. I hit my brakes and watch

the volts drop!!

[Mister T]

I read an article in a trucking magazine a couple of months ago about one of the truck lighting
companies developing a thin strip LED lighting system. Darned if I can think of which one.

Anyway, when I read it, the thought of sequential tailights immediately came to mind. I'll see
if I can find that story, but I may have already recycled that particular issue. I don't think it was
Grote Lights, but could be wrong.

[Chris]

Tom,

The bar design is how I've seen them done in the past when only 4 bulbs are present.

Essentially an LED bar replaces the bulb and socket so that you get the illusion of a continuous bar of lights.  A second tier of lights can act as your turn signal / brake lights.

I have a buddy I talked to this week about using my old harness that I'm replacing soon as a template to mock up a set of LED's.

He was telling me that it's a little more than just swapping out the glass bulb to an LED bulb as the 12 volt power needs tweaked a little with a circuit board to ensure maximum brightness and minimize any flickering.  He also ensured me that this didn't add a whole lot to the cost of things and this is also a good place to build any logic for sequential flashing etc.

I'll keep you all posted (even you Joe  ;D )

Chris

[nut465gs]

Loren,

I decided to re-wrap the taillight wiring harness on the silver convertible rather than buy a new one.  It looks great.  If it ain't broke, don't fix it. I plan to do the same for the engine and headlights harnesses also. Someone told me that the exposed colored wires can be cleaned up to look like new using lacquer thinner. I will practice on an old harness first.

Chris, on the white hardtop, the right side taillights and turnsignal lights work. It's just the right brake light function that doesn't work.  If it was a ground problem, you'd think that all right rear light functions would fail. Someone suggested that the problem is at the tilt steering column, as the rear light wiring has a junction connection there.  Still have not been able to track down the problem.

John

[Loren At 65GS]

John,
Are you talking about your white hardtop?
You are correct that the brake circuit goes through the signal circuit.
Loren

[nut465gs]

Loren,

Yup, the white hardtop has had this problem for years.  I've tried to isolate the problem, but I don't know enough about the electrical to solve it.  Do you think that the short is at the steering column wiring junction.

John

[Loren At 65GS]

I'll pull out a wireing diaghram and take a look, John.

Loren