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LED bulbs for dashboard switches

May 28, 2016, 02:54:07 pm

In an attempt to fit in better here on Foreforums, I tried to convert some incandescent bulbs to LED. Of course it didn't work and I'm still a weirdo, but at least I'm useful as a bad example you can learn from.    I ordered some of those tiny LED indicator bulbs to replace the incandescent 74  bulbs in the dashboard switches. One of my switches gets used a lot and burns out the incandescent bulb every few months so I wanted a longer lasting bulb. One problem I noticed right away is the LED bulb isn't small like the incandescent bulb, even though I ordered the smallest LED bulb I could find to fit that socket. I modified the switch internally to accept the larger LED bulb. The LED bulb lit up great the first time I tried it. After I turned the switch off the LED wouldn't light up again the next time I turned the switch on. I tried another LED bulb just to see if this was an isolated incident. The second bulb did the same thing. The bulb is supposedly made for 12 volt DC and I had the polarity correct. Beware that if you order some of those tiny LED indicator bulbs they probably won't be as small as the incandescent bulbs and the quality seems to be lacking. They are brighter than the incandescent bulbs, but that doesn't matter for an indicator bulb. The color is sorta blue / white, but the switch has a red lens on it so that doesn't matter either. Hope my unscientific study helps someone avoid a little frustration... This is the bulb I ordered:

10x T5 37 58 70 73 74 Car Auto Dashboard Gauge 1 LED Wedge Side Light Bulb...

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Re: LED bulbs for dashboard switches

Reply #1 – May 28, 2016, 03:04:50 pm

@Scott,

I had some LED indicator bulbs that failed quickly. I soldered a small resistor inline and they have yet to fail. Might be worth a try.

Thanks for the link I might order some of them to try. I too have grown tired of replacing those bulbs.

see ya
ken

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Re: LED bulbs for dashboard switches

Reply #2 – May 28, 2016, 03:40:51 pm

Those LED bulbs are skinny enough but they're too long to fit inside the switch. You'll see what I mean right away when you compare the incandescent to the LED. If you remove the switch from the dashboard you can pop the red lens out with a screwdriver through the back of the switch, giving you access to the plastic thingy that the LED bulb hits because it's too long. I used a small rat tail file to remove plastic until the bulb fit into the switch. I don't want to mess with the resistor so I'll order a bunch of incandescent bulbs and call it a cheap education. All the other LED bulbs I found appear to be too large to fit into the switch, which is why I ordered these tiny LED bulbs thinking they'd be small enough.

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Re: LED bulbs for dashboard switches

Reply #3 – June 12, 2016, 09:09:56 pm

I paid $10 and bought a hundred incandescent bulbs for the switches on my instrument panel... which I calculate should last me until I'm over a hundred years old at the rate I'm burning out those little bulbs...

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Re: LED bulbs for dashboard switches

Reply #4 – June 12, 2016, 11:42:11 pm

So why mess around with replacing the bulbs??  In 8 years I have not had a single bulb burn out.  If it aint broke, don't fix it !!  ----  Have a great day  ----  Fritz

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Re: LED bulbs for dashboard switches

Reply #5 – June 13, 2016, 10:15:36 pm

I burn out about two of those little bulbs per year. They're difficult to find sometimes. Now I have 99 spare bulbs and will never have to search for them again.

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