Gary Lewis Posted December 8, 2021 Share Posted December 8, 2021 Out with the old: In with the new: I also removed the A pillar trim on both sides, cleaned them, and recolored them (so far SM Arnold Vinyl/Plastic Restorer in "Doeskin" is turning out the nicest). Both sides were cracked but not beyond repair so I scuff-sanded the back sides around the cracks, duct-taped the fronts to hold the cracks closed, then put on 1 ply of fiberglass BID and epoxy. When that cures I'll re-finish the front sides just to get a bit of the coloring agent into the crack and they should be ready to re-install. I'm now starting to bench-test electrical components. I got all the light bulbs sorted out, only needed to replace two. I apparently have the "blue" light lenses, which isn't actually my favorite but I don't want to bother changing it. Testing the gauges has been a little harder. I know the fuel level gauge is not working so I decided to start with that. I carefully traced out the IP circuits and set up a test rig. The gauge did move but from halfway to way-past-full as I moved the sender between its limits which is probably because I couldn't find an 8-9ohm resistor handy. I'm going to proceed on the assumption that the gauge is fine and the sender is bad (or the wiring is flakey, plenty of other wires were messed up so far). That's good because it means I can start re-assembling the dash. The new looks good! The old looks...yukky! On the gauges, the range is from 10 to 72 ohms, with 22 ohms being midpoint, if I remember correctly. And this would be a good time to replace the ICVR with a real voltage regulator. We have a page on that (Documentation/Electrical/ICVR) but there are now commercial versions if you don't want to make your own. And you are right to assume the gauge is good and the sender bad. The gauges are pretty rugged and rarely fail while the senders fail frequently. On the lights, I'd ditch the blue filters and put in some HIPO LED's. The blue filters rob so much of the light output of the already woefully inadequate incandescent bulbs you can't see the gauges. I've done some testing with various lights, and you can see the results here. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
taskswap Posted December 8, 2021 Author Share Posted December 8, 2021 The new looks good! The old looks...yukky! On the gauges, the range is from 10 to 72 ohms, with 22 ohms being midpoint, if I remember correctly. And this would be a good time to replace the ICVR with a real voltage regulator. We have a page on that (Documentation/Electrical/ICVR) but there are now commercial versions if you don't want to make your own. And you are right to assume the gauge is good and the sender bad. The gauges are pretty rugged and rarely fail while the senders fail frequently. On the lights, I'd ditch the blue filters and put in some HIPO LED's. The blue filters rob so much of the light output of the already woefully inadequate incandescent bulbs you can't see the gauges. I've done some testing with various lights, and you can see the results here. Gary do you have a link or a product number for the HiPo Cool Whites from your other post? I really like the look of them but can't seem to find them in current searches... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gsmblue Posted December 8, 2021 Share Posted December 8, 2021 Gary do you have a link or a product number for the HiPo Cool Whites from your other post? I really like the look of them but can't seem to find them in current searches... From my last hipo order: 245 lumen 20x Plasma SMD Bulb 194 T-10 Wedge - 360 Wide Angle Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gsmblue Posted December 8, 2021 Share Posted December 8, 2021 From my last hipo order: 245 lumen 20x Plasma SMD Bulb 194 T-10 Wedge - 360 Wide Angle Link https://www.hipoparts.com/245-lumen-20x-plasma-smd-bulb-194-t-10-wedge-360-wide-angle/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gary Lewis Posted December 8, 2021 Share Posted December 8, 2021 Gary do you have a link or a product number for the HiPo Cool Whites from your other post? I really like the look of them but can't seem to find them in current searches... I think this is what you are looking for: https://www.hipoparts.com/245-lumen-20x-plasma-smd-bulb-194-t-10-wedge-360-wide-angle/ If you talk to them, tell Bill I sent you. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gary Lewis Posted December 8, 2021 Share Posted December 8, 2021 Link https://www.hipoparts.com/245-lumen-20x-plasma-smd-bulb-194-t-10-wedge-360-wide-angle/ Beat me to it. You like yours? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gsmblue Posted December 8, 2021 Share Posted December 8, 2021 Link https://www.hipoparts.com/245-lumen-20x-plasma-smd-bulb-194-t-10-wedge-360-wide-angle/ Beat me to it. You like yours? I have them in all 3 of my musketeers! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gary Lewis Posted December 8, 2021 Share Posted December 8, 2021 I have them in all 3 of my musketeers! Isn't it great to be able to see the instruments!?!? What color did you get? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
taskswap Posted December 8, 2021 Author Share Posted December 8, 2021 Isn't it great to be able to see the instruments!?!? What color did you get? This forum is the single greatest thing that ever happened to the task of restoring an old Ford. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gary Lewis Posted December 8, 2021 Share Posted December 8, 2021 This forum is the single greatest thing that ever happened to the task of restoring an old Ford. Wow! That is high praise! Thanks! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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