...what is wrong with my sockets?

[TomInCologne]

mornin' guys and gals...


i am tearing the few hair i have left out. my car is working fine and i could be moving over to work on a few cosmetical issues... ... if there weren't all my problems with the lights.


I have the LED focused headlights in the front, bright light, fantastic, IF they have contact. I have soldered an additional earth connection to the spring that holds the socket in place in the headlamp but still, any vibration in the headlamp and the light goes on-off-on...


Now i have the same problem in my taillight. That's an incandescent lamp and if i move it in the socket: on-off-on... I have used some big pliers to re-shape the socket, didn't help.



Am i too bloody stupid? Is it a question of original vs. repro? Is there a trick involved? Please help me out here...

[Grier]

Can’t help on the focused LED’s, however I can relate to the brake light. I chased a similar issue as you described only to find out that the brake light bulb had an internal issue. The bulb filament was perfect, but a connection internal to the brass bulb was intermittent.

[TomInCologne]

Originally Posted by Grier

Can’t help on the focused LED’s, however I can relate to the brake light. I chased a similar issue as you described only to find out that the brake light bulb had an internal issue. The bulb filament was perfect, but a connection internal to the brass bulb was intermittent.

Thanks, but i am 100% sure the problem is the connection between socket and the bulb. i have tried a number of bulbs now and the problem persists...

[emf]

Your problem might be the socket itself. If the bulb is loose, you may try a piece of shim stock between the bulb base and the socket to improve the ground connection.


Frank

[Patrick L.]

It might need a ground wire soldered right from the socket rather than the spring.

[CT Jack]

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The following is a permanent solution:
Remove the headlight plugs (not a good Ford idea) and replace input headlight wires with A14486 male bullets and also the ends of each light socket wire. Soldered them do not squeeze them. Connect the wires with A14487 wire connectors which push together. The reference numbers are from Snyder's catalog. This change will provide a solid electrical connection, is easy to do and you can ride over bumps without losing your lights.

[Jim Brierley]

The problem could also be in the switch at the bottom of the steering column? Or it's a typical American made car???

[jrelliott]

I you follow CT Jack's suggestion and run a ground wire from the lamp bases to frame ground with star washers connecting between the terminal lug at the end of the ground wire attached to the bulb bases, then you should not have any problems. Solder all the connections. The ground wire will be hidden in the conduits and if black will be hard to see.

[TomInCologne]

To illustrate what i am talking about, i have done a little video:


https://youtube.com/shorts/AU3vlYpbUgY?feature=share

[Big hammer]

Are the springs in the sockets missing the springs that push against the lamp terminals? You should need to push the lamp against the springs and then turn the lamp to lock it into the sockets! A video without the reflector would help us see what’s going on.

[TomInCologne]

just had a look at that:


- the springs in the socket are pushing against the bulb
- the socket is loose in the reflector


shall i just bend the opening in the reflectror?

[Planojc]

I think CT Jack has your answer.

[TomInCologne]

more moving pictures:


https://youtu.be/v5k-kMXBrlw

[TomInCologne]

Originally Posted by Planojc

I think CT Jack has your answer.

i don't think so, the iffy connection is not between the wire TO the socket and the wiring harness of the car (Those i replaced with Wago-connectors months ago) but between the bad fit/connection between the socket and the reflector.

[Big hammer]

Originally Posted by TomInCologne

more moving pictures:


https://youtu.be/v5k-kMXBrlw

Ok the lamp is tight in the socket! Thumps up! The lamp and socket needs to move in the reflector for adjusting the focus with old style lamps. The focus adjusting screw and spring will/should keep the socket and lamp from movement. I tighten the screw all the way in short of shorten out on the wires on the backside of the socket. One of my headlights adjusting screw back out and I lost the screw, make clearance so the screw doesn’t short out against the screw end

[nkaminar]

It looks like you have the self focusing LED headlight bulb, in which case you can just adjust the focusing to move the contact all the way forward. Or rig something to keep the contacts forward, like epoxy (but make sure the outside of the socket is grounded). If the bulb does still not make contact, build up the contacts on the back of the bulb with ordinary solder to make them stand out further. If all this fails, solder the wires onto the back of the bulb and use some brass shim stock to keep the bulb tight in the socket. The LED will last a long time so you need not have to change it for years.

[Y-Blockhead]

With the new Focused LED lights, you don't need the original focus system. I would tighten or even solder the socket to the reflector to keep it from moving.

I did my connectors like in post #6 (ensure you add the dash, A-, or Snyder's search engine can't find the part). I would also add a separate ground wire as was suggested.

[TomInCologne]

so, okay, update...


I took the sockets out and soldered some ground wire to is. That's not so easy as the sockets are chrome plated. i filed of some material to get some better connection but it still looked fragile. So i took the insulation on the wire further off and the soldered the ground wire to both sides. Looks horrible but does the job.


This gave me a ground connection between the two sockets, headlight and parking light which already improved the situation. The lights do not go out once i wiggle the headlights. i call this 'problem solved'


Sometime in future i will also extend the ground wire to a nice contact point under the hood. in future, not now...


What i also observed was that LED lights like to flicker. Where an incandescent lamp will just go darker a bit and the eye won't notice it, the LED will go 'on-off-on', noticeable to the eye.

[German guy]

TomInCologne,


I know that this will probably get me tossed out of the forum for blasphemy ...but...I had a similar problem and wrapped some aluminum foil around the base of the bulb and the problem stopped. I know...very tacky...but it worked.

[oldspert]

My MAC will not play the videos. Keeps telling me they are private and will not play either of them.