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Taillight LED Bulbs 1157

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gpd294 View Drop Down
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    Posted: 02-September-2015 at 5:13AM
Hey Guys,
I recently had a taillight bulb go out so I figured I'd upgrade to LEDS. I ordered the LEDS below and attempted to install them. Since the bulb bases have the little pegs on them they only install one way. Either I was doing something wrong or I got the wrong bulbs because I couldn't get them to work.
The notes on the website say to "just flip them" around and they would work, which was true, but obviously they wouldn't stay connected because of these small pegs on the bases of the bulbs (one upper and one lower).  
Just wondering if anyone else has these LEDS and what their thoughts are on them? Am I missing something here because I was under the impression they were just a plug and play type of deal. Confused
 
 
Carlos....1975 Gran Torino Squire Station Wagon restored to look like a 1973 Torino Station

Wagon my Dad bought new from McAnary Ford on June 6, 1973 in Gary,Indiana
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robot9000 View Drop Down
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote robot9000 Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 02-September-2015 at 6:00AM
I picked up a set this summer.  I too had 2 of the 6 sockets not accept them, so I filed off the offending peg a bit and it seems to work.

Positives: about 500 Billion Trillion times brighter brake lights and turn signals.  Yeah, worth it.

Negative:  the bulbs are not the best at being on, then brighter such as when you have your headlights on then brake or use the turn signal. There is not that much difference btw the two brightness's.

One of my plans is to replace all the sockets in the rear lights of my 73 with new ones that truly fit 1157's.  I am also going to upgrade my dash with LED's.

Oh, and I did NOT have to use an external ballast to have my turn signal blinker relay work. On some cars, the LED's don't draw enough juice to get the relay to work.  Not the case here.
1973 Gran Torino Sport
2010 Mazda 6
2007 Jeep Wrangler
2011 Damon Daybreak 35BD
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TV 2M8O View Drop Down
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote TV 2M8O Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 18-September-2015 at 2:26AM
My understanding of how a diode (LED) works is that the power will only "flow" in one direction... from positive to negative and the diode will emit light, however if the LEDs are assembled backwards, they won't light up because the power can't flow the diode negative to positive.
 
So I would think if you have to rotate the bulb 180 degrees for it to illuminate, the bulbs are assembled backwards and thus "defective" because the tits prevent it from being installed backwards.
 
Also the 1157's are actually two bulbs in one.... a tail light and a stop light so there should be a noticeable difference between one circuit being lit compared to both being on. Can you tell if half of the LEDs are off when only the tail light circuit is hot??

TV 2M8O OUT
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1976 Gran Torino S&H season 2-4 Clone
Project Blog: http://tv2m8o.blogspot.com/
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gpd294 View Drop Down
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote gpd294 Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 18-September-2015 at 2:50AM
Originally posted by TV 2M8O TV 2M8O wrote:

Can you tell if half of the LEDs are off when only the tail light circuit is hot??
 
Ya know I started getting a lil frustrated when attempting to install them because I thought they were a plug n play type thing so I didn't check the taillight versus brake light illumination. Also I had to physically hold the bulb in the socket just to get it to illuminate.
 
I contacted the vender and they refunded half of what I paid to avoid having to send them back and pay shipping, etc. I still have them in my toolbox. Maybe one day when I am bored I'll mess with them again and file the lil "tit/peg" off and try again.
Carlos....1975 Gran Torino Squire Station Wagon restored to look like a 1973 Torino Station

Wagon my Dad bought new from McAnary Ford on June 6, 1973 in Gary,Indiana
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