Jump to content

Vermonter

Members
  • Posts

    53
  • Joined

  • Last visited

Reputation

8 Neutral

2 Followers

Profile Information

  • Gender
    Male
  • Location
    Montpelier, Vermont
  • Interests
    Rat rods, hot rods, vintage german, hondas, cafe racers, bobbers, car shows, swap meets, model building, hotwheel collecting, home DIY, building projects, mini motorhomes, and pitbulls.
  • My Project Cars
    1951 Chrysler Windsor Deluxe Coupe (Current)
    1967 Volkswagen Squareback (recently sold)
    1979 Honda Goldwing GL1000 (Daily Summer Driver)
    1987 Toyota 22re 4cyl. Motorhome (Current)
    2005 Honda CRV SE (Wife owned but my Project)
    2010 Honda Element SC (Daily Driver)

Contact Methods

  • Biography
    First time Mopar owner, first time pre-1967 vehicle owner, first time flathead owner.
  • Occupation
    Shipping/Receiving at Keurig Green Mountain (GMCR)

Recent Profile Visitors

962 profile views
  1. I will check that. It's getting to the point where I should start having some time to dig into this project.
  2. Thank you. So I'd assume the 35/35w halogen bulbs I found should be fine then?
  3. I've also considered something, and please tell me if I'm wrong.... The big concern with the H4 upgrade seems to be the amount of added current that needs to pass through your original wiring and headlight switch when using a 55/60watt bulb. With the advancements made in L.E.D. bulbs, could a 12w L.E.D. H4 bulb be used in the new H4 housing, dropping the wattage WELL below what the original system was designed to handle? And wouldn't that eliminate the need for added relays? Or is wattage not the concern? I know wattage isn't the same as ohms, voltage, current, etc...I'm no electrician and I have only basic understanding of how a 12 or 6v system works so I'm relying on input here. Thanks! ***EDIT*** I found a bulb on ebay; 6v 35/35w H4 Clearly states "WILL NOT OVERHEAT STOCK WIRING" in the description. I'm assuming the demand for updated, yet original-like lighting must have peaked enough interest in the aftermarket and they decided to make a bulb to fit those needs. 1 Bulb is $10.19 Shipped. I was not looking forward to using an L.E.D. bulb, as I knew the light output would be barely better than the original headlight. I guess this sounds like a solution? What do you guys think? Use this bulb in an aftermarket H4 headlight with my bullseye lens swapped onto the housing? WHAT IS THE ORIGINAL WATTAGE RATING FOR HIGH/LOW FOR THE AUTOLITE BULLSEYE HEADLIGHT?
  4. I appreciate the feedback. I know it's probably not the popular decision, but I'm not going to restore the headlights "the right way", simply because I intend on driving this car daily (as long as it continues to run). I want the upgraded light system simply for a safety factor. I figure the lens is the rare part, the headlight housing can always be sourced from another old car if someone in the future wants to rebuild these headlights. At least they will have the glass in one piece to work with. I think I may just buy the generic H4 housings and go that route. I have read about the relay wiring upgrade needed, but I was unclear about it because I'm not sure why you would need it as long as you were using 6v headlights. Obviously I need to spend some time reading up on that. Thanks for the input, guys. Also- No, I have not started the car yet. It's still very much winter here and it'll be spring before I even have the motivation to do anything with it. The car is outside and it's too cold to turn wrenches. I have a guy down the road who apparently knows the engine like the back of his hand and he's very interested in hearing it run. It's good to know people. I will keep updating as I go, but don't expect much until warm weather is here. Thanks!
  5. Well I was able to peel off the glass lens without any damage to the glass itself. I think ebay has the H4 6v sealed units for $70, but I'm not sure If additional wiring will be needed or if they are a direct swap out. I guess I need to do some more reading.
  6. Technically No, because there's always a chance that the distributer is busted. In theory. It's been a while and my memory isn't great so I may have already mentioned this, but the previous owner replaced the distributor and there was no change (he clamins it was the right length, which tells me he was at least knowledgable enough to know there were 2 options). Although it's doubtful that the distributor could actually be so broken that it wouldn't turn is highly unlikely, I do appreciate Jeffs troubleshooting tip. And it would be quite fun and fulfilling to watch a screwdriver spinning around in that hole... When I get the time I am going to try it without a screwdriver first. If there's no movement (which there won't be) I might try the screwdriver out of desperation. Who knows, it might give me some insight to what's going on. I seem to remember the previous owner saying that he removed the oil pump and it was fine... leaving me to beleive in my original theory that the Cam is FUBAR'd. As far as the headlights go, I'm not entirely convinced I want an H4 bucket. I don't want to run extra relays and I'd like to have as much original parts and proper pieces as I can afford or realistically keep. My idea for the nickle plating seemed like a good way to reatin all that, so Tod do you have any personal experience with working with Uvira? Do you know what they charge? I will check them out. Thank you
  7. Can anyone confirm if nickle plating the old reflectors will give it a sufficient light reflection and "look" for keeping the headlights as original as possible? I'm not really sure how you would restore an old sealed beam.
  8. I am working at releasing the glass from the reflector...not easy to do but I am hopeful. I'm thinking I want to try and save the reflectors and try to nickle plate them to give them their shine back and re-use them. The idea of keeping the car original as possible is in my interest. I heard if you upgrade to the H4's you have to add relays because of the extra draw of the H4's. Don't know if it's true but I've seen it done that way in a magazine and I didn't like it.
  9. Yea I was just thinking out loud. Pretty sure the h4 upgrades are not "sealed", as the bulbs are removable. That's the case on my motorcycle anyway, when I upgraded to h4.
  10. Thank you for the input. I'm trying to keep it as close to factory as possible, so I may not attempt the h4 retrofit. I'd like to attempt to take a replacement 6v sealed beam and swap out the glass to retain the sealed beam headlights, but it really boils down to how much motivation I have vs the benefit. I know h4's will produce a brighter output so that could be worth it.
  11. I saw an old thread where Alshere59 used his OEM glass headlight lenses and slapped them on to a hella reflector. I have been wondering about restoring the headlights in my 51 and was thinking about doing a similar approach. I want to remove my bullseye lenses and put them on some over the counter 6v headlights so I can basically "restore" the original bullseye lamp. All of the reflective surface on the inside of my headlamps have chipped away and my headlights appear dull and black. Normally I am okay with the old tired look, but I'm more concerned about safety and night driving. Aside from Alshere59's approach using acid and electro methods, is there a way to safely and easily pry the glass from the housing, or is there another method that will work? I'm sure I can't be only the second person to attempt this. Thanks
  12. I'm getting about 12mpg at any given time. Living in the northeast I assume decreases the number a bit. I expect i'd get better mpg in a flatter area. Also I could use a tune up and alignment.
×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

We have placed cookies on your device to help make this website better. You can adjust your cookie settings, otherwise we'll assume you're okay to continue.

Terms of Use