Blue plastic lenses in dashboard pod removal

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Andrew 2.8i
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Re: Blue plastic lenses in dashboard pod removal

Post by Andrew 2.8i »

Jasonmarie wrote:Yes I agree they should be fine but before they go in mine I am going to double check . Them little eastern promise lot can be a little on the really good or OMG who or what did they use to make that .
They probably will work OK, but I question how long they will last. After all, they only cost 99p for ten including shipping from China!
But then my LEDs weren't that much more expensive and they're still going strong. :D
:goodluck:

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Re: Blue plastic lenses in dashboard pod removal

Post by Jasonmarie »

All I have a thought I wonder if I can wire up as a night light ? Erm will have to think this one out ........
Your a bad influence Mr 2.8i .
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Re: Blue plastic lenses in dashboard pod removal

Post by pbar »

The only slight concern I have as regards to the heat is that previously the blue covers would have kept the heat in and therefore kept it away from elsewhere. Whereas now, even though the bulbs are still 3W, the heat will be allowed to spread.

You are right to keep on eye on it for that reason Jason. Hopefully it will not be an issue, I shouldn't think so to be honest :)
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Re: Blue plastic lenses in dashboard pod removal

Post by Jasonmarie »

pbar wrote:The only slight concern I have as regards to the heat is that previously the blue covers would have kept the heat in and therefore kept it away from elsewhere. Whereas now, even though the bulbs are still 3W, the heat will be allowed to spread.

You are right to keep on eye on it for that reason Jason. Hopefully it will not be an issue, I shouldn't think so to be honest :)
Yes your right paul as it can really cause some issues , I could not believe how much heat the radio / cassette kick out and that’s why there are them air holes I thought it’s because there use to be a speaker but it’s for letting the heat out .
In the old days my Nan would say “ put the telly on so it warms up “ that’s true .

Yes I will do a test and see what we get .
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Re: Blue plastic lenses in dashboard pod removal

Post by pbar »

Jasonmarie wrote:
In the old days my Nan would say “ put the telly on so it warms up “ that’s true .

Yes I will do a test and see what we get .
Ahh, that made me smile Jason, the telly warming up :) It was so true. Proper TV's back then, it was an event to sit together and watch something, all become so mundane now.

Will look forward with much interest to see your results on the bulbs.
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Re: Blue plastic lenses in dashboard pod removal

Post by Jasonmarie »

Yes now adays Paul the tv freezes or losing signal , but very true we all had Sunday dinner then sat around the tv for the Sunday movie what was real funny stuff like peter sellers doing the pink panther films .
There was no sex , no violence & no bad language. Good old English films , could include the great Carry on films .
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Re: Blue plastic lenses in dashboard pod removal

Post by Mr B »

Hi guys,

Had my dash apart today because of the poor illumination at night, as expected the blue plastic cover's disintegrated with the slightest touch, probably a silly question but would it be possible to 'wrap' the existing bulbs with something like filtered stage light paper which is very cheap and has alot of colour's to choose from as well as being heat resistant, what does everyone think?

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Re: Blue plastic lenses in dashboard pod removal

Post by Andrew 2.8i »

Mr B wrote:Had my dash apart today because of the poor illumination at night, as expected the blue plastic cover's disintegrated with the slightest touch, probably a silly question but would it be possible to 'wrap' the existing bulbs with something like filtered stage light paper which is very cheap and has alot of colour's to choose from as well as being heat resistant, what does everyone think?
Hi Wayne,
It's worth a try if the stuff is genuinely heat resistant. The only cause for concern is that the dash bulbs are only 3W as standard, will the filters absorb too much of the emitted light? Will you overcome that by changing to 5W bulbs instead?

It will be interesting to see if your idea works, but why not go the cheaper and easier route and exchange the bulbs for coloured ones or LED instead?

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Re: Blue plastic lenses in dashboard pod removal

Post by Mr B »

Morning Andrew,

Thanks for replying mate, I tried searching for the 3 watt coloured bulbs but couldn't find them, would you be able to point me in the right direction please,

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Re: Blue plastic lenses in dashboard pod removal

Post by Andrew 2.8i »

Mr B wrote: Thanks for replying mate, I tried searching for the 3 watt coloured bulbs but couldn't find them, would you be able to point me in the right direction please,
Hi Wayne,
I searched for a long time for 3W bulbs in green, nobody seemed to make them. Then, out of the blue, I came across these on Ebay:
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/T10-W5W-501- ... SwevdaEXtj
They seem to be just the ticket, and are available in a variety of colours. Jason recently bought some of them but I suspect that he hasn't got around to fitting them yet, so he won't be able to say if they are any good or not.
They should fit fine as they are the same size as the originals.

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Re: Blue plastic lenses in dashboard pod removal

Post by Jasonmarie »

Before any body says I still need to test the clock and bulbs ( sorry) I have a very old 1808 pocket watch and it’s being a real pain in the what not . Also a massive slate clock that needs a full rebuild .
I will get there . :beer:
But yes these new bulbs really give of some heat and with the dust and dirt in side it’s waiting to go up . I have read many times about bulbs being changed and people having a smoke out .
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Re: Blue plastic lenses in dashboard pod removal

Post by Brooksy »

This subject seems to have been discussed at great length before but I'm still unsure about the whole led vs standard wedge bulbs.
Is anyone using 12v 3w wedge base standard bulbs instead if the original 2w? If so, do they improve the brightness much?
If the 3w could pose a risk in terms of excess heat, I'd rather stick with the original, albeit dim, set up.
Thanks in advance.
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Re: Blue plastic lenses in dashboard pod removal

Post by Jasonmarie »

I still have not tested them bulbs out . Finshed a Pocket watch but have clocks on test and two watch’s . I will get around to this . Also been playing with polishing stuff and we know who fault that was .
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Re: Blue plastic lenses in dashboard pod removal

Post by Brooksy »

:cool:
Jasonmarie wrote:I still have not tested them bulbs out . Finshed a Pocket watch but have clocks on test and two watch’s . I will get around to this . Also been playing with polishing stuff and we know who fault that was .
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Re: Blue plastic lenses in dashboard pod removal

Post by Jasonmarie »

I will put it more top on my list .... I had the heat thing machine out lastweek and thought bulbs
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Re: Blue plastic lenses in dashboard pod removal

Post by Andrew 2.8i »

Jasonmarie wrote:Also been playing with polishing stuff and we know who fault that was .
Who's that ? :whistle: :D

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Re: Blue plastic lenses in dashboard pod removal

Post by Jasonmarie »

I am like any thing that needs doing job . Been playing with brass and how long the shine stays . This poor brass clock has gone threw so much . I have a Dent clock that needs a service and it’s my pride and joy in the house but worried about trying the new method . Might leave it another year .
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Re: Blue plastic lenses in dashboard pod removal

Post by pbar »

Brooksy wrote:This subject seems to have been discussed at great length before but I'm still unsure about the whole led vs standard wedge bulbs.
Is anyone using 12v 3w wedge base standard bulbs instead if the original 2w? If so, do they improve the brightness much?
If the 3w could pose a risk in terms of excess heat, I'd rather stick with the original, albeit dim, set up.
Thanks in advance.
The original dash bulbs are 3w. Some people have tried 5w, but it's best to stay away from those I think, due to the extra heat, these are 30 year old plastics after all.

I'm not such a fan of the LED option for various reasons. Mine is standard at the moment (bulb covers still intact with standard bulbs), but as these covers age and will no doubt be past their use at some point, what I intend to do is remove the blue covers and use standard 3w bulbs with a coloured tint.

That's the closest option originality/standard wise, still original bulbs with that hint of colour that the covers gave, and no extra heat. And the dimmer function will still work as intended.
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Re: Blue plastic lenses in dashboard pod removal

Post by Brooksy »

pbar wrote:
Brooksy wrote:This subject seems to have been discussed at great length before but I'm still unsure about the whole led vs standard wedge bulbs.
Is anyone using 12v 3w wedge base standard bulbs instead if the original 2w? If so, do they improve the brightness much?
If the 3w could pose a risk in terms of excess heat, I'd rather stick with the original, albeit dim, set up.
Thanks in advance.
The original dash bulbs are 3w. Some people have tried 5w, but it's best to stay away from those I think, due to the extra heat, these are 30 year old plastics after all.

I'm not such a fan of the LED option for various reasons. Mine is standard at the moment (bulb covers still intact with standard bulbs), but as these covers age and will no doubt be past their use at some point, what I intend to do is remove the blue covers and use standard 3w bulbs with a coloured tint.

That's the closest option originality/standard wise, still original bulbs with that hint of colour that the covers gave, and no extra heat. And the dimmer function will still work as intended.
Thanks for your comments and I too favour the original type bulbs.

My blue plastic lenses appear to be in intact, so I'm not intending to interfere with those. As such, I've ordered some replacement 3w wedge base bulbs. The panel illumination bulbs I've extracted all have a dark tint to them, whereas the warning light bulbs for the turn/highbeam/handbrake/battery appear in good condition. All have Motorcraft on them so could be original as it doesn't appear that the binnacle has ever been out.

I'm not looking for super bright illumination or to be driving her much at night time anyway.

I've just noticed that in the Haynes manual, it mentions 2w bulbs for the panel illumination bulbs but I guess that could just be a typo.

:cheers:
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Re: Blue plastic lenses in dashboard pod removal

Post by pbar »

Brooksy wrote:
I've just noticed that in the Haynes manual, it mentions 2w bulbs for the panel illumination bulbs but I guess that could just be a typo.

:cheers:
That's interesting, it's either a typo or it's incorrectly assumed (by many of us) that they are 3w!

I'm the same as you then, still have the blue covers (although I'm unsure of the condition of them but think they're ok) and standard bulbs. There will be a time when the covers are deteriorated/discoloured, and the option I mentioned previously with the tinted standard bulbs is a very viable one.
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