The plastic lenses were burned on my '54 speedo also. Starting in '54, there were two indicator lights ... red at the top for high beam, and green at the bottom for turn signals.
I ended up leaving the lenses off.
I painted the indicator bulbs with rattle can paint. Only need a light coat. Let it dry overnight. Try to avoid scraping the bulb on the opening when you insert it into the speedo housing.
The indicator lights are housed in
cardboard tubes 1/2" ID by 3/8" long. The colored plastic lenses were fitted onto (over?) the ends of the tubes very near the back of the speedo face. The bulbs are close to the lenses. I can see why they eventually burned.
Even though the tube is in place, but no lens, you can see a
ghost of the red bulb at night when the head lights are on low beam.
Bulbs for indicator lights:
6v = #51: 1 candle power, 1.7w @ 7.5v
12v = #53: 0.7 candle power, 1.7w @ 14.4v (if converted to 12v)
