The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area The Electrical Bay Converting original AD parking lights to dual filament

I ordered a couple different type bulb sockets for 1157/1154 bulbs and when the arrived went about converting a couple of old parking light housings (well the bulb holder anyway) to the dual filament sockets.
Pulled out the bulb holder and socket and ripped the original socket off, then used a step drill to drill out the hole where the socket was to fit the newer socket (drilled to 5/8" then filed the hole for a snug fit on the new sockets. The new socket needed to be pushed back farther in the bracket than the original was because of the difference in bulb sizes to get the filament near the center of the housing. The photo shows the difference between the original #63 bulb and an 1157 I had laying around. 1154's should be very similar. I bent the bulb holder bracket a bit to get the bulb deeper in the housing so it didn't get too close to the lens.
A little tack weld to hold things in place and insure a good ground.
One caveat: The offshore sockets I used were marked for 1157, but the bulb wouldn't fit because there was an extra fiber washer that didn't let the bulb go deep enough to turn the bulb into place. Removing that extra washer, leaving just the plastic one worked. I found that out after welding the sockets in place. Fortunately, the fix was easy. So much for QC on Chinese products.
By the way, those rusty housings are not the ones I'm planning on using. I have nicer ones.

I cannibalized a set of trailer lights to fix the brand new junk I got from china (I was warned that they were inferior by the vendor!!). they ended up working very well.

If I had some of those I would have done that too.

I went a different route. I didn't need the parking lights so I went with turn signals only. Very bright ones at that.

The 1st photo shows the two 3/4" holes drilled. 1156 sockets were inserted and held into place and grounded with small washers and sheet metal screws. Epoxy putty sealed the back.

The 3nd shows 2 different types of LEDs. The one on the left also has LEDs around the sides. It is really bright. 4th photo. I can tell they get the attention of other drivers by the way the drivers behave.

If you wanted parking lights and turn signals, you could wire them one each.

I added turn signals to my 1950 3800 Chevy by using a Signal Stat 800. This is an 8 wire unit that lets you use your parking lights as turn signals but also still operate as parking lights (without going to dual filament). My electrical system is still 6v. Did it about 5 or 6 years ago and no problems at all. Still have the #81 bulb in them, you can use the 1129 bulb if there is enough room for it. I like the idea of the LED bulbs for the signal lights - much brighter than the originals. Tom

OP I did very much what you did there, it worked well. Including welding the sockets.

I also took the socket apart and ran new wires to avoid a bunch of splices (I have some waterproof plugs if needed in the future). Discovered that rivet heads work well in their place, they crimp and take a little solder. I did knock the diameters down on my lathe first to make sure they would recess and not short out. I little heat shrink on the back side as insurance (can't have too much or it will bind). Worked well, didn't take very long. I did the same for the taillights and ran a sealed junction box so I don't have splices in the wiring back there either.

I hope I am not in left field with this post.

If you are talking about replacing single filament with dual filament bulb socket/bases, Would this do the job?

Yes, that would work, but as the one review said: "Had to remove top grill bar to get the bucket to fit back in .The bucket for the bulb is longer than the stock one."
I got some similar sockets but would have required drilling out the back of the housing, making it deeper than original. I chose to go the route I did. Once installed, the only evidence that I converted the parking lights would be the two wires coming out thru the grommet in the back.

I converted mine last year using replacement sockets I bought from the Truck Shop. I unscrewed the existing socket and screwed in the new socket. I did have to bend it down a bit as the 1157 bulb hit the lens but ended up working fine. It’s on page 5. [url=]https://issuu.com/truckandcarshop/docs/ts_47-59_13_web[/url]

That's no fun. Too easy.

This is the route that I am going with my 54'. They came with directions on how to do it as there is some light modification needed to the housing (per the directions... haven't looked up close at anything yet).

I havent been in mine yet. Are the stock housings 1156 size?
Why not just replace the contact plate?
https://www.amazon.com/Dorman-85801...lb+socket&qid=1597440661&sr=8-56

If it helps it can be done. My 54 was done but by someone else. I had those headlights with the trun signals inside and they were terrible so I gave them away and my mecahnic converted the parking lights.

That won’t work. The original sockets are too small. Check the first picture in post #1.