Stovebolt.com Forums The Shop Area The Electrical Bay Turn Signals

6 volt original 1939 turn signals blink extremely fast. Is there a way to slow them down?

Rick

First replace the bulbs, then report. Observe for any corrosion down inside sockets.

Of course we assume all was well and working fine, then it happened. If there is a story regarding work done or new parts of any kind. We need that info. Don't make us drag it out of you
"Original" indicates an old aftermarket clamp-on-the-column switch with old wiring and old flasher and no fuses.

1939 Chevrolet turn signal switch, flasher has been replaced. I used 1939 Chevrolet fog lights as my front turn signals. Vintage Arrow turn signals in rear. Has blinked too fast from day 1. All wiring is new. Bulbs when flashing are bright. Left and right turn signals blink the same. I'll have to take the units apart to drag the bulb and flasher part numbers out of me.

Rick

You did use a 6v flasher unit, yes? 6v bulbs draw more current than 12v bulbs and if used with a 12v flasher the heater element (bi-metal) in the 12v flasher might be heating up and flicking off/on too rapidly. That's my first guess. Even if the flasher you bought is marked as 6v, it might have been made in a 5-letter country beginning with the letters CH which isn't CHILE. Look at the embarrassingly dismal job they've done with a simple product like automobile condensers.

The fog lights might be part of the problem. Small chance they don't draw enough current to cause the flasher to work right. If the flasher sees a burned out bulb, it goes wonky. Not to bore, but there's a bi-metal strip and contact points in there. As it is activated in the circuit, resistance causes it to heat. One side of it bows in more than the other side and that causes it to go arc-shaped and pull the points apart. That's all that's happening in there, but it must be the proper flasher for the current (amperage) pulling through it.

Just an outside thought, but was there any chance these were LED bulbs? Maybe 2 of them were LED bulbs? Vintage type flasher units can see those as being burned out (since their current usage is much lower) and this can cause erratic flashing. If you're using a 6v flasher and this problem started from day one and the lights never blinked correctly before that certain point, it hints there is a bulb problem...but honestly it seems to me kind of a stretch unless it emanates from your fog lights. What I mean is if both right and left side are blinking rapidly, then there has to be a lack of connection or bulb problem on both sides. If the wiring is new, the bulbs are correct for the sockets and the flasher rating and the sockets are good and clean, the coincidence factor drops a lot. One bulb on one side might be failing to connect, but two is a stretch.

And the dead horse has been beaten here quite a lot, but ground connection is very important. An intermittent ground connection will cause this, but you may not have brightness when that's happening. An intermittent ground connection normally will cause a bulb to flicker dimly and then maybe catch and burn ok for a bit and then go dim again.

One more idea...and this is a thought from distant past...was it a heavy duty flasher? A friend in high school had this happen and it turned out the heavy duty flasher was the problem. As I recall with only 2 bulbs per side it didn't get enough current draw to flash right. If you suspect this, you could connect an extra bulb (or two) to both sides of the wiring (left and right) and see what happens. Or...if your flasher has the option of hazard lights, flash all 4 at once. That might provide enough current for you. Good luck.

I found new 6-volt flashers would flasher way too fast when I was still at 6-volts. I found a used flasher installed in an AD in the junkyard and it still worked perfectly.

6 volt bulbs, 6 volt nos flasher, no LEDs. Jon and Wally you have given me some pointers, thank you.

Rick

Anytime, Rick. I may have a flasher unit saved from an early 50s Cadillac (6v). I'll look for it later.

Those fog lamps would require MORE current, not less than regular turn signal lamps. More current = faster flashing on old-style bi-metallic strip flashers.

Any change in current that the flasher is designed for will cause the fast flash. Many reasons for incorrect current. If both left and right turn circuits have fast flash, it is not a bulb or it's a bulb on each side. If bulbs are all good, next is flasher, intermittent current or ground, switch.

I don't know how long ago "Day 1" was, or if it means Day 1 of your purchase of the truck, or some other Day 1. It may indicate someone originally used a wrong component. I see the flasher has been replaced. If the flasher type is the problem, and someone used the old flasher part number to get another, the fast flash would continue.

We can't say fog light uses more current, we don't know what bulb is in there.

My only experience with 6 volt to 12 was a heater motor. The 6-volt heater ran extremely fast on 12-volt, turn it down to low and it barely turned over.