The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area General Truck Talk Easy LED Tail Light Replacements

I put new LED tail lights on my truck and I'm really happy with the results!

Check it out Here

Looks nice Alan!

Yup, noticed the difference in hole location at first glance. Also noticed your use of aluminum foil for reflection factor. Have you tried chrome paint? Used it on my front signal light assemblies and made a biiiig difference. Thanks for sharing your experience Alan.

Isn't the use of aluminum foil behind the LEDs wasted effort? Don't the LEDs have an opaque backing that keeps light from shining into the housing? Or is it that the foil was there for your old bulb and you didn't remove it. Those type of lenses are available for my coupe but only 12volt. I did find 6V LED bulbs that plug into an 1154/1157 socket. I'm using them now and I'm pretty happy with them. They aren't as bright as the type you have but they're much better than the stock bulb.

coach-frank -- Thanks, Bro' ... it made Christmas Day even better still!

Bruce -- Never tried the chrome paint ... the aluminum foil worked so well, I never bothered trying anything else.

Tiny -- You're right on ... the LED's are actually buried in the plastic lense (it's about 1/2 inch thick where the lights are). I left the aluminum foil in and kept the old lenses and bulbs in my tool box just in case the LED's fail on me and I need to get home -- around here, if you have a tail light out, the police will pull you over and you either fix it right there on the spot or get towed!!!

Thanks for the tip Alan. I was looking for that very thing.

Seventy Bucks??? Come on guys, it's a light bulb and platic lens! and on top of that, it doesn't fit?
Denny G

It fits fine after two minutes with a drill bit ... and it sure looks better ... and it sure is way, way more obvious when you turn your blinker on or step on your brake pedal.

To me, such an easy install for such added safety is well worth $70 for a daily driver.

When there isn't a lot of demand (not selling a million units at a time). The production run cost is spread over relatively few units so each unit cost is higher. The led bulbs for my 38 were $28 each plus shipping and I had to rebuild the innards of my housings for them to fit. It was do that or live with the 3 candle power stock bulbs. Some parts are just plain expensive. Just today I received my $335 runningboard mats.

Hey -- any replacement unit for any new vehicle would cost twice as much ... and who among us counts the cost on such a passion as what we find in our Stovebolts? Not I!

Hey that looks great. Nice find I may use them on my dump truck.

Now doubt they do look good and are bright after they are modified, the modern way to go for sure. Just to expensive for my blood. Guess I'll just have to keep the right eye on the rear view mirror while the left one is watching the road ahead to make sure no one rear ends me. Most guys I know don't look forward to getting hit in the rear!
Denny Graham
Sandwich, IL

Did you have to replace the flasher?

No.

Nice Alan... and nice posting on your website - as usual! The only thing that's keeping me from switching is I'd have to lose the blue dots! They can't be put into these new lenses. Now I know there in NJ blue dots are a big no-no, but here in Mass. they ignore lots of things about old trucks. And they still haven't started taxing us additional - like an 'entertainment tax' or something. The blue dots get lots of comments!

Alan, nice job, I replaced my tailights with 39 ford lights/modified to take led lenses for about the same price. work great. I just noticed that Harbor Freight has round led trailer lights for 9.95 they look like it would take a minor alteration for these to work. Check them out if there is a store near you.

That's a good tip. I'll check that out just for the heck of it!

Larry -- Man, I can't tell you how much I loved my Blue Dots ... and I told the police what a ridiculous attitude they have, too. As if anyone could ever mistake a '54 Chevy pickup as a police vehicle because of two small blue pieces of glass on the brake lights! How pompous can we get?!!

Nonetheless, to be honest, I think I would swap out my Blue Dots for these! I love the way these look!

Gazim -- Thanks for the heads up ... I'll check those out. But the pattern on these is partly what I love. Instead of the usual horizontal rows of LEDs, these are in a starburst pattern that, to me, is totally Rock N Roll.

PS - It's amazing how bright these get when the brakes are applied! My old setup was really, really DIM in comparison!

LED rear lamps are the only way to go in my opinion for safe driving in busy traffic areas.

Good job Alan.

I just KNOW six months from now, some poor schlep will be searching in vain for this... in the ELECTRICAL forum.

Cheers,
mark.
51 KY 3100

LOL! That's alright, Mark ... I'll catch him.