The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area The Electrical Bay dome light

I've had my 58 for nearly a year and havent figured out my dome light. I've read many prior posts looking for help.
Here goes.
I have power at the D post on switch and one contact point at the socket without a bulb. I have power at the D post and ground post at switch and both contact points at the socket with a bulb. I get light when touching the ground wire on its post to the dash with a wire. I've tried the original and a spare switch and the original and spare light assembly. Same result. Could use your help and hope I dont wear out my welcome.

Made some progress since posting my symptoms. I cleaned and roughed up the switch contact area behind the dash. I now have a dome light, at-least at times. If I turn the knob, the light comes on and gets brighter as you turn like the dash lights. No dome light if the park lights or head/tail lights are turned on. I'm thinking the switch may not be making good contact to ground as it travels over the bump. Going to try a spare switch. Any comments or suggestions are certainly welcome.

I'm certainly not a wiring expert, but as I recall, the dome light is wired so that it is " hot " all the time. The on/off function is controlled by breaking the ground connection. Is it possible you have wiring backwards ?

The power for the dome light comes from the headlight switch. My guess is that it is connected to the wrong post on the headlight switch which explains why it does not work with the lights on.

Went backwards since yesterday. I checked to make sure connections were correct at the switch. I cleaned by ground strap connections firewall to starter and negative battery post to engine. I used a business card to touch up the points on the switch. Now I've lost the dome light while in the off position and my dash lights only work with the lights on and the rheostat far left. Same with a spare light switch. I suppose I have a short someplace or a grounding problem. Any suggestions?

Are you consulting a wiring diagram from a manual? It still seems like the dome light is connected to the wrong terminal. It would be unusual but you could have two bad switches.

Fried Green T'mater, I am connecting a wire from the dome assembly to the switch terminal marked "grnd" and the other to terminal "d".

I'd think if you have the same symptoms with 2 switches most likely you've got the wiring wrong, but the rheostat part of the switch for dash/dome lights may be bad OR your switch isn't tight enough to be getting a good ground [fresh paint job?] - there are 2 connections for the dome light, the "D" hot terminal and the ground terminal, which supplies the ground [from the switches dash contact] thru the rheostat

Bill

Thanks to all for thinking about this with me. I think I'll get a new switch and try again. Still wondering about some grounding issues as symptoms seem to change every time I touch it. May be something wrong with the ground terminal or rheostat on both as they are my age and there is plenty on me that needs to be replaced.

The rheostat is for dash lights only. It should not affect the dome light. The dome light switch is the detente at the end of the rheostat. They are not connected. As stated above, the dome light has power to it all the time and is grounded by the switch. If you have the switch out of the dash it is not going to ground.

Thanks Cletis. The only time I've been able to witness the dome light was with the switch in the dash and the lights off. At that time the light would get brighter with the turn of the rheostat. Can't get it to do that after touching up the points on the switch. I've read other posts relating to grounding with comments about strange symptoms due to poor grounding. Along with a new switch, I may try another ground contact or two. My headlights and dash lights have seemed dim. Could this be from week grounding as well?

you have wires wrong, on the switch or elsewhere, the rheostat bright/dim is for the dash lights, the dome light is on/off only when you turn the knob past the 'bright dash' position until it clicks, it is not controlled by the rheostat, that's for dash lights only

Bill

Thanks Bill. I've tried everything I can think of and checked whats been suggested. The color coded wires are all on the correct posts according to the service manual and the markings on the switch. I dont know what caused the light to tie to the rheostat one time. It was after I had cleaned behind the dash and then re-installed the switch to the dash. Hasnt happened but once. This is why I'm wondering about other grounding issues or maybe the truck is haunted. Anyway, it's still the best thing thats happened to me in a long time. I'm hooked on the truck and this site. Thanks

Just shy of four years since my last post on this subject, I finally solved my dome light problem. A new switch did the trick. So pleased with the success, I made several unnecessary trips outside after dark last night just to see the phenomenon.