The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area The Electrical Bay 1951 6v cigarette lighter

Does anybody know if the cigarette lighter sold by LMC truck is 6v? It doesn't specify in the catalog and if it isn't 6v, is there somwhere where I can get a 6v unit?

justin squire,

I'm not sure on this, but the lighter is just a 'rheostat in drag'...it doesn't care about voltage. One size fits all.

Stuart

Think your wrong Stuart, the it's a coiled up strip of resistance wire with mica dielectric, between the coils. 12v coil is much lighter than 6v, pretty sure the 12v would burn up real quick with 6v applied.
Denny G

Denny Graham,

It sure wouldn't be the first time I was confused.

I am not sure on this, but if the resistance of the coil was constant, with half the applied voltage, current consumption would also be half.

To me it looks like the 12 volt cigarette lighter would take twice as long to 'pop' out on half the voltage, which might mean it would last twice as long.

As they say 'Caveat Lector'

Stuart

I have Lighter in my truck which was Brand new. i hooked it up and tried it. It got hot but not red hot. I held it in and it still did not get hot. It blew a fuse so i disconnected it because I won't use it. My cousin Stuart could be right it might have been a 12 volt lighter.Peter

I would not call a cigar/cigarette lighter a 'rheostat in drag'; maybe a "controlled short". My guess is that there is a difference between a 6v lighter-button and a 12v lighter button.

Justin,

What year truck are you going to put this in? Do you want it to look like an original GM accessory lighter?

I bought ligher buttons several years ago (Chevy Duty, Jim Carter, Truck Shop) and most of the vendors then specified 6v or 12v. They do not seem to specify voltage anymore (or they specify 12v).

Tim

I need the 6v lighter for a 51. Do you know of anyone that sells 6v units? or if they still sell them from Chevy Duty, Jim Carter, or LMC?

Good Time to quit Smokin' Justin!

(old X-smoker)
Denny Graham
Sandwich, IL

Now that's funny Denny,I don't care who you are.

You know Stu, maybe yur right, using 10 ohms in the example;
I=E/R (1.2a=12v/10ohm or .6a=6v/10ohm)
Denny Graham
Sandwich, IL

Did they originally come with the lighter, or was it an option? Because if it was not original equipment, I probably won't put one in. Was there some sort of delete plate to cover the hole?

The lighter was a factory option for the ADs. If it wasn't a option the hole wouldn't be in the dash. A snap on cap was used to plug the hole from the factory if there was no lighter.

what would that cap be called? a lighter delete plate? Does anybody have a picture of it? I could probably fabricate one myself if I had a picture.

in the TF assembly manual those pieces are just called "plug", and they look like the top or face part of a knob, with a plastic post on the back that's used with a push on speed nut type fastener to hold it on - never seen anyone who sells them for any series .... might be something for someone here to get into, there's always some missing

Bill

The factory cap was all metal and it snapped in place. You would remove it by inserting a sharp instrument between the cap and dash, then twist.

I must apologize to several folks on this thread. I thought a cigarette lighter was a pretty simple subject. It appears it isn't so simple.

It is apparent that the 12 volt element will not get hot enough on half the voltage to fire up your Virginia Slim.

I just looked at my NAPA book and they have 2 full pages of lighters and replacement elements...all 12 volts. They did mention a manufacturer though..CASCO.

I did a search on E-bay using 'casco' and WOW, a veritable treasure trove of lighters.

There is a Casco lighter for a '53 Corvette going for $203.00.

I now know better than to shoot my trap off about Genuine GM Accessories...they are well researched and much coveted.

Stuart

Stuart I see if you purchase one of their lighters they will throw in a CASCO heating pad for your old aging bones. Your cousin Peter

A lighter was an accessory (from GM or from others) for all Advance-Design trucks and it looked the same for all years, even in 54/55, (contrary to the commonly available 54/55 after-market lighter). All trucks came from the factory with the lighter hole plugged (as described above)

A factory option (Regular Production Option) was installed at the factory, while an accessory was installed by a dealer, or an owner, or a friend/relative.

My guess is that many owners did not ever install a lighter, so the fill-in plugs should be available from dealers that sell used parts (Jim Carter, Bowtie Bits, MotherTruckers, etc).

The harder to find hole plugs are the smaller diameter plugs to fill in the throttle/choke holes on a 54/55 Hydra-Matic's dash.

The plugs are just like a steel plugs that can be bought at ACE hardware for that diameter hole. Just paint same color as dash. If a judge looks that close, he's to close and proably scratched your paint, I know this.....

Any lighter receptacle will work if you have a 6V element.

Buy a 12V lighter from any of the suppliers then unscrew and throw away the 12V element. Search for "6v lighter element" at eBay and be prepared to pay more for it than you did for the entire 12V lighter assembly. Screw it into your new lighter and you are good to go.

No one is going to smoke in my truck anyway, much less put their ashes in my change tray.

I put a cigarette lighter receptacle in my 55 2nd for use as an electronic gadget portal. Today, I believe it is needed for communication and personal enjoyment.

I am not a smoker but do not oppose to others smoking as long as I do not have to smell their smoke. It is your life.

But the older trucks (including my 53) are a 6 volt system. I do not plan to put one in this truck because I am not sure if it would charge or support my cell phone or zune.

Other than supporting a bad habit (smoking) or for 'looks' what use would one be?

Dennis,

I think you should have included the cell phone and the Zune in the list of bad habits.


Stuart

Ifound this one on e.bay. drawmatic lighter Its 6-volt and hooks up to your vacume line.it will light it and smoke it for you.Only downside is that both me and my truck have a nasty cough :rolleyes:

Try Chevyofthe40s.com they have 6 or 12 volt

Are those ligters on chevsofthe40s.com original style? for $20? I don't think I will even bother with the lighter because I won't use it for anything and if I can find a correct size hole plug, it will suit me just as well.

Justin,

The Chevs of the 40s lighter sockets do not appear to be illuminated (as were the original GM accessory lighters) and they have a knob that looks like the light-switch knob (again, not like the original). Their knobs, however, do match in appearance the other Chevy truck dash knobs for those years.

Tim

The lighter looks like the orginal but yes it just matches the other knobs on my dash.