dash lights

[eddy blackstar]

hi all my other lights work but the gauge lights .All the globes work .No power at the light socket is there another fuse somewhere?
thanks eddy

[jopizz]

If none of your dash lights work then it's most likely the rheostat on the headlight switch. There is no fuse just for the dash lights. If you look in the Technical Resource Library there are instructions on how to repair your headlight switch.

John

[YellowRose]

dash lights

Ian, if your gauges are not indicating anything, it could be this. Behind that instrument panel is a Constant Voltage Regulator (CVR) unit. It is often found on the backside of the instrument panel or on a metal dashpad frame support. It is entirely possible that sometime in the past, that CVR unit has failed and allowed the 12volts to pass through it to the gauges and damage them. The CVR unit takes the 12volts and steps it down to an undulating voltage of 6volts. Our Squarebird gauges are 6v gauges and not 12v. Hence the step down of the voltages to prevent damage to them. I had this problem and 12v got through the CVR unit and burnt the wiring between the CVR unit to the gauges. My gauges had to be repaired. If yours is a case of the CVR unit being bad, replace it with a solid state one, rather than an OEM type. Many of todays CVR units come out of China and are reported to have a bad failure rate. Our dynamic webmaster, Dave Dare ~ simplyconnected, has a terrific deal on building a solid state unit in your CVR unit and sending it back to you, guaranteed for life. If you become a Paid Member, you will get a great deal on the cost of that solid state unit and should never have a problem with getting power to your gauges again. His system is built so that IF the unit should ever fail (and none have that I know of), it will NOT allow that 12v to be passed to the gauges. Details of his offer can be found in the Anything Goes Forum, under "Do We Have A Deal For You", as I recall. Since you said they are not lighting up, it could be your light switch. That rheostat in it could be shot. Try turning your light switch knob back on forth, right and left to see if the lights brighten or dim.

[jopizz]

It sounds like from his description that the lights are out, not the gauges themselves.

John

[eddy blackstar]

ok thanks ill check the light switch

[eddy blackstar]

dash lights

All lights working now. Went wild twisting the light switch left & right. Even the ashtray light works
thanks to everyones advice.

[YellowRose]

dash lights

Ian, that was a lucky fix! What happens is after some 50 years, that rheostat winding gets corroded, and often the light switch has to be taken out and that winding cleaned up. Apparently, you were able to get it working by turning it back and forth a lot, which might have cleaned off some of the corrosion and allowed to make good contact.