Brighter dash cluster lamps or white LED's?

Posted By: gdonovan

Brighter dash cluster lamps or white LED's? - 08/18/09 11:44 AM

Has anyone tried making their cluster lamps brighter with some sort of drop in replacement bulb that is brighter or white LED's?

I hate the cluster on my Duster it is so dark and all the bulbs are new and the voltage is good. I'm thinking of adding a few white LED's to the cluster to brighten it up.

Posted By: stumpy

Re: Brighter dash cluster lamps or white LED's? - 08/18/09 03:17 PM

Those little dash light bulbs come in different brightnesses but I don't know the number for the brightest one.

Posted By: gdonovan

Re: Brighter dash cluster lamps or white LED's? - 08/19/09 07:38 PM

I ended up going to Wal-Mart and getting three different bulb sizes.

Stock size is 194 which is 4-5 watts
908 is next brightest
212 is 14 watts
221 is HD version of 212

908/212/221 is larger that 194 and just touches the back of the speedo head.

Ended up going with the 221 bulbs, I can SEE those gauges now! The dimmer control actually has some function now

Posted By: FrankenScamp

Re: Brighter dash cluster lamps or white LED's? - 08/19/09 10:25 PM

Good to know....next time a bulb goes out I'll swap them all out with the brighter ones!!

Posted By: 69L78Nova

Re: Brighter dash cluster lamps or white LED's? - 08/19/09 11:10 PM

What does that do as far as heat inside the cluster? Do the brighter bulbs fit inside the little colored domes on the interior of the cluster? Id hate to start melting stuff in there

Posted By: gdonovan

Re: Brighter dash cluster lamps or white LED's? - 08/19/09 11:56 PM

My car (Duster) is not equipped from the factory with the domes.

If you have a car with domes the larger bulbs will not work.

I'd like to give LED's a try and will look into it and report.

Posted By: MoparJoe

Re: Brighter dash cluster lamps or white LED's? - 08/20/09 03:50 AM

I'm running all LED's in my Darts dash, I tried the LED replacement for 194's and wasn't impressed so I built a string of LED's and ran it to the fusebox,

For mounting I used the stock plastic bulb holder that I drilled a hole thru the back for the wire to pass thru and glued the LED in with some silicone. About the only downside is you lose the dimming feature but the lighting is much better and it doesn't pull as many amps.

Posted By: Bogie

Re: Brighter dash cluster lamps or white LED's? - 08/25/09 03:04 AM

Superbright LED's

Posted By: plazomat

Re: Brighter dash cluster lamps or white LED's? - 08/25/09 04:38 AM

Which ones are you using? Superbright has many many diff sizes and intensities

PLAZ

Posted By: Bogie

Re: Brighter dash cluster lamps or white LED's? - 08/25/09 05:39 AM

That cluster has white WLED-xHP6

Posted By: Magnumguy

Re: Brighter dash cluster lamps or white LED's? - 08/25/09 01:16 PM

Bogie, it appears your truck is running, why no voltage?

Posted By: Bogie

Re: Brighter dash cluster lamps or white LED's? - 08/25/09 09:44 PM

Sorry guys not my cluster just one of the guys on DTR who did the conversion I have a earlier truck and did the same setup but using white face gauges I just don't have any pics.

Posted By: Hoof Hearted

Re: Brighter dash cluster lamps or white LED's? - 08/25/09 09:58 PM

What the Poster isn't telling you is he's 1/2 blind in one eye and can't see very well out of the other and has no business driving at night so the extra bright dash lights will only distract him from focusing on objects in the road.

Ask him about the 67 Dart headers smacking into the manhole cover he hit one night or the poor little rabbit he took out years ago on I-95...

Hi ya buddy

Seriously, I really like the look of those LEDs in the pic above, very cool.

Posted By: ChickMaggot

Re: Brighter dash cluster lamps or white LED's? - 08/31/09 11:18 PM

Quote:

I ended up going to Wal-Mart and getting three different bulb sizes.

Stock size is 194 which is 4-5 watts
908 is next brightest
212 is 14 watts
221 is HD version of 212

908/212/221 is larger that 194 and just touches the back of the speedo head.

Ended up going with the 221 bulbs, I can SEE those gauges now! The dimmer control actually has some function now

What brand are the 221's you found. I've been on the Sylvania website and can't find any listings for a 908, 212 or 221 bulb that will fit a 194 hole. PepBoys and Kragen don't even carry them.

I wanna see my gauges too

Maggot

Posted By: gdonovan

Re: Brighter dash cluster lamps or white LED's? - 09/01/09 12:50 AM

Quote:

What brand are the 221's you found.

I'll dig up the info for you.

Posted By: plazomat

Re: Brighter dash cluster lamps or white LED's? - 09/01/09 03:02 AM

Quote:

That cluster has white WLED-xHP6

What color cool white or warm white?

Just wondering what made you choose that form factor?

PLAZ

Posted By: Bogie

Re: Brighter dash cluster lamps or white LED's? - 09/01/09 03:37 AM

Cool White and there the brightest they have that cover in all directions

Posted By: Lefty

Re: Brighter dash cluster lamps or white LED's? - 09/04/09 11:08 PM

Quote:

What does that do as far as heat inside the cluster? Do the brighter bulbs fit inside the little colored domes on the interior of the cluster? Id hate to start melting stuff in there

LEDs run much cooler than incandescent bulbs.

Posted By: ChickMaggot

Re: Brighter dash cluster lamps or white LED's? - 09/05/09 02:59 AM

Quote:

Quote:

What brand are the 221's you found.

I'll dig up the info for you.

Any update on a brand name?

I still haven't been able to find any

Posted By: moparcanuk

Re: Brighter dash cluster lamps or white LED's? - 09/05/09 03:17 AM

The Sylvania site has this for the instrument lights on a 69 GTX:
Instrument-general
1893
194
53
57

So which ones do I use on my instrument panel?

Posted By: RapidRobert

Re: Brighter dash cluster lamps or white LED's? - 09/06/09 05:01 AM

I tried to paste? the thread but I dont have the computer savvy to do so. Go back to Tues Aug 18 @6:44AM for the thread "brighter dash cluster lamps or white LED's" EDIT this is the thread

Posted By: gdonovan

Re: Brighter dash cluster lamps or white LED's? - 09/06/09 12:31 PM

Quote:

The Sylvania site has this for the instrument lights on a 69 GTX:
Instrument-general
1893
194
53
57

So which ones do I use on my instrument panel?

Well the GTX of that year uses the #57 which is a brass base bulb with push and turn bayonet lugs.

My Duster has the "grain of wheat" all glass bulb which just pushes in the socket.

I'll try to dig up the paperwork on the bulbs today and post the info.

I'll note though I do not like how hot the headlamp switch gets running the new dash bulbs and will look into the cooler LED's when time permits.

Posted By: kieron_kohlmann

Re: Brighter dash cluster lamps or white LED's? - 09/10/09 09:54 PM

i just bought 2 of each of the following for my bee. I wanted to see how they work/look before i spend $30 some $ on new bulbs. my opinion is they are amazing! even with one bulb it lights up a ton! i just ordered the rest to complete my guage cluster
links

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayIS...T#ht_1642wt_913

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayIS...T#ht_1741wt_959

Posted By: 70sixpkrt

Re: Brighter dash cluster lamps or white LED's? - 09/10/09 10:24 PM

I am watching this thread. Are those bulbs cooler that the stock ones? I am worried about them melting or over heating the back of the instrument cluster.

Posted By: DirectSubjection

Re: Brighter dash cluster lamps or white LED's? - 09/10/09 11:28 PM

Quote:

Stock size is 194 which is 4-5 watts
908 is next brightest

The 908 is 9 watts I believe. I didn't want to go that high with the stock system so I went with 168's - they are a watt or watt and a half higher than the 194. Not a lot brighter, but brighter.

Posted By: ChickMaggot

Re: Brighter dash cluster lamps or white LED's? - 09/11/09 06:14 AM

Quote:

Quote:

Quote:

What brand are the 221's you found.

I'll dig up the info for you.

Any update on a brand name?

I still haven't been able to find any

Any luck?

Posted By: ChickMaggot

Re: Brighter dash cluster lamps or white LED's? - 09/22/09 05:56 AM

Quote:

Quote:

Quote:

Quote:

What brand are the 221's you found.

I'll dig up the info for you.

Any update on a brand name?

I still haven't been able to find any

Any luck?

Still hoping you'll help a brutha out with some info.