Map light LED conversion

[Robert Hicks]

Finally got around to doing this conversion. Works as described. You can actually touch the lights as well without burning your fingers. I cut and pasted the tutorial. I’ll try to find the link for it and post.

 

“I went the www.superbrightleds.com route. I liked the look of the torpedo fixtures and wanted to reuse them. The red lens cover comes off easily by removing the retaining clip. To remove the lens, you just need to drill/grind the center of the knurled adjusting nob on the back of the torpedo. This is silver soldered onto a screw that is used to move the lens back and forth. Then the lens assembly pushes out the front of the fixture. I purchased two 67-R9 Bulbs (Red 9-led 15 degree) $2.99 each. Two BA15S-EB bulb bases for 49 cents each (I used these to make a power plug). Two BA15S-SW Sockets for 99 cents each.

 

I had a piece of 1/2" Liquatite conduit laying around and found that the O.D. fit nicely inside the torpedo fixture and the I.D. fit the BA15S-SW socket snugly(after the mounting tabs were cut off the socket) I usedLiquatite to make a bushing with a notch in it. The notch then fits around the guide that is molded into the torpedo fixture for the original lens. I then soldered a ground wire onto the socket and fished the wires through the original bulb hole. Pushed the socket into the liquatite bushing to a depth that allowed the original red lens cover to fit when the led bulb was installed. Once put together it was very snug, no glue or screws were needed.

 

I used the BA15S-EB bulb bases to make a plug that attached to the original socket. This photo shows my first attempt. I turned out that my plug was too long, once in the socket the torpedo fixture couldn't be pushed up far enough to be clipped on. The plug would hit my bushing/socket inside the torpedo. My solution was to cut the plug down.

 

This photo shows the completed fixtures, one with the lens cover off to show the led light. You can see my plug that is shortened. I filled it with epoxy for durability.

 

I like this set up because nothing was changed on the airplane, and all the changes I made to the Torpedo fixture are not permanent. I can't imagine why I would ever want to use the original setup again but I have that option.

 

I basically ended up with same thing the piper guys are doing, just slightly more attractive. (and time consuming)

 

The light output is twice that of my originals. The color in the picture is off, these are red not orange. “

 

 

 

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[Hank]

Please post where I can buy this kit and install instructions!!! Pretty please?

[carusoam]

Nice details, Robert!

thanks for sharing them all.

Best regards,

-a-

[Robert Hicks]

Please post where I can buy this kit and install instructions!!! Pretty please?

Hank, it’s not a kit. You just gotta order the led bulbs and sockets then piece it all together. Took me about 2 hours to do a nice thorough job.


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[Robert Hicks]

I cannot for the life of me figure out how or where I found the tutorial. I was able to generate a pdf if it and share the link via my google drive. Here you go,

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1GetwZPo01B3wPsAU9aga-WTUHUFp9lud/view?usp=drivesdk


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[RLCarter]

1 hour ago, Robert Hicks said:

I cannot for the life of me figure out how or where I found the tutorial. 

Wasn't it @Raptor05121 that posted the tutorial on MS?

[Robert Hicks]

Wasn't it [mention=13319]Raptor05121[/mention] that posted the tutorial on MS?

No clue where I found the tutorial. It’s been in a folder on my phone for a year or so.


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[RLCarter]

2 hours ago, Robert Hicks said:

No clue where I found the tutorial. It’s been in a folder on my phone for a year or so.
 

Pretty sure this is it 

 

[BDPetersen]

Do these dim with the existing rheostat?

[RLCarter]

17 minutes ago, BDPetersen said:

Do these dim with the existing rheostat?

I believe so, I would have to go back a read the post

[Skates97]

1 hour ago, BDPetersen said:

Do these dim with the existing rheostat?

I did it on my plane awhile back. Yes, they did dim with the existing rheostat. I think that is dependent on having other regular bulbs in the circuit which I still had my post lights and an internal light in my CDI. I followed @Raptor05121's instructions and it was easy to do.

 

[BDPetersen]

Mine are on their own circuit, apparently. They have a conversion done some time ago ( not by me) and they don’t dim. I was given a rheostat ( or whatever it would be appropriately called) that seems to be a solid state device. Haven’t gotten around to installing it. I’m generally sleepy at night and those windows let in a lot of dark.

[Raptor05121]

I did a write-up like this last year. I had to upgrade my rhetostat overhead to a solid-state PWM. I fly at night often so I still love that I did this upgrade

[Prior owner]

If you change the overhead rheostat to a PWM, don’t forget to change the compass bulb and fuel selector light bulb to LED.... might be different on yours, but both of those lights were wired to my overhead rheostat..!