Light switch question

[ICEMAN6166]

if you dont get the sockets for the tiny bulbs pushed in good, they can jump out on a bumpy road and,no ground, no light.if the gauge lights work, the others should too.

[Supermike]

Thanks ICEMAN... I wondered that. When I was replacing one of the bulbs, it didn't light until I plugged it into the panel. But the other one did. Are these wired in parallel or series?

FYI, tried a new light switch tonight, and that didn't change things, so it HAS to be something behind the panel. Oh joy, I get to pull the panel again!

[kid]

Parallel

[Supermike]

So if one is burned out or not contacting, then the other should still light, correct?

fordman suggested I might have a loose ground or something on the panel. I guess I'll have to pull it and make sure everything is hooked up.

[ToughOldFord]

So if one is burned out or not contacting, then the other should still light, correct?

fordman suggested I might have a loose ground or something on the panel. I guess I'll have to pull it and make sure everything is hooked up.

Correct.
You can also try cleaning the connection where your harness plugs into the dash.

[fordman]

i am sitting here looking at the cluster i have from a 69 with the guages not the dummy lights. this cluster only has two dash lights. in it. the wires are blue w red stripe and they hook together att he plug on the same pin.

[cjs_72f250]

Thanks, fellas... I swear, I haven't even gotten started doing the stuff I WANT to do to the truck for having to replace things I NEED to in order to make it safe to drive.

At this rate, I'll have a new truck in no time.

that's exactly what i've been doing with my truck. all the important (safety) things keep going wrong so i'm forced to fix them. new truck, here it comes! haha

[kid]

Same here going to fix the brake light problem and I hear metal to metal on my left rear drum on the 250.

[Supermike]

So I pulled out the panel again tonight. Completely unhooked everything and make sure all the connections were tight. Traced (visually) the dash panel wire (blue with red stripe) and it appears to be ok, and connected solid to all plugs and bulbs. I then connected the panel back up, and everything still works (gauges, blinkers, etc.) except my dash panel lights.

I'm at a loss. I'm going to get a multimeter tomorrow to see if they are getting juice, if I can figure out how to use the thing. The ONLY thing I can imagine at this point is that for some reason maybe the panel isn't getting grounded properly. But then, the ground wire (black) is part of the harness, so I'm not sure why it wouldn't be. I do know it is connected up under the dash.

Can someone else with a 67 tell me what the fuse amperage should be for the instrument panel? The diagram on this site shows a 2 amp fuse, whereas my owner's manual showed a 4 amp. I have a 4 amp fuse in it now... could that be the problem?? Is it possible I over-amped the bulbs and burned them both out??

[kid]

You did not over Amp the lights. Electricity doesn't work that way. A .5 W 12V light draws .042 amps. Draw being the key so 2 - .5 watt lights will never draw more than .084 Amps. Voltage pushes you can see that when you hold a spark plug wire and it jumps to your hand. The 15,000 Volts hits the 600000 Ohms of resistance your body might have and your body will draws .025 Amps. The 15000 stings and the current makes your muscles jump.

A 12V DC Probe will allow you to trace a wire and look for power easier than deciphering a Multimeter. For one a analog meter (needle) takes a genius to figure out all the lines on the face. I am an electrician and I never use one because of the hard to read faces. One exception to find rapidly fluctuating voltages. A Digital meter is much easier to use and slightly to greatly more expensive.

The probe has a needle tip with a 12V bulb. It also has a wire to ground it so you can check for power or to power it to check for bad grounds.

[fordman]

my 67 had a ground wire from the dash straight to the cluster. it was a short wire all by itself. did you check to see if the bulb sockets were good? did they still have a spring tension when you put the bulbs in? they could also be worn out and not making good contact witht the bulbs. or they could just be dirty.

[Supermike]

The bulb sockets both appear solid and tight, and the springs are good. Very snappy, in fact.

There is NO ground wire I have found running from my instrument cluster directly to the dash. There IS a black wire that connects to my panel, runs through the harness, and grounds to a screw on the dash. I figured that was the ground (see wire "Z" in this image).

Anyone else with a 67 have an extra ground? I'll look and see if I can find a wire that's fallen off or something, but it had to have fallen off AFTER I finished driving Sunday and BEFORE I went out the next time. I'm going to try and pick up a voltage tester tonight. I'm also going to pick up two more brand new bulbs, just in case I somehow blew the new ones I just put in.

[kid]

The ground wire is black and it is after the dash connector. i.e. closer to the truck than the dash, It is wire 57 an the main diagram.

[Supermike]

So the ground is wire 57 in these diagrams... I'll have to check that one, because that's not where I was looking for the ground.

http://www.fordification.com/images/sch ... lights.jpg
http://www.fordification.com/images/sch ... gauges.jpg

Thanks for the continued help! If I can't figure this out, I may have to start taking pictures... unless one of you guys wants to make a road trip.

Mike

[kid]

Lets see Indiana at 65 mph and 12 mpg, my girlfriends aren't that lucky