zgeezer Posted February 13, 2012 Share Posted February 13, 2012 I'm missing the green lens in my instrument panel.... and I'm not really interested in LEDs. I found this link that sells 1445, mini bayonet Globe.. G31/2 .. 2.5 watt green colored bulbs. The problem is that they are 18 volt. This site provides lighting for model railroad buffs... Lionel light replacements. 2000 hour life expectancy. So, what are the expected results from running 18v lights on a good 12 v system? Very dim lights? Longer bulb life expectancy? Fire? Immediate desire to collect Lionel trains? Other than LEDs has anyone found a way to either use the standard 1445, replace the stock green lens, or another source for green tinted 1445 bulbs? g Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tony D Posted February 14, 2012 Share Posted February 14, 2012 Cutting voltage is increasing amperage to give the sane output. More amperes, more heat, more heat, less lifetime. H4Lights (.com) had some numbers on brightness and lifetime based on incorrect voltage he posted at one time... Lower voltage than design significantly shortens lifetime of the filament, and if halogen it is a direct function of not reaching proper temperatures to initiate halogen recycle deposition or something along those lines. If you don't want LED's, and don't have the green caps, I think he has a 4w conventional bulb on offer for that application. Drop him a line with that question and what he suggests-he's straight with people about this stuff and can direct your search to so Solace fruitful if nothing else. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tony D Posted February 14, 2012 Share Posted February 14, 2012 (edited) Oh, and he used to dip custom bulbs, but due to global warming the glass dyes are no longer available (that actually last)---I've had a set of his "Tequila Sunrise" city lights in my 73 since the mid 90's, headlights look yellow from any angle but dead straight ahead, when they look red... CHP hates them, but darned if they aren't yellow when they get out to look! LOL Before that, my city lights were green...deep beautiful green. Green enough for Buena Park PD to issue an "Unlawful Headlights" citation which the judge dismissed. And which precipitated the move to Tequila Sunrise... Edited February 14, 2012 by Tony D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
z240 Posted February 14, 2012 Share Posted February 14, 2012 Last time I checked V=IR, so if V goes down, I goes down for the same resistance. All you'll get is a dim bulb.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
srgunz Posted February 24, 2012 Share Posted February 24, 2012 Last time I checked V=IR, so if V goes down, I goes down for the same resistance. All you'll get is a dim bulb.... That is correct. But it will last a long time. lol. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tony D Posted March 4, 2012 Share Posted March 4, 2012 Electrical THEORY is fine until you deal with the real world where things are designed with nominal operating voltages in mind to generate heat specific to a process. The reasons for a voltage regulator and board operations in the ECU being done at 5VDC is they keep things constant even with a low battery. Start dropping voltage on those circuits and see how long they last. Same for simple incandescents and higher voltages, higher voltages shorter life. For halogens they drop off on both ends of the spectrum, but worse on the low end due to less/no halogen recycle going on... But KEY to my statement (which neither of you obviously read) was the phrase TO KEEP THE SAME OUTPUT. unintentionally you confirmed EXACTLY what I said under the guise that you were doing the opposite. I thank you both. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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