LED head-lights
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I have not yet but plan to. They look great. I will probably get mine from Evans Designs. They can be hooked up to
AC or DC, They include, built into the wires, resistors and all. I think they run around 3 bucks each. Hook up 2 wires
and bulbs should last a lifetime.
Check them out here.
Battery Powered LED Lights | Buy Small LED Lights - Evan Designs
AC or DC, They include, built into the wires, resistors and all. I think they run around 3 bucks each. Hook up 2 wires
and bulbs should last a lifetime.
Check them out here.
Battery Powered LED Lights | Buy Small LED Lights - Evan Designs
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6,173 Posts
The ones I'm talking about have the screw-in base that goes right into the head-light socket.
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3,652 Posts
Town and Country Hobbies sells a 1447WW LED bulb that should fit. They also have a version with a 120deg beam pattern but that would be too wide for a bright headlight. The problem may be these are 18V bulbs and may be too dim for a headlight. They do not have the 14V version of the bulbs which would be used for headlights. T&C is a good source for the red and green 18V LED lights for the switch control boxes. The problem is they are expensive, $2ea or $1.20 ea in a box of 50.
Hey Loren,
As Mopac mentioned, Evan Designs is the place to go and adapt what they have available to your requirements. I have purchased from them and more than satisfied. I did the direct screw in LED and it was a disaster. Irrespective of what was advertised, those lamps do not like AF high AC voltage. They last only a short time. I received my money back and told them they certainly will not survive their advertised voltage range. I have not seen them sold since on EBay. My recent PM was to put a smile on your face!
Fred
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3,652 Posts
The new American Flyer by Lionel engines have LED headlights. American Models engines were made with incandescent lights but gradually changed over to LED's. I think all their new engines are LED. If not AM sells an LED replacement for engines without them.
Gilbert American Flyer engines operating conventionally (the only way they will run) will have between 9V and 12V across the headlight and smoke unit running at normal to slightly fast speeds. If an LED rated correctly for 18V fails then it is poorly designed or manufactured, and as Fred said they needed to be returned for a refund. The screw in LED replacements seem to be hit and miss on quality and performance.
Gilbert American Flyer engines operating conventionally (the only way they will run) will have between 9V and 12V across the headlight and smoke unit running at normal to slightly fast speeds. If an LED rated correctly for 18V fails then it is poorly designed or manufactured, and as Fred said they needed to be returned for a refund. The screw in LED replacements seem to be hit and miss on quality and performance.
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10,842 Posts
LEDs run on a conventional engine is tricky. Voltage spikes will get to it. They do not like changing voltages. For a LED headlight I would go with a bridge of diodes and a capacitor. IF you have the room a DC output voltage regulator
Going the minimum with a resistor and one diode will eventually fail.
Going the minimum with a resistor and one diode will eventually fail.
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140 Posts
No need for any of this with Evan Designs. Get their 3mm warm white universal solid for $3.25. Cut out existing bulb, solder in new light, secure it in the headlight hole, and you're done. It will last for years
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I use them also. They work very well and I have had no problems. It's nice to have all the light coming out the front and none leaking from the bottom of the locomotive.
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I use them all the time in the project engines I build up. They are available in 3 mm and 5 mm diameters and are high-intensity LEDs, very bright. They require 3 volts or less. Less is better. I use a 470 ohm resistor in series with the LED feeding it with 5 volts DC. You can find tons of these on eBay and they are very inexpensive.
Have fun,
Rich S.
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I don't model in S Scale, altho I still have my AM Flier from my first Xmas! But you can get super tiny leds with leads that even fit in the ditch lights on my N scale locos. Heck, I could fit a whole Xmas tree's worth of them in an S scale loco shell with space left over. They are quite bright, enough to light up a floor of a building, and very inexpensive on ebay.
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Room can be a problem.. I was referring to the sockets that are attached to a boiler front. I've found that certain bulbs are too tall to fit into the front of the boiler shell once installed in the boiler face, the top of the bulb will hit the boiler shell, and the boiler face won't fit.
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