Club 80-90 Forums

Can you still get the 'map light' (if that's the right description) that sits above the glove box. I've got one, but it fall out all the time and more often than not shorts-out the electrics when put back in.

What's a map?

One of those paper thingys that was around before sat nav.

There are so many self-adhesive LED strips that will do practically the same job. I've become a bit of an LED fanatic (warm white please) and all my domestic lighting as well as camper lighting is now LED. They reckon you can save as much as £26 a year in energy for every domestic light you replace. The trick is finding the right light for the job demanded.

These are still available from Brickwerks:

https://www.brickwerks.co.uk/index.php/ ... t3-t4.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

CovKid wrote:There are so many self-adhesive LED strips that will do practically the same job. I've become a bit of an LED fanatic (warm white please) and all my domestic lighting as well as camper lighting is now LED. They reckon you can save as much as £26 a year in energy for every domestic light you replace. The trick is finding the right light for the job demanded.

Sounds interesting. Care to tell us which ones you use, and for which jobs?

I have just replaced (at a place I do some work for) 24 x 35 Watt halogen bulbs, the type that are inset into a false ceiling. The LED replacements I used give off as much light but are only rated at 4 Watts. A considerable saving, plus the LED ones last for 1,000s of hours. This company also has 4 x 500 Watt exterior flood / security lights (2,000 Watts ) and at this time of year they are on for several hours a day. I recommended he change those to LED ones, but one has to replace the entire lamp unit, not just the bulb, so he is reluctant to spend the initial outlay

He must be a bit short sighted they would pay for themselves in less than 6 months (eBay prices)

Jeff J wrote:He must be a bit short sighted they would pay for themselves in less than 6 months (eBay prices)

He is VERY short sighted. I had been badgering him to get the refrigerated van serviced for nearly two years (and it does a lot of miles). Only 2 days ago, I got very stranded out in the middle of nowhere when the auxiliary belt snapped due to a worn out tensioner. All in all it cost him about a days wages for me, a breakdown truck and an emergency repair = hundreds of ££s, just because he wouldn't pay to get it regularly serviced Fortunately, I was not on my way to someone’s posh wedding, with a thousand pounds worth of food on board, image if I had have been

Can't understand why anyone would use tungsten bulbs now. I have a bench full of various LED lights plus ones I've made from scratch to fit certain jobs. They're quite fun to solder up. All the lights in my home are LED now. In fact the only 'regular' bulbs I still have are on the camper are the headlight bulbs as I don't feel they've evolved sufficiently to want me to change. Next year could be different. You can light a glovebox up in so many ways - just trawl ebay for 12v led lights, bulbs etc. LEDs could be harsh at one time but warm white is quite acceptable for an interior and they're very cheap to buy.

Earlier this year I popped out the dash bulbs and fitted 10mm green ones. You can mess with bulb holders and the like but heck, LEDS can last up to 25 years so I just made the hole marginally larger and used a dab of hot glue to hold them firm - total cost £1. Won't have to revisit those in my lifetime. Gives a fantastic light too. If you self-build, each LED requires a dropper resistor so it won't blow on 12v, thats all, and if you want to dim it slightly you just fit a higher resistance. Otherwise, just look for 12v stuff. Loads out there and the colour range offered has really widened in the last 12 months.

Playing with these at mo - excellent, and guess where they're going



I think if I needed to light the glovebox I'd either use led tape, or something like the above using 6 LEDs or less.

ghost123uk wrote:

Jeff J wrote:He must be a bit short sighted they would pay for themselves in less than 6 months (eBay prices)

He is VERY short sighted. I had been badgering him to get the refrigerated van serviced for nearly two years (and it does a lot of miles). Only 2 days ago, I got very stranded out in the middle of nowhere when the auxiliary belt snapped due to a worn out tensioner. All in all it cost him about a days wages for me, a breakdown truck and an emergency repair = hundreds of ££s, just because he wouldn't pay to get it regularly serviced Fortunately, I was not on my way to someone’s posh wedding, with a thousand pounds worth of food on board, image if I had have been

That's not short sighted then, he is just a stupidly tight git

I have a flexi LED strip for the Glove box , operated off a door opener switch. Tis like magic, open the glove box and light comes on
Switch about £1, LED strip was left over from anothr project.
Like those LED pads covkid

The real problem with LED replacements (particularly in domestic settings) is calculating when the financial return might be. There are a couple of factors that affect this. If you take money out of the equation its a no-brainer but in reality, some replacements are excessively priced in this regard and you might never see a return, particularly if it fails. On the flip-side, very cheap LED lights are sometimes ridiculously over-driven which significantly shortens their lifespan, not to mention the potential for electrocution where the mains is concerned. Some imported power supplies offer little or no protection.

In a camper, getting the right level of illumination is something of an art, and a glovebox at night, probably only needs little more than the light you'd get from an LED panel indicator - unless you want to be blinded each time. Its rather easy to overdo it and having a range of light types is handy when you're trying to find the ideal. Ultra-bright LED lights are unpleasant after a while (even disconcerting) which is why I tend to lean towards warm white for inside. Externally the rules change but mega-bright isn't always right either. Plus you have to add in factors that are more unique to LEDs, such as only using red LEDs in red light fittings. With tungsten you can use a clear bulb in a tail light housing but the wavelength is different with LEDs and you have to use red - likewise with indicators where you have to use yellow or amber LEDs.

Poundland sell a range of LED bulbs and other products that can be hacked and recycled to make other things. IKEA do some great lights (at a price) for those that just buy off-the-shelf stuff, and there is no shortage of outlets offering 'direct replacements' for tungsten bulbs. Some LEDs need additional cooling if pushed to their max (particularly headlight bulbs) which is why for now I'm staying with halogen. I think you just have to define how much light you need for the job and choose accordingly. I don't need to see a rabbit from three miles away but I do need to be able to see clearly enough to not crash into something or someone else into me.

As some will know, I got rid of my dash dimmer after finding the absolute sweet spot for illuminating the clocks and as the LED bulbs I fitted are not over-driven at all, I don't anticipate ever having to replace them. They are also now independent of the PCB membrane on the clocks which is notoriously prone to poor connections. I drive in the sidelight position all the time as everything on that circuit is all LEDs and they draw practically nothing from the battery and it helps pick me out in traffic as well as eliminating the 'lights left on' problem that some struggle with. Unfortunately, on modern cars, the level of illumination is often badly calculated by the maker, blinding drivers when their brake lights come on. This is why I say a degree of thought and experimentation is worthwhile.

Thanks for tracking down an original map light at Brickwerks. I gulped at £25, but then saw they are much more elsewhere. I want to keep my van original (my Westfalia will be worth £10,000 less if I don't)

Lots of other good info in the replies - thanks

Adeybruce wrote:.. I want to keep my van original ...

... I don't think the bulbs were made in 1989,
Hope this isn't too disappointing.

I think you really need to change your tyres too