Ranchero gurus, tell me about dash lighting.

So my dash are either very dim or not working at all. What am I likely to be in for?

How do I get to the back of the dash panel exactly with my 72?

Any advice for a noob at this sort of repair?

 

Fairly simple to remove the gauge cluster. Pull of the bezel and look around for the screws, biggest bitch is removing the speedo cable in my opinion.
Replace your bulbs with LED ones and clean your circuit board on the back.
http://www.ranchero.us/forum/index.php?threads/72-79-gauge-clusters-and-wiring.5005/
http://www.ranchero.us/forum/index.php?threads/led-replacement-bulbs.5708/

 

Much thanks, parts4me!! I could not find the right threads.

 

Also check that the rheostat puts out 12 or more volts at the highest point before the interior light clicks on, and that there's within 1/2 of a volt difference between the switch and the socket on the cluster board.

 

Will do, Andy. Thanks!

 

My dash lights were dead when I bought my '70. I assumed the P.O. would be smart enough to check/change the fuse so I pulled
my cluster and all of the lamps were fine. Checked my fuse the first time (the wrong way) with no luck. Checked my fuse the right way by removing it from the block and checking it. Bingo! New fuse made all of the lights work. If you do LED's make sure they can work with the rheostat so you can still dim them if needed. Good luck.

 

Thanks Jeff, will definitely check the fuse.

 

...a further question on dash lighting; the lights on Cochise's dash are really dim also. I see all kinds of dash light replacement bulbs on Ebay, different colors etc...
....how do i know which size to buy? Are they all the same size? Since I'm working on the speedo cable anyway, and the clock, I want to replace the lights. Any advice would be great.

 

check this site for your ranchero :::https://www.superbrightleds.com/veh...hicle-led-lights?make=28&model=1358&year=1969

 

Sometimes it's not bulb brightness, but function. When I went through my cluster, I had bases that were sporting broken terminals, along with corrosion and/or burned-out bulbs. It sometimes helps to just go through and inspect, then clean, then replace. Don't forget the idiot lights at the same time.

 

and I'll throw in that the blue lenses covering the instrument lights can become so opaque with age that they don't allow much light through. I had an exponential increase in light output just by removing those.

 

LED's are popular these days and if you go for them, make sure they are dimable. Some of the cluster lights could have a plastic cover on them that gets cloudy after many years. Just
changing out to new bulbs without the covers might be enough of a bump to make things better. I don't know if Cochise came with the covers or not.
Edit:HuevosRanchero in for the win

 

I find it entertaining to drive like Stevie Wonder- who needs to see the gauges anyhoo? The LEDs don't require near the power of the incandescent bulbs so the rheostat even if not at peak performance will provide loads of light assuming its not completely shot. BEWARE of the gauge housing (the white thingy) it can be extremely brittle! Sense you are taking things apart to clean and replace bulbs it doesn't hurt to brush fiberglass resin over the housing inside and out, a thin coat does wonders for the integrity of this piece. Also go to the hobby store and get some florescent orange modeling paint to touch up your needles. Be very gentle with the needles but when done your dash will look amazing. Doesn't take long to spruce up the cluster about 1/2 a day if you need to glass the housing.

 

Oh yeah- depending on how deep ya wanna go, send your clock out to be rebuilt with quartz components. It will work for a change! You can buy the kits which I prefer to avoid personally or you can send it out it cost less than you'd think. http://www.clockwks.com/Quartzx.html

 

all good ideas and advice! Tx Bear, I did actually buy one of those rebuilt clocks and am planning on installing it soon. Yeah the lighting is so bad at night that I struggle to see what the gauges are telling me.

 

If I could find my damned boxes of cluster parts....

 

I wish my light issue with my 70 was as easy as a bad fuse. I blow fuses as soon as I turn on my light. I have power to the fuse box and from there it looks like all the wires are in a loom. the were working before installed my new radio but I removed the dash and I can not find the problem. Looked from the top and the bottom. .

 

It sounds as if someone tapped into the lighting circuit for the radio, which is a big nono. Remove the radio and see if any of its wiring is attached to a blue wire with red stripe, and if so, cut it and put in a fresh fuse to retest. Ask me how I know about this particular symptom....

 

When I first hooked the constant power I accidentally hooked it up to the courtesy light. I figured it out when I shut the door and had no radio.

 

Places I have found dead shorts,goofed wiring in my 72/73.(blue-red stripe)
Radio light
Ashtray light
Steering column gear indicator light
center console shift light pigtail,under carpet drivers side.
short in light switch
Good luck!