L.E.D. 4" conversion w/extras

[Excella CM]

I decided to convert the Excella 500 rear lights to L.E.D.s so that if I wanted to leave the A/S unhooked for a while, I could leave the clearance lights on for several days without killing the batteries.

When I looked into it, I didn't like anything that was available at the prices I wanted to pay. so what I did was:

I took standard gromet mount sealed 4" 60 L.E.D. truck light from LED R US, (many others have similar) and sacrificed the case to get the PC board with the L.E.D.s (see pics). Most of these designs net out at a little under 4" diameter. I filed flats on three sides 90 deg. apart to fit the original reflector.

Next I spliced an old bulb socket onto the wires from the PC board. I soldered the wires in and filled the hollow with hot glue. I also added one extra bright white led onto back of the board ( & a 600 ohm resistor to drop the voltage from 12 to 3.5V) . This extra led I fed through the grommet that held the end of the fiber-optic cable telltale. Using a piece of rubber tubing I mated the L.E.D. and the fiber-optic so that I would still have a functioning teltale on the side of the trailer. I sprayed the back of the PC board with clear lacquer before putting the unit together.

The Excella came with separate brake/turn & tail lights, but the tail light side had a standard 1157 socket using only one wire. I rewired it so that the brake turn function works on both , while the tail light remains on one.

The picture of the lights in the on position are the brake/turn L.E.D.s.

Sort of a picky job, but worth, I think, the effort.