LED replacement for 1141 bulb in '65 Caravel

[kevinkatz]

i am trying to replace the bulbs in my reading lights in my 1965 caravel with led bulbs.
sounds easy right? just buy 1141 base leds and pop them in.
not so fast................the 1141 bulb glass tapers up from the metal base.
the 1141 led immediately gets thicker at the end of the base.
the leds wont fit in the aluminum lights because they cant go in far enough.
a longer base would work.

has anyone had this experience and any ideas on a fix?

[Dingo Girl]

Did you find a solution? I was just thinking I should order bulbs soon & found your post.
I have a 67 Caravel I think we have the same reading lights.

[kevinkatz]

I tried a number of bulbs and none worked due to a slightly thicker base than the regular bulb. I think that the solution is to use a die grinder and widen the opening in the reflector ever so slightly. I just haven’t taken the time to do it yet.

[Dingo Girl]

Thank you. If I can get a bulb to fit I'll post how I did it.

[Lumatic]

Check with Dan Brown at LED4RV he will set you up with a good solution at a good price. Tell him Marshall referred you.

[Glenritas]

If your reading lamp is like mine '69 Tradewind then this is what you're looking for.

I got it at my local rv store . Its available also with a short neck for other fixtures.

The best thing is it puts out more and better light without the heat or current draw.

[Dingo Girl]

Originally Posted by kevinkatz

I tried a number of bulbs and none worked due to a slightly thicker base than the regular bulb. I think that the solution is to use a die grinder and widen the opening in the reflector ever so slightly. I just haven’t taken the time to do it yet.

Installed mine today. The space between the arrows is too great.
Take the switch nut off pull out the guts of the light and push the reflector in further.
It pushes really hard but solves the problem.

[Rhino33]

The reading lamps in our 1966 Safari appear to be the same as the one in Dingo Girl's photo...how do you get the bulb out? I am not sure if I should be twisting it, pushing in the reflector, both? I am hoping to switch the original bulbs with LEDs as they get too hot and I'm already having flashes just thinking about them!
Thanks so much!
Jenn

[Dingo Girl]

Between the 2 arrows in the picture you can see the slot in the bulb socket.
This is what holds the bulb.
Push down on bulb and turn slightly. It should pop right out.