5 & 3/4 sealed beam headlights

[lusciousthelock]

Hiya, blown one of my headlights on my Sceptre, so was looking for a replacement unit or units. I noticed on Ebay a halogen conversion set for 75 quid which seemed a bit steep, I also saw a set for the Capri for 35 quid?  Are these the same? I would think that the Capri, Dolomite, Humber Sceptre were all the same kind of lamps yes?

[composimmonite]

IIRC the Capri MKIII lights are dip / main outers with just main inners. Is the Sceptre the same ? Are you sure the Capri set is 4 x 5.75" and not just a pair of rectangular as fitted to MKI ?
On my Triumph 1500 FWD I fitted scrapyard items that I seem to remember came off a Rover P6.

[colnerov]

Hi, try these -

www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Crystal-Halogen-headlights-upgrade-lamps-5-3-4-Ford-Capri-and-others-e9-marked-/371190973090?pt=UK_CarsParts_Vehicles_CarParts_SM&hash=item566cb4c2a2

Shaped reflector and clear glass, better light output and cheaper. Had the 7" version on the Range Rover.

Colin

[hardtop]

i got new ones from lucas for about £22 irc

[ems1]

On my Manta I've put H4's on the outside and KC Daylighters on the inside.

[ChasR]

I guess it depends on how picky you are.

In my Stag I had the cheaper units fitted at £12 a pop (you can get them from near enough any specialist as I did), made by Autopal. Sure the cut off was fine but Lord the output was not great. Not the worst but certainly not the best. On closer inspection the mirrors were painted and not chromed like the pricier units.

If I am honest my 30 year old Carrellos in the MGB were superior as were the Wipacs in the Spitfire with Osram Nightbreakers. The Wipacs are pricier than the Autopals but quite a margin, but the Cibies (I assume they have replaced Carrello) are even better, but they are around £100 for 4. But OTOH at least you can see at night time .

I have heard mixed reports about the Crystal lights ; Some people swear by them, others hate them. A friend of mine had a set in his Mini and commented on how poor they were in terms of light output, until he went to Wipacs which he claimed were a night and day difference (pardon the pun). You wonder whether some peeps had headlights that were very poor in condition where almost anything would be an improvement.

[lusciousthelock]

Really unsure what to buy to be honest. Mine are both dipped and main beam. The stock units are wibblepoo lol! Dipped beam is more of a candle glow, where as main beam seems to be pretty good in the respect its as bright as a normal dipped beam. I don't do a lot of night driving anyway and the streets are well lit so maybe I'll just try and find some stock units then check all the wireing for resistance. Those crystal clear units look nice, but I wonder how out of place they would look on the car being a mid sixties model? I might buy them and see as I've never had any problems with Ring lamps in the past and seem easily obtainable.

Thanks for your input folks!

[composimmonite]

One old / period trick for sealed beam lights was using a relay have the dipped beam on all the time so the dip switch just switches the main on and off. That way you get the extra output of the dipped beam at the same time as main. Don't try this with halogens as the heat created could be too much but with tungsten bulbs and sealed beams it's not such a problem. A way to check what it'd be like is simply find a dark road and use the flasher whilst on dipped beam.

[dave3066]

I've converted my P6's headlamps to halogen units, outer dip/beam units only, I've left the inners as sealed beam units. I went for Cibie lamps as I wanted a reliable brand, but the ones on eBay will almost certainly suffice. The big difference with halogen is the availability of better quality bulbs and by that I mean the quality of light output. I've recently switched from standard halogen bulbs to Osram Nightbreakers. These give a more crisp white light and have made a real difference to my ability to see beyond the blinding glare of modern lights. Adding relays to sealed beam units will give a negligible improvement in my experience so fitting halogens is the best option. These are my lights before and after the Osrams, which are also 60/55W bulbs.



Dave

[composimmonite]

When I mentioned relays in conjunction with sealed beams it wasn't to ensure full volts go to unit but rather than if you wire up the lights so dipped stay on all the time then you don't overload the switch with the current for both dipped and main at the same time.
The Osrams look impressive. I might upgrade my daily to them

[dave3066]

Nov 24, 2014 12:04:29 GMT composimmonite said:

When I mentioned relays in conjunction with sealed beams it wasn't to ensure full volts go to unit but rather than if you wire up the lights so dipped stay on all the time then you don't overload the switch with the current for both dipped and main at the same time.
The Osrams look impressive. I might upgrade my daily to them

Okay I see what you mean. That'll certainly help on main beam but doesn't help when your on dip. It's also exactly the reason why I fitted a relay to my lights. On the early P6 the sidelight switch takes the full load for all of the headlamps and mine was suffering from the effects of thermal cycling which loosened the connections and made the headlamps flicker or go out altogether . Fitting a relay took all that load away from the switch.

Those Osrams are very good. I'm reliably informed that they have a life of around 3 years.

Dave

[ChasR]

Nov 24, 2014 11:08:23 GMT dave3066 said:

I've converted my P6's headlamps to halogen units, outer dip/beam units only, I've left the inners as sealed beam units. I went for Cibie lamps as I wanted a reliable brand, but the ones on eBay will almost certainly suffice. The big difference with halogen is the availability of better quality bulbs and by that I mean the quality of light output. I've recently switched from standard halogen bulbs to Osram Nightbreakers. These give a more crisp white light and have made a real difference to my ability to see beyond the blinding glare of modern lights. Adding relays to sealed beam units will give a negligible improvement in my experience so fitting halogens is the best option. These are my lights before and after the Osrams, which are also 60/55W bulbs.



Dave

You say that but the owner of hoopsontoast's Dolomite Sprint felt there was little difference between the sealed beams and the Halogens he purchased from a well known specialist based in Lincolnshire.

On the Stag I did notice a difference between the sealed beams but then what came out were high beams dipped to a very low level (how it passed MOTs for years is beyond me!) - Anything would have been an improvement in that situation and sure enough the Autopals were .

Another thing I can suggest for whatever headlamp you fit is to fit relays. Not only will your light switches be saved (less current passing through them) but also your light output will increase due to a reduced voltage drop.

[nomad]

Relays are always a good idea 

I got a set of 4 new universal headlights from Hadrian panels for the Triumph 2000 ( same layout as Sceptre - 2 main/dip + 2 driving), was very impressed with price & light output. Hadrian have been taken over but you might find the new crowd can help? I think those lights are the same as Sceptre
Maybe ask the Triumph suppliers

I get most of my NOS original Hunter spares from Speedy Spares www.speedyspares.co.uk

Where are you? I have a set of 4 used Sceptre headlights here from a breaker but the plans have changed so won't be using them. Were tested ok when I got them but have been moved thru' 3 houses since then.   Daft offers will be considered but I'm not keen to post.

Upgrade them to Square Hunter lights!  ps. I have a spare set of used Hunter lights & Grille here...

Or get brutal and fit a set of rectangular Escort lights into your grille (PM me if you want more info  )
Just in case it helps retrorides.proboards.com/thread/162005/looking-headlight-dimensions-mounting-advice

So many choices!

[dave3066]

Nov 24, 2014 18:37:23 GMT ChasR said:

You say that but the owner of hoopsontoast's Dolomite Sprint felt there was little difference between the sealed beams and the Halogens he purchased from a well known specialist based in Lincolnshire.

Yes, I can only comment from my own experience. That experience is that the standard halogen lights were a marked improvement on the sealed beam units and the Osram bulbs are a further improvement. None of them compare to modern headlamps, but they do make enough of a difference to ensure my drive to and from work in the winter is a rather more pleasant experience.

Dave

[ChasR]

Sorry, I worded that badly. The new owner of Rob's Dolly Sprint went from Sealed Beams (one or two of them were new) to Autopal lights on all four lights.