In respose to item number 6 below. I just heard on the radio yeterday that
AutoZone has lights that go into the tailpipe. I don't know anyhting else
about them. Something to look into.
Dan Jacobsen - PA
'49 3100 327/powerglide
'55.1 3100 rodstoration 350/350 MII
'48 4400 Front sheet metal on a '87 chassis
'51 6400 Deluxe Cab and front sheet metal going on above '87 chassis
'35 Dodge Business Coupe - All original
'35 Dodge Business Coupe - parts car
>From: "Brian J Luebke" <luebkeb@zibsoft.com>
>Reply-To: "Brian J Luebke" <luebkeb@zibsoft.com>
>To: <GremlinGTs@aol.com>, <luebkeb@zibsoft.com>, <oletrucks@autox.team.net>
>Subject: RE: [oletrucks] Electronic Gadgets for trucks...some ideas (
>long)
>Date: Thu, 4 Apr 2002 15:07:21 -0600
>
>Wow, some great ideas Jerry, I like em. thanks for the ideas, I hope
>others will feed off your ideas too.
>
>So, how much would that battery level indicator be worth? just curious if
>it can be done for what guys might want to pay for it.
>
>Brian
>
> > -----Original Message-----
> > From: owner-oletrucks@autox.team.net
> > [mailto:owner-oletrucks@autox.team.net]On Behalf Of GremlinGTs@aol.com
> > Sent: Wednesday, April 03, 2002 8:37 PM
> > To: luebkeb@zibsoft.com; oletrucks@autox.team.net
> > Subject: Re: [oletrucks] Electronic Gadgets for trucks...some ideas (
> > long)
> >
> >
> > Hi, Brian. Glad to hear bout you...I have a LOT of
> > ideas, some strange,
> > some not so weird. So I'll give it a go to offer up some
> > ideas of things that
> > I would like to see.
> >
> > 1) Underhood accent / work lights. What I mean is, a
> > single underhood
> > light isn't very useful, you can't get much light down by the
> > starter,
> > suspension, steering box, etc. What I'd like to see is a
> > "set" of lights
> > that's run around the engine compartment to "light it up" and
> > show off the
> > engine bay of a restored truck, or a work-horse version for
> > helping work on
> > "driver" type trucks. They could be run along the frame near
> > the engine
> > mounts, have some point towards the oil pan, etc. They
> > wouldn't have to be
> > 1,000 watt jobbers, just some nice bright lights to help see
> > all the working
> > parts. Maybe along the lines of Christmas light string, but
> > with less lights.
> > But similar, and obviously 12 volt.
> >
> > 2) Electronic LED Voltmeter - I'm an electronic test
> > technician, and used
> > to subscribe to some of those Electronic hobbiest mags, and
> > they had some
> > wonderful gadgets to build and experiment with. What I'd like
> > to see is a
> > small, cheap, durable LED voltmeter that has graduated LEDs
> > that come on when
> > the voltage gets over 10 volts. Red for 10 and under, yellow
> > for 11 , and
> > green for 12 to 14, then yellow for 15, and red for 16. I
> > saved a bunch of
> > LED "strings" off some old scrapped circuit boards from my
> > now-defunct job,
> > I'd be willing to donate them to you for "research purposes"
> > for this idea.
> > They are very small ones, about 1/8th inch size or less, use
> > roughly 1. 5 - 2
> > volts to activate. An expensive voltmeter isn't for everyone,
> > and I and
> > others could use this as just a quick system checker to
> > verify operation ,
> > and it could be mounted to use continuously, or plug into a
> > cigarette lighter
> > for monitoring, etc. Or mounted under the hood near the
> > battery, with the
> > pretty lights showing what's up with the charging system. :)
> > I also have some
> > scrapped plastic "boxes" from small electronic items that my
> > company throws
> > away, they can be used to house the breadboard as well. But
> > this is an
> > extremely useful tool that could be used by anyone, just plug
> > and play as it
> > were. No fancy digital or analog readout, just lights as
> > indicators. I've
> > seen the circuits in the mags, just never got around to
> > acquiring all the
> > goods to try to build one myself. Oh well.
> >
> > 3) Underdash lights ( same principle as under-hood lights
> > ) - Ever tried
> > to work on your truck wiring broken down on the road? Never
> > have a flashlight
> > when ya need one. Need some lights run to shine UP under the
> > dash, run off a
> > switch, to check the systems up there as well. Could be
> > pivoted to act as
> > floor lights, and swung up to view underneath as well, so
> > you'd get twice the
> > value for the cost. Not many of the old trucks have floor
> > lights like modern
> > cars ( or trucks, either ).
> >
> > 4) Miniature AC generator/alternator - I've seen kits to
> > convert a
> > standard alternator to tap into the AC potential to run 110
> > AC devices. I'd
> > like to know if the current ones on the market are worth
> > buying, and if there
> > is a better alternative. It would be VERY HANDY to have
> > access to AC for like
> > a small work light ( those 12-volt work lights arent' always
> > around when you
> > need them, especially if you break down AWAY from your
> > garage, as your
> > friends rarely collect such tools which true fanatics of old
> > vehicles do ),
> > and you could run AC accent lights on your truck with them
> > too. Something
> > like a small bicycle style generator that produces standard
> > AC power for
> > small jobs might be interesting. Not sure how it could be mounted.
> >
> > 5) FAR OUT ELECTRONIC GADGET - how about some modern
> > headlights with a
> > major twist - looks like a standard glass light, but inside
> > it has the
> > removeable small replacement bulb, and also a COLOR WHEEL you
> > can activate to
> > turn your headlights different colors at shows ( or
> > surreptiously while
> > cruisin' ). This would obviously entail some serious
> > engineering effort, as
> > the lower part of the headlight would have to have a slot cut
> > in it for a
> > color wheel to protrude into the housing, or totally
> > redesigned. But that
> > would look AWESOME to see red or green or yellow or blue
> > headlights. Not easy
> > to do I'd venture, this would take some serious
> > brain-draining work to come
> > up with a viable solution. But it would be so cool! Or,
> > better yet, how about
> > a Fiber optic solution to take the light to the reflective
> > housing, and then
> > you could color the light at the generating end, not in the
> > headlight itself.
> > THAT might work better, but still alot of work.
> >
> > 6) ANOTHER far-out idea, for exhaust tailpipe outlets -
> > How about
> > putting some small sealed lights in the exhaust pipe at the
> > rear bumper
> > exit, so when you're cruising, you can have a
> > red/yellow/white incremental
> > effect as you increase speed. Might be strobing or flashing,
> > tuned to the RPM
> > of the engine - would look even better if you have
> > straight-out facing
> > exhaust pipes. Obviously wouldn't want them TOO bright, or
> > you'd face the
> > wrath of The Man...but some low-light effect would be just as
> > effective. The
> > deeper they're in the tailpipe, the better the effect would
> > be. A 2-foot
> > stainless tailpipe with lights in all the way back would look
> > good. Might
> > have to make the lights removeable for periodic cleaning.
> > Just snap into
> > place, facing the rear of the vehicle. Heat would be an
> > issue, but that far
> > away from the engine , you might make them survive.
> >
> > 7) Heck, I've forgotten more zany ideas than I can
> > remember at the
> > moment, someone else insert a suggestion here! LOL. Oh, wait
> > a minute...I DO
> > have one more...a strobe light underhood pointing at the fan
> > and moving
> > pulleys, pulsed off the coil....might give a neat effect at
> > shows, like a
> > timing light pointed at the fan blades to show them briefly
> > "stopped" in
> > action. Haven't seen THIS put into effect yet by those
> > wonderfully creative
> > Californian citizens. Has anyone else? Ok, I'll leave it
> > alone for now, I've
> > exhausted myself with this creative burst. Good luck with
> > your R & D, Brian!
> >
> > Jerry
> > '55 2nd project Chevy Suburban, still sitting after 10 years... :(
> > oletrucks is devoted to Chevy and GM trucks built between
> > 1941 and 1959
>oletrucks is devoted to Chevy and GM trucks built between 1941 and 1959
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oletrucks is devoted to Chevy and GM trucks built between 1941 and 1959
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