History Poll one tail light or two

The way they get ya here is the laws says that all saftey equipment must be functional. They can even write you for non functional running lights or side marker lights.

I used to always run a pair of bullet lights down low on about anything that I owned. Normally hanging off the axle, something that I started doing in high school 40 or so years ago. I got written once for one of my bullet lights being out. They stated that it was saftey equipment and made it stick. Granted they didn't like me in that county but that is beside the point.

 

I agree.

 

I'd have to see that law in writting before I believe that AFTERMARKET additions have to be functional. I fully understand that FACTORY ones do, but I'd have to see it to believe it on aftermarket.

 

You had those "10 extra horse" lights hanging on the rear axle?!?

It's no longer about "To Protect and Serve", now it's "To Generate Revenue" and that's what it should now say on the side of their cars.

 

SAFETY FIRST, Make yourself as
CONSPICUOUS as possible.
I followed my buddy, he's got an old 38 Pickup with dual tail lights, I could hardly see them. He of all people should realize ya just need more light to be seen. He'd been rear ended and totaled his previous sedan delivery (it too had the old barely seen turn/stop/tail lights.)
Me, I've got L.E.D. turn/stop/tail lights on all three of my hot rods. They about blind the smuck in back of me at traffic lights if he's too close. But hey as least the other people know I'm there.

 

LOL!!!!!!

Be safe and go with 2 taillights. What good is it if get hurt, or worse, because ya wanted to keep it totally factory perfect?

Paul

 

Just because of the idiots around here I refuse to run anything with just one tail light. Yes, it looks awesome and super period for some rods, safety is first in my book.

Just remember if someone hits your old car you're going to have one hell of a time finding parts and repairing it. not to mention you can't drive it if its wrecked too bad

 

almost saw a wreck on my morning commute today. all the tailights in the world won't help if some asshole is talking on the phone. traffic stopped, not even quickly and the car along side me didn't slow down. antilock disc brakes saved the day, not even a skid. he missed the guy in front of him by less than a foot.

seeing this didn't make me think of tail lights on old cars, but it did make me think of the knuckleheads on here who think thier drum brakes "stop just fine". if it were any drum brake equipped older car he would have seriously clobbered that guy.

 

Had to jump in on this. I got tired of the soccer moms tailgating me while talking on the cell phone. I added this stop light. You should see some of their faces

 

Another thought,,,back when I ran the one tail light,,it had a blue dot in it,,,man you couldn't see the brake lights during the daytime. HRP

 

Twice this summer on sunny days I've been told by another motorist that my stock style Model A taillights weren't working. Stopped and checked them, they were fine. They're just not that bright (insert wisecrack here). I'll have to get brighter bulbs and paint the inside of the taillights white. I like the third taillight flasher idea too. I'll do whatever it takes to keep from being rearended in my car.
So two taillights minimum for me.
Ralph

 

I love the look of one taillight.

I guess it just comes down to if you plan on using them as turn signals as well. If so, then two obviously. If not, than go for gold with one.

Though, as others have said, if I lived in a city, I'd use two. Country living on the other hand...

 

I'm not trying to attack you personally, 49ratfink, and I don't want to turn this thread into drama.
If we all had 4 wheel disc brakes, 3 LED taillights, and may as well say radial tires also, this place wouldn't really be about traditional hot rods any more.
Of course all of that stuff is better or safer, so are airbags, crumple zones, abs, etc.
Everyone seems to draw a line in the sand with what they accept as safe, disregarding what's traditional.
I'm not saying we should all do whatever we want and throw caution to the wind, but this is a website dedicated to traditional rods and customs.
And that's that.

My 29 roadster with mechanical drum brakes and a single taillight.



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PnB,

It's a great question- I personally like one taillight, my dad bought a spare for his '28 Dodge so that he could have a second (he's big on symmetry)- it all boils down to a matter of taste, and what looks good/right.

And as for the safety issue... I can't tell you how many cars/trucks/etc I see down here in GA that are running with one taillight out, ESPECIALLY in counties like mine, that have no yearly inspection.

 

Common here in the city as well. You can buy a saftey inspection if you look hard enough and I am sure that a lot of them do.

If I were to run the one tail light on my '38 it would just be ludicrous, let me see if I have a photo. Not much ot a light, granted this one has no lense but the size of the car gives you something for compairison.

Here is a thought, I wonder of way back the extra light may have been more important to a customizer than to just your basic hot rodder. The look is way more important to a customizer than it is or would have been to a jalopy type.

 

what does that have to do with the price of tea in China?

point you missed is that people are out there thinking thier vintage drum brakes work just fine when they really don't. if a guy is thinking everything is fine because they can lock thier drums up they are not driving defensivly, not leaving that extra 20 - 50 feet they will need to stop over a modern car.

 

common sense; one tail light on cars that came with one tail light is what restorers do to keep it correct for show. why would a true hot rodder do that? then or now.

 

While the thread is not about brakes it is a good point that you make. Tailgating is not a good idea in one of our old cars that still have drumb brakes, but it should also be noted that most of us don't run antilock brakes either, so there is still the extra room that we should leave for stopping.

Getting back to tail lights, I do like a car with 4 way flashers just for tail gaters. I have had more than one go into panic mode when I hit the 4 ways when they were tail gateing.

 

I agree that anyone driving an old car with drum brakes that thinks it will stop like a car with discs and abs is mistaken. I personally drive defensively and don't tailgate and understand I don't have disc brakes.

Also I do have a vintage early 40's add on turn signal I may use along with some small signal lights in the rear if I can find something acceptable.
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Seems like if you built a car with the drum brakes you should understand that as truth eh?

We are running under the other category on our lil coupe. We also now have some of those little glass red reflectors on it. I did have a guy tell me at a stop light one night, that my taillight had fallen off..... So thinking how in the hell, I stopped to look, and understood he thought the passenger side had fallen off.

 

I have one tail light on my single seater but also have a second "stop" light..

 

I have 2 39 tailights with blue dots on my 29 with a generator. I've gotten pulled over on dark mornings headed to work for "not having tail lights". turns out that you just couldn't see em. I ALWAYS use hand signals even if nobody knows what they mean. at least the other idiots are looking at the wierd guy in the old car with his arm out the side of the car (I hope they are anyway)

 

For a car that is driven only on the surface streets, one would be ok with me, but if doing any freeway driving, I would feel better with two, plus the symmetry just looks better with two.

 

One tail light is like one head light. Is it a bike or car? If it is a car, is the dark (and hard) part to the left or right of the bright spot? Gary

 

Just in case you weren't aware, model a's only came with one taillight from the factory. In fact, standard Ford models through 1940 only had one. All on the left side. So on those, the dark and hard part is to the right.
On mine it is on both sides as mine is centered.

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Single tail light..cool factor
Two tail lights..safety factor
"Do you feel lucky?"

 

Yep , and way more horses on the road than cars.
You could be stopped/stomped by a few dozen different horses maybe 100 before you saw another car or another motorist needed to see your taillights.

 

In 1940?

My comments were more a reply to your question about whether it was a car or a bike.

I'd like to hear from people who have run one taillight and been rearended.
I'd bet that the vast majority of those instances would have still occurred if they had 5 taillights.
And its not a matter of cool factor to me. I like what I like, and dislike what I don't. Nobody has or will ever accuse me of being cool.
Just ask anyone who has ever met me.
Besides, I'm not saying anyone should run a single taillight, run 10 if that's what you want to do, just don't criticize my decision to run a single.

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Carter, I did know that, of course. I also assumed we were talking about driving on today's roads with vintage (ie poor) lighting. Back then, everyone had a common "understanding" of what that their vehicles lighting meant or represented. And they didn't drive as fast as we do now, either. Today, what folks "understand" lighting to represent is quite different. So... one light can mean a lot of different things. Not every driving situation can be as funny as the two oncoming bikers at night, who look like a car, before doing a split around the Shaggy Dog's hot rod. Gary