I’m worried because I find the lenses very dark and I wonder if the lighting will be powerful enough with leds? Was there anyone who installed leds in Lee lenses ? Thanks!
Vedette, I never used a Lee lens. A lot is going to depend on how bright (powerful) the LED units. About 10 years ago, I converted some old trucks and an old travel trailer to LED lights. Some of the lights were not very bright others were bright. Recently, I have had great success with Red LED lights behind Red plastic lenses. I count 14 LED modules on each assembly, with a little luck, they will shine through these lens. The unknown is the red spectrum of the Red LED (LED light have a very narrow color spectrum) vs the spectrum that the Lees lens will pass light through (This lens looks like a "darker" red). I am not sure the above makes sense in English, I hope it translates into French. Russ
Most or all Lee lens do not have a reflector incorporated in the lens like a stock lens does. This makes them illegal in most states. Most states require a red reflector in the rear of a car, and most cars use the tail light lens as the reflector.
If you’re using the “bulb” replacement led’s, or regular bulbs, the white reflector works. On a board like the OP shows, I don’t think it would do much. The light is too directional.
L Le cuvelage, mais ça ne marche pas avec des LED qui sont tous tournés dans le même sens en plus d'être unidirectionnel. On a side note all LED replacement ain't created equal some are barely brighter than a regular bulb. And they can be deceiving because when you look at them dead center they look super bright, but when installed less bright than a 21w bulb, that's because of the way they are set on the board and the type of LED used. The cheapo ones are the domed ones. Also red LED work better behind a red lens.
Bha oui! leds do not need Reflector! drole d'idée! I will see. I am not advanced.. What bothers me is that it costs a lot of money.
https://mossmotors.com/led-replacement-bulbs-type-1157 I have these drop-in bulbs in my shoebox with Lee lenses and I couldn't be happier. They are very bright, and because of the lens in the tip, it still makes the "diamond" in the lens just as it should. Before, my lights were barely visable during the day. I was so impressed with them, I installed one in my motorcycle as well. I've also installed a bunch of them in customer cars (I restore vintage British/Euro cars) . You'll not be disappointed. They're brighter in "park" mode than my old 1157's were on "brake" mode - not kidding. I didn't need a fancy flasher on mine , BTW.
I'll be the nay sayer again those are white leds, there's a good chance they will shine white with a pinkish/reddish halo through the red lens. As a general rule of thumb you choose the leds the same color as the lens. That's why the Moss ones have a color option. Tu nous dira dans 1 mois quand tu les aura reçues
Oui j'ai cru comprendre que les leds rouges sont mieux pour un cabochon rouge .. on vera bien faut faire des tests ... :Oops:
I got the light bulbs from Vova, it’s a disaster! It doesn’t light at all. I dare to buy the others from Moss ... the leds are really ugly and weak! Buddy Palumbo, would it be possible to have a picture of your Lighted Lights? (in broad daylight)
finally the leds are not going well for the LEE Lenses. I made resin chrome reflector with normal bulbs! it’s much better like this!
Be careful with the old style filament bulbs. I was wiring a shoebox ford for a friend and the car had Lee lenses like yours. I left the brake lights on too long and the heat melted the Lee lenses. They WILL melt and with all those bulbs of yours, be careful...don't leave the lights on too long.
Bulbs 21Watts Stop yes! it's normal!! but we never brake for long! I left the night lights 5 Watts on 30 minutes ,and it didn’t get too hot..
It appears you're using a separate lamp for each function. I'll warn you that your turn signals won't be seen clearly when the brakes are applied as they're both the same brightness. My avatar had a similar set-up when I got it. The main difference was the PO used 50 watt brake lights which really didn't appear as brighter but did wash out the turn lights when they were on and the high wattage killed the brake light switch. I had multiple comments that my turns weren't really visible when the brake lights were on... I switched to a single lamp for all functions, big improvement all around. European practice was typically separate lamps for each, but they also had separate lenses/enclosures for them.
In France up to the late 50's many cars had single filament bulbs for brakes and turn signals, I have a 58 that way. Then maybe in 56 (earliest I know of) the 2 color lenses appeared but brakes were orange and signal red up to maybe the late 60's when brakes became red, driving a car with this setup and original 18w in today traffic is scary, even the cops pull you over for the orange stop lights. Not talking about the tech inspection who notify you to fix the "bad wiring".
digging this up, im looking for my '55 Mercury, looks like i have a choice between lee lenses, and Moon makes them as well. The photos are pretty rough on Lees sight (http://www.leelenses.com/products/), pretty good shots of the Moon ones (https://www.mooneyesusa.com/55-56-Mercury-Full-Custom-Tail-Light-Lenses-p/js55m.htm) from the photos looks like the Moon lenses aren't as dark. Anyone seen first hand the differences between the two companies lenses? is one darker than the other? Does one appear to be higher quality than the other? EDIT: Tried to order the Moons, says 'out of stock' which i'm assuming means discontinued. Went with the standard Lees
@WZ JUNK Couldnt tell if thats a reply to me or the general thread. Those lee lenses or moon? whatever they are they look great
FYI i talked to the guy at Lee lenses, he said they can use "2 sheets" of plastic to mold lenses, he said this makes them look as bright as modern day lenses. Since each lens is basically 2 lenses using this process it DOES double the price. not sure how this makes them brighter, but that's what they say. he also recommended using reflective foil tape in the cans, which i guess would work but id worry about it coming loose eventually? I think chrome or white rattlecan would be superior.
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