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November 19th - Brake Switch and Panel Light With a nice day forecast, I got Jessie out to replace the brake switch. It is awkward to reach, having the exhaust and steering linkage so close, but the switch was unscrewed and replaced without loosing too much brake fluid. They would of course still need bleeding again The dash was drilled for a small 24 volt panel LED which was wired up to the brake switch circuit. The LED lights up every time the brake pedal is pressed. This would allow me to monitor the function of the switch and warn me if the switch failed or a wire became detached. The brake lights came on when the pedal was pressed, but stayed on after it was released. After repeated pressings, and tapping the switch with a spanner, the lights went off, although the switch seemed 'sticky'. I'm guessing the switch just needed freeing up after a long period of storage since manufacture, as its operation became more reliable the more it was used. |
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----- November 14th - LED Brake Lights and Radiator Cap In the ten years I've had "Jessie the Jeep", I've frequently had brake light problems. The bulbs aren't the problem, it's the brake pressure switch. It can't handle the amps and high voltage of the 24 volt circuit that the French Army installed in 1966. Arcing across the terminals burns out the contacts, sometimes in a matter of a few months. Fitting a new switch is a pain, as the brake pipes need bleeding after replacement. Some time ago, I made a back-up switch with two brass contacts, and an insulated blade that withdraws from the contacts to allow the circuit to complete. While this worked, it too burns, and if the two brass contacts are held apart the right distance, I get a blue welding arc from the amps flowing between them! Well I think I've cracked it! I've replaced the two 21 Watt brake light bulbs with high output LED's. Current draw is massively reduced using LED's, and I can no longer get the brass contacts to arc. I have a new pressure switch to fit, and hopefully, this reduced current draw will allow this switch to last. The pictures show the new LED light in the holder, the brightness with the cover off, and then with the red lenses refitted. |
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| For a while now, Jessie has been blowing radiator water out of the over flow pipe, which was noticed when parking and seeing a pool form below the pipe. This has been allowing radiator levels to constantly drop. There are no other leaks, and with having the cylinder head off last year and a new head gasket fitted, I figured the most likely reason was a tired radiator cap spring. So I've bought a new cap to try and see if that fixes the problem. |
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