cab lights
Member
Joined: Aug 2008
Posts: 46
Likes: 0
From: Was Galveston, now Austin
small update - i was planning on using a few free days last week for putting the cab lights on as well as a set of factory fogs, an upgraded oem radio and a mount for my phone. well we managed to get to everything but the cab lights, for two reasons. 1. the amber cab lights had a chrome base which i had not noticed til i opened them. my truck is dsg with black bumpers and steps, so i spent some time trying to sand them down and spray the bases black. that ate up some time trying to do a decent job. 2. then we decided to run the fogs first. my buddy used to do work as an electrician and the job looks really professional, including the switch inside. we tested everything before running it and had it working, but when we tried hooking it all up, couldn't get them to work for the better part of a day doing trial and error. finally tried hooking the two grounds to different bolts and that finally fixed it, though it was the problem during the testing phase. go figure. anyway, i am hoping to get around to wiring the cab lights in the near future. outside of drilling holes, i think it will be pretty straight forward. i'll throw some pics of what i installed in my gallery soon if anyone wants to see. keep yall posted.
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Senior Member
Joined: Dec 2005
Posts: 707
Likes: 0
From: palmdale,ca
I changed my mind about using the ford oem lights because of having to drill a 1 in. Hole THE for connector on light assy. I ordered the recon low profile lights for dodge and went with the amber hope to get them in a few days.
Member
Joined: Aug 2008
Posts: 46
Likes: 0
From: Was Galveston, now Austin
not sure who's still checking this thread, but i finally got around to installing the recons on my truck. i'm putting some pictures in my profile. wasn't all that hard, just took a while and some courage to drill. things not mentioned in tylus' how to:
1. use a 7mm wrench to remove a pillar handles.
2. use a 10 mm to remove the rear plastic pieces where the doors meet (at least on a single cab)
3. i used the method of 4" from the front edge of the roof for the three in the center and 5" for the two outer lights. there is a lip along the front of the cab roof that gets in the way of the long screws that come with the kit. cut off about a third of the screw for the front screw on each of the 3 center lights or, like me you will buckle your sheet metal a bit and have to find a bolt that fits. it was a nightmare getting the nut on it.
4. my kit came with a harness and i pushed the middle of the rubber up thru the 1/2" holes i cut for the wiring. there is a larger collar that will seat up against the bottom of the roof this way. push up on it when you plug in the lights and check that they are in the right way or else they wont work. in my kit, the red wire from the light must be on the same side as the yellow wire on the harness.
5. test fit and screw down each light before committing to the silicone goop. you really only get one shot and you want to make sure your holes line up. i had to elongate a few of my wire holes with a round rasp to fit.
6. after it's all in and you go to close her all up, turn on the lights and push the headliner all the way up. one of my wires was getting pulled and i didn't realize it until i bolted it all back up. save yourself the headache.
7. push up on the rubber connector when you are screwing the thing down or else the pressure may pop it out the bottom. that also sucked.
8. silicone the hell out of evertything. just the holes though. on both sides. i went around both sides of the rubber piece (top and bottom) and then on the top where the screws went thru. then, once thru, went around the screws inside the cab.
9. DO NOT OVERTIGHTEN this is very bad. it leads to major headaches. be cautious if you encounter resistance in the screw. it probably means there is too much stress on it. that sheet metal is not so strong and i bent it in a few places. don't be like me.
all in all i am very pleased with the lights and recommend the install. I'll get some pics up later tonight.
1. use a 7mm wrench to remove a pillar handles.
2. use a 10 mm to remove the rear plastic pieces where the doors meet (at least on a single cab)
3. i used the method of 4" from the front edge of the roof for the three in the center and 5" for the two outer lights. there is a lip along the front of the cab roof that gets in the way of the long screws that come with the kit. cut off about a third of the screw for the front screw on each of the 3 center lights or, like me you will buckle your sheet metal a bit and have to find a bolt that fits. it was a nightmare getting the nut on it.
4. my kit came with a harness and i pushed the middle of the rubber up thru the 1/2" holes i cut for the wiring. there is a larger collar that will seat up against the bottom of the roof this way. push up on it when you plug in the lights and check that they are in the right way or else they wont work. in my kit, the red wire from the light must be on the same side as the yellow wire on the harness.
5. test fit and screw down each light before committing to the silicone goop. you really only get one shot and you want to make sure your holes line up. i had to elongate a few of my wire holes with a round rasp to fit.
6. after it's all in and you go to close her all up, turn on the lights and push the headliner all the way up. one of my wires was getting pulled and i didn't realize it until i bolted it all back up. save yourself the headache.
7. push up on the rubber connector when you are screwing the thing down or else the pressure may pop it out the bottom. that also sucked.
8. silicone the hell out of evertything. just the holes though. on both sides. i went around both sides of the rubber piece (top and bottom) and then on the top where the screws went thru. then, once thru, went around the screws inside the cab.
9. DO NOT OVERTIGHTEN this is very bad. it leads to major headaches. be cautious if you encounter resistance in the screw. it probably means there is too much stress on it. that sheet metal is not so strong and i bent it in a few places. don't be like me.
all in all i am very pleased with the lights and recommend the install. I'll get some pics up later tonight.