LED indicator bulbs on TS250/1

[James Suttie]

I’ve just fitted a set of LED bulbs and appropriate flasher unit to my 6V TS250/1 – I’m amazed at how much brighter they are than the standard ones so that’s all good but…
With the ignition on engine off they flash as they should, with the engine running but the headlight off they just stay on. Engine running, headlight on they flash as they should but when the brake light comes on they slow down a bit. Battery is good and charging well – any ideas what is causing this?

[Garth Howarth]

Hi
Do you still have the flashers connected to the warning light in the speedo?

[James Suttie]

Hi Garth,
the indicators aren’t connected to the warning light so it just shows charge now.

[John Francis]

Hi there, I did a similar mod to my 250/1 and found I had indicator problems unless I used resistor spark plug and carbon plug lead !???

[‘AAA Dummy]

Just about to post, when I realised how long ago this topic was topical! If you had no luck getting the LED indicators to flash reliably & the correct ballast resister is fitted to activate the older flasher units (newer electronic ones don’t need ballast I believe), it’s almost certainly an earth problem on the headlight circuit or with the master switch. Even the slightest earth leak will allow the LEDs to light up, whereas incandescent bulbs need a much bigger voltage drop to visibly glow. I rewired my TS 250 & briefly had an earth fault in the LH switch housing which randomly blew the main fuse. This somehow caused current to find a new route to earth & all the LED indicators turn light up & not flash till the fuse was changed & the short isolated. V odd.

[Derek Reynolds]

Unrelated directly, but we have had issues with household LED bulbs where they have been used as replacements to standard incandescent.

They have a tendency to flash occasionally when switched off. The rate varies from room to room. One room 34 seconds, another about 80 secs. Just a sudden flash. Contacted Western Power (distributors) and after the engineer checked all was as it should be with the line installation, said that it could be caused by a tiny feedback through the Earthing system that charged the internal capacitor of the individual bulb which then discharged in one flash. Not the sort of thing you want in a bedroom!

So, sensitive indeed, and in a different application.

[Author]

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