Modifying your stock ford flasher for Grote functionality!

[Pro*banshee]

Check out this puppy; only one picture required

Remove the resistor that's occupying the two holes for them there wires and put the wires in and wire them up to a 500K ohm (***)entiometer. BAM! Adjustable flash that doesn't break the bank!

As far as mounting goes, I just melted a hole in a reasonable spot on the empty space inside the flasher and superglued the *** in place. Perfect access hole too

Depending on which terminals you solder the wires to, Turn the little set screw of the *** to adjust your flashing rate. I can make my LEDs turboflash or set it to the normal rate of flash; the only caveat is that you still need at least one incadescent bulb somewhere in the circuit.

 

[Racer X]

Nice mod, except that many of us have LED's all around.

The only remaining incandescent bulbs I have on my car are the trunk, glovebox, and instrument cluster lights, and my headlights and fog lights. All the rest are LED.

 

[Storm-Chaser]

Oh, quit whining! Just wire-in an incadescent bulb somewhere inside the trunk where you can't see it . . . .




Racer - I don't know if that will work with your LED setup, but it sounded good . . . .


:wave:

 

[Northwestvoodoo]

I'm sorry. But I groove on this kind of ****. Good job. This is the kind of stuff that is outside of my realm. I'm mechanical, not electronic. May be simple to some, but not to me. Anyway.... why do I need a incadescent glowing away?

Thanks,

Alex

 

[Pro*banshee]

I'm not entirely sure, I think it has to do with the way that the car itself is wired.

The flasher still expects SOME load to operate the flashing mechanism and LEDs usually don't provide enough of one to run said flasher

 

[Storm-Chaser]

I'm not sure how the adjustable potentiometer in the Grote unit works, but the old-style flasher/turn signal relays actually used a heating element inside the relay to actuate (cycle) the contact switch.

Basically, "load" across a circuit creates resistance, which in turn generates heat. In the old-style flasher/turn signal relays, the load once the relay circuit is powered "heated-up", which in turn closed the contacts (thus completing the circuit). This in turn cut the power-source to the relay allowing the relay to "cool", which in turn opened the contact, removing power from the circuit and reapplying it to the heated element.

Light off. Light on. Light off. Light on.

You get the idea.

The rate at which the element within the relay heats-up and cools-down is predictable, which allows for a set rate of switching (and in this case cycling of the flashers/turn signals). And that "cycling" of the relay was the clock-like clicking noise you use to hear in the old-style flasher/turn signal relays.


In speculation, my guess would be that the Grote unit senses the load of the circuit once the bulbs are illuminated, which in turn starts a timer within the unit for the purposes of cycling. The potentiometer allows the "rate" (time period) to be adjusted.


Hey Eric - how'd I do?

 

[HoustinoJillian]

but the grote flasher's only like 15 bucks?

 

[Phoenix]

but the grote flasher's only like 15 bucks?

10$ and it works perfectly with the ebay rear LEDs.

 

[the4biddendonut]

Check out this puppy; only one picture required

Remove the resistor that's occupying the two holes for them there wires and put the wires in and wire them up to a 500K ohm (***)entiometer. BAM! Adjustable flash that doesn't break the bank!

As far as mounting goes, I just melted a hole in a reasonable spot on the empty space inside the flasher and superglued the *** in place. Perfect access hole too

Depending on which terminals you solder the wires to, Turn the little set screw of the *** to adjust your flashing rate. I can make my LEDs turboflash or set it to the normal rate of flash; the only caveat is that you still need at least one incadescent bulb somewhere in the circuit.

have you tried putting the *** in series with the resistor? maybe you wouldn't need the incandecent bulb in the circuit with the extra resistance.

 

[the4biddendonut]

but the grote flasher's only like 15 bucks?

I thought they cost more than that.

 

[Racer X]

I thought they cost more than that.

I paid like $14 for mine.

 

[Pro*banshee]

Storm Chaser

Take apart one of the old thermal flashers one time, you'll see that they are even simpler than you explained

Two paper-thin pieces of metal in a bi-metallic strip are heated when intense amounts of current pass through them because of the load of a bunch of bulbs. A Bi-metallic strip Is made of two seperate metals riveted together that expand to different lengths when heated, in this case by electricity. The metal is formed like one of those little clicking toys you had when you were a kid so it produces a clicking noise when the metal bends and flexes, it cools off and goes back to complete the circuit and start it over again.

That's why your thermal flasher cars (all older, two wire flashers) flash slower in the cold and faster once you turn your heater on

Jillian

The Grote flasher might be 15 bucks, but you can get the *** for $3 max and you should already have the stock flasher!

Forbidden Donut

The Stock resistor is 100 Kohms, The *** is 500 Kohms, five times the resistance, I don't think an extra 100 will really make a difference

 

[shoon]

There are a couple extra alternatives.

You can get a more modern, electronic flasher that has an electronic timer built into it.

And as far as the light bulb, you could just get a load resistor. Tie one end to + and the other to a chassis ground somewhere.

http://autolumination.com/equalizers.htm