MG-Cars.info

Welcome to our Site for MG, Triumph and Austin-Healey Car Information.

Parts

MG parts spares and accessories are available for MG T Series (TA, MG TB, MG TC, MG TD, MG TF), Magnette, MGA, Twin cam, MGB, MGBGT, MGC, MGC GT, MG Midget, Sprite and other MG models from British car spares company LBCarCo.

MG TD TF 1500 - Gauge lighting question

One of the oil pressure/temp gauges I have has a green plastic strip inserted around the circumference of the gauge. Did all of the MG TD gauges have this plastic color strip? Were they all green? I've installed LED lights in my dash (not installed in the car yet) and the white light looks fine. I'm just wondering what the green or other color would look like. Is there a source for the green plastic material?

Thanks

Tim
TD12524
TW Burchfield

Tim the green plastic/cellophane can be bought at most art supply and hobby stores. I believe all early and late TD gauges had this film apparently applied to provide softer lighting and less glare in gauges that were equipped with windows for external lighting.

Bill Chasser
TD-4834
W. A. Chasser

TC gauges had the green strips also
D mckellar

Tim the pic attached shows the green plastic/cellophane material that I used for the ammeter during the work on my dash. Same for all the instruments. I got mine from a local stationery & art supplier. Cheers
Peter TD 5801

P Hehir

Thanks gentlemen. Did the tach and speedo have a means of coloring the light. If so where was the colored material placed? I can't see where it might have been inserted. BTW I have the dished faced tach and speedo.

Regards

Tim
TD12524
TW Burchfield

Tim: When I cleaned and re-installed my gauges (51 TD) I used strips cut from a plastic 7-Up bottle. Good colour and already had a suitable cylindrical curve. That was a few years ago & still working fine.
Peter Pope

I would look wherever the light bulb goes, Tim. That is, on the gauge-- just next to where the bulb originally went for lighting up that tach or speedo. Should be there that you find some sort of window for that light to get in from the bulb. Likely a rectangular window, and it is there that a green transparent strip would go, either inside or outside. Problem I found on one gauge that was missing the green strip was finding one that let in enough light through. I ended up poking many little holes through the green strip I found, until the light level of that gauge matched the other gauges.
D mckellar

Tim, all four instruments tacho, speedo, ammeter & oil gauge had the rectangular windows in the bezels on the early TD's that were fitted with flat instruments. Cheers
Peter TD 5801
P Hehir

I also used a 7-up bottle for replacing my strips. Regards, tom
tm peterson

Thanks everyone for the information and suggestions. I have the dished faced tach and speedo. The only place I can see where a color strip might be located is on the edge of the face between the face and the body. There is a trim ring that hides the face edge and sits out far enough to allow light to come around the face into the cavity between the face and the glass. There are no side slots as shown by Peter's picture of his ammeter. Has anyone seen any evidence of a colored strip or other shape of material that would allow the dished faced tach and speedo to have colored lighting?

Tim
TD12524
TW Burchfield

This thread was discussed between 21/02/2017 and 02/03/2017

MG TD TF 1500 index

This thread is from the archives. Join the live MG TD TF 1500 BBS now