81 (Horizontal) Tail Light Socket Replacement?

[heyman421]

Has anyone had any luck replacing a corroded tail light socket on their 720?

My rear driver's side turn signal has one of the lead wires broken flush with the assembly.

I tried to dig the wire out enough to solder a new wire on, but it's shoddy at best.

I took the whole assembly off the truck, but the sockets appear to be glued/permanently attached to the tail light assembly rather than riveted/screwed/pressed in.

I'm wondering if anyone has had any luck replacing a single socket on these tail lights, or if a junkyard replacement is my only option?

New after market lights are still being made for the 84+ vertical style assemblies, but not the horizontals.

[breadbox]

http://motors.shop.ebay.com/i.html?_nkw ... +720+truck

[breadbox]

$35 or so a pop and they look almost new.

[heyman421]

Thanks, but they're actually $50 each with shipping, and i'd have to buy both since one's obviously sun-faded 30 years.

If i could somehow replace a $5 socket, that would be my first choice. I just don't want to break the whole thing trying to get it out if it's not possible.

It'd be a shame for me to put those nice lights on my truck, anyways. Someone should use them for a resto. They could be the last new lights on the planet!

[breadbox]

I'd just take the whole thing clip it from the harness, go to a junk yard and grab a two wire pig tail to make into a removable conector if there isn't one. then remove the taillight and take it to some electronic repair shop and get someone really good at wiring to hook you up.

[heyman421]

I found one in a yard about an hour away, so tomorrow after i get my weber working right, i'm fixin' to go pick it up.

Almost the same price as one of those new ones, but i can have it in my hands and make sure it works before i leave the yard, and it will match to boot.

If someone with a nice 720 project stumbles across this thread, tho, it'd be great if those new tails went to someone on this forum!

[breadbox]

yeah, too bad I have a nissan 720 and not a datsun 720

[heyman421]

So.... Today i bought a tail light from my friendly neighborhood scrapper, and THE EXACT SAME 2 SOCKETS WERE BROKEN.

Turn signal, and reverse. Again. What is it about those sockets going first?

Luckily, something told me to take my multimeter to the junkyard today, otherwise i would have ended up blaming and subsequently tearing in to my wiring harness on the spot. Even WITH my multimeter in the truck, i almost dismissed the possibility of a coincidence and tore into anyways.