So my bed is rusting, has a few minor dings, and a tail light problem (eats bulbs every 6 months on one side). *2007 Ram 1500. I'm getting ready to pull the old bed, and put a wooden one on. I did this once before, Dodge 3500 dually, converted from utility body to 8x9 flatbed, 2" oak bed. *no more light issues *might be able to hang storage boxes underneath the bed for saws/tools *will have a plank in the bed that opens to storage under the bed, inside the frame rails *I can add custom lighting to make it look bad apple (clearance lights on the side, additional reverse lights for actually seeing at night when backing) *Redneck finish: oil/diesel mix finish applied liberally. PT SYP wood this time. *plan to undercoat the truck prior to bed going on (may hire that out, did that on the 3500). So I'm not sure what wiring would be best from under the cab out to the bed I will use that plastic corrugated tubing, to keep mice at bay unless there are alternatives Wood bed, can route wires wherever to be out of the way LED lights. Problem: on the 3500, LED lights for the turn signal messed with the tick-tock gadget. I recall putting a new one in, but the fuse panel cover wouldn't fit correctly after that. Considering an incandescent light for the turns... Kinda itchy to get into this project, etrailer is my friend. But hung up on the turn signal/LED issue. SCA
I’d put in a 7-wire harness and not worry about it. Grote makes different harnesses and stuff for different vehicles and beds if you browse their website
My work truck has conventional bulbs in the front and LED’s on the back of the utility body. The directionals “blink” faster but they still work. Are you saying that the leds don’t work at all?
So I'd wire a harness from the truck, to the bed. That would eliminate a myriad of little connectors then? Cool.
So this is using the trailer connection to power the tail and running lights? Guess that'll work...how do we power trailer lights then though? They make resistors to make those LEDs work right for the turn signals I think...the better lights come with them.
nah, last time I added LED's to the 3500, the trick system didn't recognise there was a light back there and blinked as if the bulb was out (fast). I replaced the tick-tock (relay?) and it performed properly, but the relay thingie was bigger than the stock one. Looking to avoid the same issue now: either replace the relay gadget or use incandescent turn signals.
I'm not sure where the trailer lights are fed from.....their own circuit or off the truck lights circuit.
Pretty much… curt, Hopkins, Grote and several others make kits. ram flatbed wiring harness - Google Search
Ah, the round tick tock thingy is called a flasher. If both sides have an led on the rear it will blink faster but still indicate you are turning. That would be good enough for me.
Why not use the taillight wiring that's already there? It's usually run down the frame rail and isn't connected to the bed other than by the spare tire.
Because the flash rate specified is 60-120 flashes per minute. (I’ve had trucks put out of service for this stupidity). nht92-4.41 | NHTSA
Applies to ALL vehicles. A commercial vehicle just is enforced more seriously. Why, I have zero clue other than people is personal vehicles don’t get looked at as closely. but it applies equally. same was done to another truck that had aftermarket headlights in it that weren’t “”DOT” marked on the lens. https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/CFR-2004-title49-vol5/xml/CFR-2004-title49-vol5-sec571-108.xml
that must have been the fix last time. Some trucks I guess, are set up for that, others need the LED flasher. The fast flash always drove me batty, normal speed is good. If I can, absolutely. I also want to add clearance lights on the bed side, they'll come on with the parking lights. And will look bad apple with the trailer hooked up (I hope).
Somebody counted the amount of times the blinker flashed in a minute? Or worse there is a machine they use to measure ? Talk about a waste of resources.
Doesn’t take much to figure out the differences. it’s pretty obvious When it’s flashing rapidly. There’s a normal rate that people expect to see from over a century of automobiles on the road now. FMVSS 108 (federal motor vehicle safety standard) is actually a pretty big resource for all motor vehicles on the road. even covers bumper heights, tire width and exposure etc.
If you’re talking about the FMVSS, there’s specs on everything. Lumen brightness etc. and everything has an engineering spec. No different than anything else in life. Over the years, the industry standardized the flash rate. so not sure why the hate on “wasted resources” for the spec of 1-2 hz. may as well say a 1/2” bolt could be 1/4” then too.
