Adding right tail light

K

kocon

Junior Member
Does any one know any good tricks to getting a tail light mounted on the right, so it is even and level with the one on the left?
 
Very carefully measure the location of the top hole on the left fender. (measure twice-drill once) Transfer that measured location to the right fender. Drill only that top hole. Mount the tail light bracket. adjust the bracket so it's location and angle mimics the left one. mark the two bottom holes, then drill.
 
Rock Hornbuckle said:
Very carefully measure the location of the top hole on the left fender. (measure twice-drill once) Transfer that measured location to the right fender. Drill only that top hole. Mount the tail light bracket. adjust the bracket so it's location and angle mimics the left one. mark the two bottom holes, then drill.
Click to expand...

Sounds good to me. Did it awhile back on the coupe.
 
I have repro fenders.

I tried to make a paper template to move the holes, but when I compared them on the floor the holes were not right. So I used that as a starting point.

I made up a right bracket from a left by cutting a wedge shape out of the base and mimicking the angle from the left. It will not be perfect.

Ultimately, using the transfer of the holes from the left to the right with a paper template, I held the bracket in place with strong magnets and adjusted until the tail light shell mounting surface was at the same level and parallel to the left face. Then I drilled the holes in the fender.

When I was done they looked like they were in the right place and both were facing rearward.

This is one of the cases of needing to step back and just looking for a balance from side to side after you do your best to measure.
 
The biggest issue I know of in doing this is the bracket needs to be "sliced & diced" so it mimics the left side. Even if the holes are the same on the left vs. the right, the R/S tail lamp arm still causes the lamp to droop. Partially cut the bracket with a Porta-Band and bend it upward. Check with a vertical level from L/S to R/S and when they are both the same, weld up the gap and metalfinish smooth.


.
 
I removed my left light and made a paper template from those fender holes. I then took measures from the bottom of both fenders and out from the body on the left side and located the top hole for the right side. I put some blue masking tape on the right fender for final location and marking of the top hole, and drilled (scary moment!). Then I taped my reversed paper template on the right fender so the top hole was located properly and temporarily bolted the bracket in place. When I thought I had that level and proper, I marked my template through the bracket holes to make sure I was drilling to match the repro bracket, removed said bracket, and drilled the last two holes. I didn't have the issue Brent describes, so I was able to use the bracket I got from Bratton's.
 
kocon said:
Does any one know any good tricks to getting a tail light mounted on the right, so it is even and level with the one on the left?
Click to expand...

Make sure your car is perfectly level. I had to put a shim under one tire in the garage to get that. I measured from the bottom of the fender up and put the light where it was going to be at. Had the father-in-law hold the light while I put a level across both lights to check for level. They both looked good when done.

Tom....
 
I could have had it easy - having a RHD car means I could get the bracket from a LHD car and put it on the other side...

I didn't - I ordered two repro brackets from Mac's, one each side. That way they are the right shape for each side, and they are both the same.

I did as mentioned above, and made sure the first hole is correct. I measured from some specific body joins/points, to give me some reference points and measured from them to give me the exact point. You just need to make sure it looks right on the car, not compared to the back ground.

I was very hesitant of drilling the hole, but I'm glad I did it now! The more people seem the lights, the better!
 
I had to buy a left and right bracket for my car. The reproduction right side was not at the same angle as the original left side. With both brackets from the same vendor, they matched each other perfectly
 
Build a template with construction paper using the location of the driver's side rear fender where the fender meets the body as a reference point. Run the paper along the fender against the body higher than the tail light. Now, build the template around the tail light triangle using tape and paper cut to fit. You now have a driver's side template. Remove the template from the driver's side fender and TURN IT OVER SO THE UNDERSIDE OF THE TEMPLATE IS FACING UP. Place the turned over template on the rear passenger fender aligning it with the reference point where the body meets the fender. You now have a mirror image of the driver's side on the passenger side. The open triangle is where the tail light bracket will mount. You can then either place a tail light bracket gasket or the mounting bracket itself in the triangle to locate the center of the holes for drilling. This method will locate the tail light in the same position on both fenders.
 
I had a set of reproduction tail light brackets that came with my 1930 Standard Phaeton basket case. I didn't use them because they were just too thin of metal as compared to the original Ford brackets. As mentioned above, to match them up, I did the same slice and weld to one of them to get a right and left bracket pair. A little heat and shrink helped out too. They came out nearly in every way. Mounting them perfectly on the fenders was the biggest challenge, but they came out excellent.
 
I bought a right hand bracket but the real secret is TAKE YOUR TIME! I used masking tape to lay the holes out on the RH fender and was happy with the results.
 
Hi Kocon,

Humble Opinion:

1. This "trick" is most important.

2. A person's eye will only see & be drawn to the position of the tail-light in both daylight & darkness -- the eye will "not" focus on the new mounting bolt holes & "not" focus on the new bracket.

3. If the "new" mounting bolt holes are drilled perfectly level with the "existing" mounting bolt holes, & "if" the right fender has a different curvature; and/or. "if" the new bracket is constructed with a slightly different angle, the two (2) tail-lights will definitely "not" be level & "not" even appear level.

4. Sugestion:

a. Tape a fairly large piece of paper on the rear of the right fender.

b. With new tail-light mounted on new bracket, have another person position the new bracket & new tail-light on the right fender & move it around until it appears correct.

c. When the bottom or top of new tail-light is the same height as the existing one, & is the same distance from the outer edge of the right fender as the existing one, mark the new mounting holes on the piece of paper & drill same.

d. You will be glad you did -- not my first rodeo on optical on illusions.
 
Last edited:
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top