> Question: are the new high intensity LEDs any brighter than the
> incandescents they would be replacing?
I haven't looked at the white ones yet, but the red high intensity LEDs I
have are very bright. They give light in a fairly narrow beam, so the total
light may not be that much more, but the on-axis light is several times
greater. Obviously, this means the LEDs must be 'pointed' the right
direction to work well.
I'm starting to see a lot of commercial vehicles that use these for
stop/turn/tail lights. Haven't actually counted them, but it appears that
12 or so LEDs form a light that is far brighter than a standard 1157.
You can also control the brightness by altering the current through the LED.
A dropping resistor is required anyway, so it can be selected for the
desired brightness. I don't know just how much overcurrent shortens the
life of the LED, but with lifetimes of 50,000 hours or more, you could
probably live with some reduction ...
Randall
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