The International Cessna 170 Association

I have a 1948 Cessna 170 with the original Grimes Mechanism 12V light. I love how bright it is, but it shoots my ammeter far left whenever I turn it on. I'm worried that one of these nights it's going to kill my battery on final, so I am looking for a more energy efficient replacement without killing my budget.

Has anyone else with a ragwing ever made this change or have any suggestions?

Any input is greatly appreciated!


Chris Hartis
1948 Cessna 170 N2675V
Felts Field, WA KSFF

A healthy battery will run that Grimes lamp for at least an entire hour... Do you plan to remain on final approach longer than that?

gahorn wrote:A healthy battery will run that Grimes lamp for at least an entire hour... Do you plan to remain on final approach longer than that?

Do you not recommend making the switch and sticking with what I have?

A landing light is an "intermittent" electrical load. The battery will support that for a long time and your charging system will recover shortly after you turn it back off. I would not be concerned with it and would keep the original, personally.

The landing light was used at the turn of the century for finals but due today’s congestion in the air the role of the landing light and taxi light has changed . My lights are now on most of the times and now are wig wag . The LED lights of today use a lot less power also. Due to,the decrease in ATC at airports it’s all about being seen and heard.

There are a lot of owners of vrs aircraft going to LED's. Some of them pay the high prices offered by Spruce and others. Other owners go online and find vrs LED sources that are MUCH less expensive. I know of several owners who have installed landing and/or taxi lamps (led's) that sold for #30-$40 each and the ones I know are well satisfied with their performance. I do not know if there is any issue with being "legal" or not, but most likely some of our members can speak to that.

Chris, See my post I did earlier today to another rag owner about the landing light. Call if you wish. Duane Shockey in San Diego

Thank you for all of your responses. DS, I think I'm definitely leaning more towards keeping the original light. I have not had any problems with mine yet, but I wanted to get your opinion on preventative maintenance for the light. Should I leave the Grimes un-tampered if I have not had any problems yet? Or should I look to oil the gears to make sure that the rotating motor isn't working harder than it needs to ?

Folks - a nice recent video (for 2019) on LED landing light technology and a visual comparison between different brands and price-points.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bppYZq5fAtU