Dulling bright white led lights found on many locos and which red tail light to disable?

[SouthernBlue80s]

Hi.

On many of my locos, for example Hornby's 56040, the headlights and cab lights are an unrealistic bright white.

 

What is the best method to dull them to a warmer yellow?

 

Whilst I am on about lights, I also want to convert my locos to run one red light on the back.  Looking at the loco as it moving away from you should I disable the right hand or left hand light?

 

Thanks

Steve

Edited October 30, 2021 by SouthernBlue80s

[The Johnster]

Preaching to the choir; this is one of my soap boxes.  A coat of matt acrylic white or light cream, thin coats built up until you are happy with the result, over the lens will do the trick, don't worry about the heat as leds don't produce a lot of it.

 

Tail lights on locos are another issue.  They can be dulled in the same way but use red paint to maintain the correct colour hue.  A loco hauling a train should not be showing any red light at the rear at all, and neither should a multiple unit attached to by another set in it's rear.  A train, any sort of train and including a light engine, should display the correct headlights and display tail lights at the rear of the train only.  So the only time you should should see a red tail light or lights on a locomotive is when it is running light on a running line, to indicate to signalmen that the rear of the loco equates to a complete train; he can now give 'train out of section' to the box in rear.

 

I am not sure when the use of electric tail lights, including double tail lights, on locos, HSTs, and dmus came into force, but it was a while after I left the railway in the late 70s.  Prior to that, light engines displayed a single red tail lamp, while hauled stock and multiple units carried oil or battery separate tail lamps.  The exception was the Southern Region, whose emus and demus, electric locomotives, electrodiesels, TC sets, and Class 33s carried red backlit blinds in the destination blind windows.  The common exhibition layout mistake of green liveried dmus and diesels on 1960s layouts or plain blue period 1970s layouts displaying twin red tail lights is completely wrong, as is compounding the error by hauling trains with stock showing such lights, often without a tail light where it should be on the rear of the train, but the manufacturers persistently refuse to give model owners the option of extinguishing one or both tail lamps on locos and multiple units, so the exhibitors are not always entirely fully to blame for this.

[Phil Mc]

Paper masking tape, or multiple layers of, over White LED's, can tone them down to more acceptable levels.

Insulating tape will obliterate Red LED's.

 

Both methods are easily reversible if the need arises.

 

Cheers,

Phil.