Taillight Converter on 24V

[Stormcloud]

I have a Valley 52260 Taillight Converter to use between bus and taillights on toad. Nowhere in the instructions does it say 12 Volt only, and I would rather NOT let the smoke out of it.

Can I/Has anyone used one of these on a 24 Volt bus to switch 24 Volt lamps on a light bar?

Thanks in advance!


Mark

[bobofthenorth]

I can't help you on the details but it sounds like there was a trip to Gambler's in your recent past.

[Stormcloud]

Yes      Several trips to be sure, while we attended the Western GM rally at Quartzsite.

Didn't buy a lot of stuff from Patsy this trip, but did find some tire covers for the 5th wheel at a good price, and a stove cover too!

This converter I bought on Amazon.com, and came with adequate instructions, other than it doesn't reference vehicle voltages at all.

Mark

[wildbob24]

Mark,

I haven't used one on my 24volt system(I did my trailer conversion with relays), but I found this set of instructions: http://www.vtowing.com/ISHEETS/52260.pdf.

On the last troubleshooting page, about half way down, it references checking the 12v+ and ground connections.

Bob

[wg4t50]

Found the same issue, o I built m own setup using 3 DPDT relays 24VDC  coil.
Works great.
Dave M

[luvrbus]

I thought converters were to convert a 2 lite system to a 1 light the ones I used didn't care about the voltage 

I forget the name old age sucks

[robertglines1]

The method was printed in old BCM mag I have done several times.  Will try to find referance to article. I still need article to redo -cost about $30 and no power limits. Haven't had one break down. Bob

[belfert]

Some of the convertors are powered and require a 12 volt feed.  The one I have from Drawtite shows 12V right on it so I assume it would not work on 24 volt.

[luvrbus]

I just looked at 24 to 12 volt converter for a toad looks simple he just used 4 Hella 87426 cubes relays not that helps Mark as he going from 24v to 24v

[Rick 74 MC-8]

With the cube setup you can supply eather 12 or 24v the 24v just opens or closes the relay. I supply 12 volt to the sorce side for my toad switch to 24v for my trailer




                                                                                 Rick 74 MC-8

[rv_safetyman]

The BCM article on the use of relays to "build"  a 5 to 4 (and 24V to 12V converter) is in the March 2009 issue.  I compiled the article from information furnished by Craig Shepard, Sean Welsh, and Jack Conrad. 

Craig has the details of his system here:

http://gumpydog.com/Bus/MC9_WIP/Electrical/Tail_Light_Converter/tail_light_converter.htm

Craig used to fabricate the systems for others.  Don't know if he still does.

He used MCI relays.  The rest of us used Mini ISO which are easier to find and less expensive.  Because of possible problems with coil collapse current, it is strongly recommended that relays with diodes (or external diodes between the coil trigger leads) be used.

I had several "commercial" converters fail in a very short period.  For about the same price, the relay system is almost bullet proof and has served me well for several years.

Jim

[plyonsMC9]

I can personally vouch for Craig's system.  We have one in the back of our MC9,  used it to properly power our taillights,  brake lights, turn signals  etc..   Absolutely 0 problems - worked like a charm, cost was reasonable, came with setup instructions.

Craig built one for us about 1/2 year or so ago.  Not sure if he is regularly building them or just on a special case.  Probably best to directly reach out to him to see.

It's a pretty impressive setup just to look at.   

Hope this helps, Phil

[gumpy]

Thanks for the comments Jim and Phil.

Yes, I do still occasionally build them on an on-demand basis. In fact, I just shipped one earlier this week.
I don't build these as a business, and do not actively market them. I have a blurb about them in the above referenced
webpage on my bus site. People like Jim and Phil provide word of mouth advertising, and I build them on-demand as necessary.
I've made the schematic available on the website should anyone want to build their own. Some people prefer to have me build
it for them, which is why I offer the service. I just ask that my design not be used for commercial purposes (i.e. don't build and
sell them).

As indicated, I use MCI compatible relays, and I add external diodes to all the coils. I also use 10 amp auto-reset circuit breakers
on the outputs.

I don't keep pre-built units on the shelf any more, but I have all the components and can put one together in a short time.  Usually,
I quote 3-4 days, but in reality, when someone says they want one, it's finished and ready to ship before their check arrives.
I was looking over my records the other day, and over the years, I've built more than 25 of these things, and I've never had a
complaint or heard of anyone having a failure.  As far as I know, the only problem ever experienced with one of my units was my
own. A few years ago I had a relay start sticking on me. I don't recall if I replaced it or just smacked it and it started working again,
but that was about 3 years ago, and hasn't been a problem since.


craig