DIY Project 8
"Lucas" Flasher Unit Conversion
by Jean Caron, Vintage Roadster Restoration, Winnipeg, Manitoba
In the last couple of years I have purchased two “Lucas” flasher units and when installed worked only for of a few “clicks”. At the time I had the units for a few months so did not bother returning them and in any event it would end up costing as much to ship back then purchasing new ones. I happened to mention this to another Club member and he had experienced the same issue but had opted to replace the inner workings of the unit with one fabricated in the USA. So I proceeded to do the same and here is an explanation as to how it is done.
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First, take the canister that the “Lucas” unit came with, photo #1 and carefully pry open the top portion, a bead is rolled over the flasher unit itself Then remove the “Lucas” unit from the canister. As you can see from photo #2, the unit inside is not at all like the ones that were sold many years ago and while major advances have been made as far as electronics/electrical are concerned, these units appear to be pretty flimsy and constructed at a price point that includes very little quality. Compare this to the unit made in the USA, on the left.
This Novita flasher can be purchased locally, however this company makes several different models that have different applications. You want to purchase one that is for the fewest number of lights as some models will not work at all for the application we want. See the photo immediately below for the unit that has the suitable flasher for our cars, model HD13.
The Novita model will fit perfectly in the “Lucas” canister once you removed the clear plastic canister it originally comes in. Once removed, place the Novita unit in the “Lucas” canister and carefully tap the bead back around the cover and you are done. You will have a working flasher unit that looks like the original as well. See the last photo.
