MTFCA Forum

#1 - Looks new ! No acetylene generator nor Prestolite tank on the near running board, what other options were available to light the headlamps ?

Rich,…LEDs ? That 3rd photo is a pretty slick speedster - needing a gargantuan tool box

George House wrote: ↑

Sat Feb 14, 2026 6:23 pm

Rich,…LEDs ?

George, good choice !! I had no idea LEDs have been available since 1914 !
Why haven’t we used them before now ?

That box on the speedster is for food he is an Uber eats driver. Jim

The first photo 1914 touring car, at that angle, shows the forward portion inside of the headlamp buckets as having bright reflectors. This is a good indication that the headlamps have been electrified. The battery is probably under the seat, or could be in a box on the other side running board.
The fifth photo gives a good look at how unmodified 1913/'14 (as well as most 1911/'12) look with the reflectors all the way in the back of the bucket. The forward area of the bucket is all dark.
The twelfth photo is another good look at electrified headlamps with the bright reflectors at the front of the buckets. This one most likely has the battery in the box on the running board.

Acetylene gas headlamps burn very hot, the flame needs some space between it and everything else. Hence, the reflectors are way back behind the flame to focus the light forward. Some more expensive gas headlamps did have a sort of focussing ring reflector right behind the lens. These were used mostly on higher end automobiles, however some of the lamps used on 1909 and 1910 model Ts did have this feature. That forward ring reflector did little to actually improve lighting the path forward, so most less expensive automobiles rarely used them.

Always enjoy your pix
Thanks for posting
Gordon Clayton