Military looking switch under my dash

[N1265]

The switch was mounted in the dash, just to the right of where the factory radio would go.

The front " cat eyes " were mounted just above the factory headlights.

The " main blackout light " was mounted in the grill, just to the right of the left turn signal.

The rear "cat eyes " were mounted just below the tail lights.

 

[Bob H]

NeslandB,

If you ever get near Hale 48739
Stop by for a look around and info share.

 

[NeslundB]

Does this truck have a military dashboard or civi one? Wonder if it was changed and someone added in a civi headlight switch and just wired it to the military switch and stuck it under the dash.

I'm pretty sure it's the military one. There's the hole in the dash where that switch would go, but someone covered it up and repainted the dash..

 

[NeslundB]

The switch was mounted in the dash, just to the right of where the factory radio would go.

The front " cat eyes " were mounted just above the factory headlights.

The " main blackout light " was mounted in the grill, just to the right of the left turn signal.

The rear "cat eyes " were mounted just below the tail lights.

Thank you for posting these. I'd like to find all the blackouts and wire them up to the switch and get them working just to keep it as close to original as possible.

 

[NeslundB]

Let me take this for a ride. As equipped, your M880 came from the factory without a blackout light system. DOD saw the need to retrofit some of them and TACOM came up with a kit. The kit consisted of that 3 lever light switch you have, a harness, 1 blackout drive light that should be somewhere in the grill and 4 little rectangular lights, 2 at the front and 2 at the rear. The kit instructions show to cut the oval hole on the right upper dash in that little area that is angled towards the driver. The kit was obviously installed but 2 things may have occurred. Either the dash was replaced or the FD that had it, put a panel in its place with their own switches for the FD nighmare harness. The pic shows your switch in the serivce drive mode. This mode is necessary for normal operation. Voluteer firefighters not trained in 3 lever operations often fooled with the switch and presto, no lights. A trip to the mechanic parts changer netted correcting the switch. Many FDs found the need to remove the levers as your are, to avoid this. In your case they cemented their position bu dropping the switch behind the dash.

Now, blackouts are actually not blackout but a low level light so that vehicle operations can be carried out with less of a chance of aerial detection. The BO Drive light lets out a miniscule amount of light.

F Y I, the 266-10 isn't readily available in PDF unless you buy it on disc, a good investment I might add!

Here's my dash.
And in the second picture you can kind of see the outline of where it has been covered up. And I also have the perch pad behind the grill to mount the light in there.

 

[NeslundB]

And the person who owned it before me absolutely tore the factory radio slot up to stuff an old ford radio in there and my light switch that operates my headlights only runs the running, headlights, and gauge lights. My dome light is a household light switch that you just flick on.

 

[DeucesWild11]

I'd probably just leave as is if it's all working correctly. It may be more original but those switches are a pain. But that's just my

 

[NeslundB]

I could see it being a pain..lol. My dad and I just made up a brush guard and we're thinking about running some KC lights so we may just do that instead

 

[MWMULES]

The 3 lever switch on the 880 isn't a pain like on other mv's as you don't have to mess with it. Just set it correctly and use the Dodge switch to turn lights off and on. One of my 890's came from the fire service the same way as yours but they left the hole and had the 3 lever switch rtv'd up behind the dash. I got all the parts to put it back military and didn't find the switch back there till I started to put it all back in

 

[zout]

-had to put something in here after editing what I was going to type

 

[nattieleather]

Looks like they used bondo or fiberglass to cover the hole.