Headlight delemia, one does not light.

6-volt 1948 8N. Rewired (there were never wired
as long as I have had it), the headlights with new
wire. One headlight (Left one) lights just fine,
the other does not light. They are sealed beams
with two connections, one for hot, one for ground.
I used #14 wire from the resister block, used as
wire joiner/spliter/splicer (if that is what it is
called...a little plastic thing that the main wire
goes through, and another connects to it via a
"daggers" that bite into the wire when it is
closed connecting the wires. I get volts (when
the headlight switch is on), all the way to the
pole on the right headlight (indicating that volts
have gotten to the light), but the light does not
light (but the left one does). I have volts
registering on the ground side/pole of the
headlight to ground, and when I put a continuity
probe across the poles of the unmounted light, it
shows continuity. Furthermore, when I take the
headlight to the battery and jumper the poles to
each pole of the battery, it lights just fine (not
burned out). Have changed and tested the
connectors (crimp-on), and they do not appear to
be the problem...I am getting volts to the light
after all. As I said, I used #14 wire where as I
think that the original remnants of headlight were
were #16, can that possibly be the
problem? This is driving me crazy...what the heck
(stronger word), can possibly cause a sealed beam
not to light when it is not burned out, is grounded and has
juice?

You missed something somewhere.

The 2 wires that go to the head light, remove them from the bulb and put a volt meter on the exact connectors that connect to the bulb. Open the switch do you get 6 volts?

Run a continuity check on your ground wire from point of connection at the bulb (disconnected from bulb) back to the point of ground connection. What you get?

Those wire taps that you mention are worthless pieces of crap.
If you need to splice make a T-splice and solder the connection and cover with heat shrink tube.

I have always soldered every connection ever made in any motorized vibration affected machine. if you can avoid cutting a wire in two to make a pig-tail, do so.

sounds like a bad ground to me.

if the bulb lights when hooked to a battery = that bulb is a good working bulb

if the other buld lights you power wire is good.

so you either arent getting power or ground to the bulb. you said it has power so ground would be my guess.

got an old piece of wire? run a new ground wire and see if it works

the lamp that lights on a battery jumper but not on the tractor.

you said you read volts on both it's onne3ctions when comapired to ground.

that tells you the lamp to ground connection in the lamp shell or from the shell to the sheet metal is bad.

always run ground wires from a good clean spot to your headlamp bases to ensure good ground.

70 year old rusty and painted sheetmetal is NOT a good ground.

You nailed it. The metal headlight base was not making a good ground on the body. When I jumpered the ground to a good ground the light lit-up. Thanks for the input.
The most convenient place for me to get a good ground (I do not want to take the headlight base loose from the hood and clean it), would it be o.k. to just connect a wire from the end of the bolt that secures the ground wire in the headlight base to the ground poll on the generator...it is right there and conveniently located 10 inches behind, and threaded. Would that hurt anything other than cosmetics?

That's fine as long as you make sure that there is a good clean ground contact from the light to the battery. Think about all the different metal contacts the ground has to travel through from the light to the battery and the rust breaking that contact.

I ran a separate grd wire connected at the grd screw found inside of the light housing back to my left side of the dash mount frame.

I didn't have to do much. your original post ID'd the problem when you said you had power to both sides of the lamp.. that meant open circuit on the ground side.

yes, you can run a ground wire fron the headlamp can mount stud, or the lil wire inside the can over to the ground stud on the generator.

It is far from an elegant remedy but at my age I do not want to try to take the headlight assembly off the hood, wire-brush, sand to get a good ground connection. I would prefer to do that, but my back gets sore to easily now. However, if I ever take the hood off again, I will do it the correct way.

and it may not help much!

you would need to remove the lamp cup from the hood, polish there, then you would need to remov ehte hood to polish there! IE. you need to ensure good ground from battery to chassis to tin.. etc.

way way easier to run a wire!