I've been looking for a way to keep the "old fashioned" look to my Christmas tree, the old screw in sockets and my foil reflectors and fortunately, I did! :yahoo:
They now have them in smooth and faceted AND they just screw in! They work right along with standard C7 & C9 bulbs! They even make ones that blink! I was hesitant about buying the regular LED strings of lights because, what many folks don't realize is, they "wire" in like the cheap miniature bulbs with wires do. Here are the sites and I'd appreciate any pros & cons of these lights if you've tried them. Thanks folks:
LED Christmas Lights - C7 Sized Replacement Bulbs - ChristmasDepot.com (http://www.christmasdepot.com/LED-Replacement-C-Bulbs_46_335.htm)

C7 Faceted LED Bulbs - BulkLights.Com Go Green Energy Saving Christmas/Holiday LED Lights (http://www.bulklights.com/index.php?main_page=index&cPath=3)

Christmas Lights, Strings & Christmas Rope Lights at 1000Bulbs.com (http://www.1000bulbs.com/Christmas-Lights/?source=1000bulbsaffiliatepfx-k52938)

Ya know, I think I saw these at Big Lots in Lex Park a few days ago.

Ya know, I think I saw these at Big Lots in Lex Park a few days ago.

Walgreens in Lusby had them too.

Thanks you two. I've decided to go for the smooth ones instead of the faceted ones because they look more like what I currently have. The problem is that, online, I have to buy them in boxes of 25 and I don't need that many. I'll try Walgreens first, then Sears then WalMart. I don't know if I'll be near Big Lots any time soon. :yay:

I got them at Lowes but.............I really don't like them. I think they are way too bright. I am going to use them this year but next year I am going back to a softer light.

I got them at Lowes but.............I really don't like them. I think they are way too bright. I am going to use them this year but next year I am going back to a softer light.
Which type did you get? The C7 or C9? Faceted (dimpled) or smooth? Were they colored or all clear?

I like the old style. You know the ones that got so hot when you plugged in the tree it raised the temp in the room 5 degrees? The ones that would melt the tinsle.

I like the old style. You know the ones that got so hot when you plugged in the tree it raised the temp in the room 5 degrees? The ones that would melt the tinsle.

Made the tree smell really good, tho....

I like the old style. You know the ones that got so hot when you plugged in the tree it raised the temp in the room 5 degrees? The ones that would melt the tinsle.

I liked the bubble lights. It was fun watching my Dad try to get them all to stay up straight. :lol:

Which type did you get? The C7 or C9? Faceted (dimpled) or smooth? Were they colored or all clear?

I got the C7 clear dimpled ones. I really, really don't like them. So much I am thinking of taking the tree apart and starting over. Ugh. Maybe not, but next year for sure I will not use them:mad:

I like the old style. You know the ones that got so hot when you plugged in the tree it raised the temp in the room 5 degrees? The ones that would melt the tinsle.
That's what I have now. They're soo old they still have the old "GE" in the circle emblem on the bottom of the glass bulb. Call me a weirdo but I actually enjoy the smell of them. :dork: I have 4 types of lights on my tree: The solid colored C7's, the transprent colored C7's, the transparent blinker C7's and 7 bubble lights. If I had only the solid colored ones, I wouldn't need my heat on; you're right about that.
I liked the bubble lights. It was fun watching my Dad try to get them all to stay up straight. :lol:
Yes, they're awesome lights! I have 7 on my tree and they're easy to keep upright. I just put the clip of the socket over 2 branches instead of one and they stay any way I want them.

I got the C7 clear dimpled ones. I really, really don't like them. So much I am thinking of taking the tree apart and starting over. Ugh. Maybe not, but next year for sure I will not use them:mad:
I just ordered 3 boxes of blue, red & green C7 LED bulbs from bulklights.com. I ordered the smooth ones as I said I would. I hope they look at least a bit similar to the ones I have on there now. I've seen many trees with the faceted bulbs on them (both clear & colored) and I don't care for them either.
I just can't get into the all clear bulb decorations. I only use 3 colors (no yellow, white, orange or purple) and it really looks good. I do use the foil star reflectors and that enhances the colors. Take a look:

Very pretty!

I have a grand total of 1000 lights on my tree.:faint: Luckily it's a pre lit tree so no stringing for me, now if they could come up with a self decorating tree...









Yeah, I know decorate it yourSELF

I just ordered 3 boxes of blue, red & green C7 LED bulbs from bulklights.com. I ordered the smooth ones as I said I would. I hope they look at least a bit similar to the ones I have on there now. I've seen many trees with the faceted bulbs on them (both clear & colored) and I don't care for them either.
I just can't get into the all clear bulb decorations. I only use 3 colors (no yellow, white, orange or purple) and it really looks good. I do use the foil star reflectors and that enhances the colors. Take a look:

Very festive...Merry Christmas. It is now December and my tree can go up (once I get all of my Thanksgiving and Fall decorations reboxed).:howdy:

Very pretty!
Thanks! :yay:
Everytime I hear or see that name I start singing Neil Diamonds' "Shilo when I was young; I used to call your name..."
I have a grand total of 1000 lights on my tree.:faint: Luckily it's a pre lit tree so no stringing for me, now if they could come up with a self decorating tree...

Yeah, I know decorate it yourSELF
The only bad thing about a pre lit tree is that there's a zillion lights on it and if a string goes bad...:cds: I had to remove ONE defective string of lights from a pre lit tree in 2006 and it took me hours! They over wrap them around those branches on purpose, hoping that you'll just buy a new one if a string goes out...
Very festive...Merry Christmas. It is now December and my tree can go up (once I get all of my Thanksgiving and Fall decorations reboxed).:howdy:
Merry Christmas to you! This is why I hope those new LED lights I just ordered can "fill the shoes" of my old style lights. This tree looks just like it did when my parents first bought it in the late 60's.
Don't let that turkey hold you back from celebrating Christmas a bit early my lady friend...:howdy:

Ya know, I think I saw these at Big Lots in Lex Park a few days ago.

IDK if they changed from the last 2 years, but the ones I bought were way inferior to the ones IS found. The didn't screw into a regular string. The faceted covers pushed into the socket :cheesy:. A lot broke at the socket.

We had a few gusts of wind, and boy and I were out hunting the covers all over the front yard. :lmao:

BTW, nice tree IS.

IDK if they changed from the last 2 years, but the ones I bought were way inferior to the ones IS found. The didn't screw into a regular string. The faceted covers pushed into the socket :cheesy:. A lot broke at the socket.

We had a few gusts of wind, and boy and I were out hunting the covers all over the front yard. :lmao:

BTW, nice tree IS.
The ones you can buy in most stores are Taiwanianese junk. The colored bulb cover is cheap and many do break when you try to pull them off the socket, especially after they've been outside for a few cold nights.
My lights haven't arrived yet and they don't have separate bulb coverings. I ordered them mainly for that reason.
Thanks for the tree compliment.

Well folks, I got the new LED bulbs today and, I must say, the type of light they give off is different. I didn't rush to judgment on the look of the plastic bulb itself because, unlit, they look a bit dingy and dull; No shine, like the glass bulbs but no big deal. I only care about the way they look lit up.

Right below the base of the colored plastic bulb, and above the actual threads, is a larger (diameter) metal ring. It is bigger than the actual threaded part. Why? Who knows? (Prolly there just to aggravate me!) So I remove a bulb from my tree and screw in the LED light and guess what? NO WORKY! I tried another and NO WORKY! The problem? The larger ring above the threaded part of the bulb won't allow the bulb to screw in completely and make contact with the center conductor of the socket!! (Sure! WHY NOT!!!) I have some "3 candleabra" type lights in my front windows so I tried them there and they work and fit fine.

I'm fairly innovative so I take a spare string of sockets that I have, out to my garage and decide that I'm going to grind some of the socket down just enough to allow the bulb to make contact. After grinding one socket down about 1/4 inch, I plug it in, screw in the bulb and.......IT WORKS!! :yahoo:
So now I have 44 more to grind down..... Ok, I did, and they ALL work fine.

I called the company and told them about this and she said she'd never heard of this problem. I told her the exact nature of the problem and she said she'd note it with her technical people. Now all I have to do is decide if I want to undecorate my tree and install the new strings or wait until after Christmas...

I will say that the new LED bulbs in the front window really look nice! They give off an aura (almost "V" shaped) type of effect on the window & blinds. They're actually a lot brighter than I thought they would be and I found out that it's because there are 3 LED's in EACH bulb! Good thinking on the maker's part!

I hope this helps shed some light on (sorry) :) these new type bulbs. I always like to hear about people's experiences with new products.

Final update:
I decided not to use the filed down sockets that I made so I went to Lowes and bought 2 strings of 25 C7 lights with clear white bulbs in them. I removed the clear bulbs and put the LED bulbs in and they worked fine. Make sure you have the "flared end" sockets or these LED bulbs won't screw completely down.
Today I completely undecorated my tree and installed the new LED strings and, folks, THEY LOOK BETTER THAN THE OLD ONES!! The colors are more vivid (like going from analog to HD TV). The brightness of the 3 LED's in each bulb along with the reflectors I use, make for a very bright light with hardly any electricity used. I'm glad I found the smooth bulbs instead of the faceted (dimpled) ones. I took another picture but the difference doesn't show so I won't post it here.
I had 45 lights at 7 watts each which equals 315 watts to run my tree.
Now I have 50 LED's at .96 watts which equals 48 watts. Well worth it!

I now have a boxload of clear, blue, red & green C7 standard bulbs. DOES ANYONE WANT THEM? I'll let them go cheap...
Hope this helps some of you. :buddies:

I'm actually thinking about creating a solar/LED setup for my outside lights. You can buy the lights pre-made, but I'd rather have a single, high-quality solar panel to power all of them. I found these 12V LED strings:
12 volt LED Light Strings 12v LED light strings sustainable lights no mercury free green lights christmas lights rv lights camper lights golf cart lights Red amber yellow orange green blue cool white warm white soft white: ImaginaryColours.com (http://www.imaginarycolours.com/Merchant2/merchant.mvc?Screen=CTGY&Store_Code=DHI&Category_Code=12vStrings)

But they're pretty pricy. I might just make my own strings:
Battery Christmas Lights: How to convert Xmas lights to run on batteries/DC (regular or LED) (http://michaelbluejay.com/batteries/dc-christmas-lights.html)

That's just a basic "series parallel" circuit. You're changing how (and how much) voltage & current goes through the bulbs.
The major cost will be in the solar panel. That is, unless you have thousands of lights to put up. I'd be curious how it works out for you.

That's just a basic "series parallel" circuit. You're changing how (and how much) voltage & current goes through the bulbs.
The major cost will be in the solar panel. That is, unless you have thousands of lights to put up. I'd be curious how it works out for you.

It would probably only be ~160 lights, so not many.

I heard on the radio today that a town in Wyoming replaced all their traffic lights with LED bulbs in an effort to "go green". Turns out the LED lights don't give off as much heat as regular lights so therefore when ice/snow form on the traffic lights, the LED lights can't melt it and drivers can't see if the light is red, yellow or green. They had to put crews out to scrape off the ice of the lights. Since winter lasts about 8 months, it will cost them more to pay the crews to scrape the ice than just keeping the old bulbs in the traffic lights would have. :lol:

I heard on the radio today that a town in Wyoming replaced all their traffic lights with LED bulbs in an effort to "go green". Turns out the LED lights don't give off as much heat as regular lights so therefore when ice/snow form on the traffic lights, the LED lights can't melt it and drivers can't see if the light is red, yellow or green. They had to put crews out to scrape off the ice of the lights. Since winter lasts about 8 months, it will cost them more to pay the crews to scrape the ice than just keeping the old bulbs in the traffic lights would have. :lol:

Yeah, there was a thread about that somewhere.

Oh, and I forgot some bulbs that I want. Looks like I'll need ~300-400 lights. Still not too bad.

I have a box full of solar panels in the basement, had great plans for them, never got a round tuit. 12v, don't remember the wattage. They were designed as keep-alive chargers for a car, plug it into the cig lighter jack.

I should really do something with them....

Oh, and I forgot some bulbs that I want. Looks like I'll need ~300-400 lights. Still not too bad.
Just figure the wattage. 400 LED's at .96 watts equals 384 watts total. Not a lot compared to 400 C9 bulbs and 3600 watts. Are you using the miniature lights for this? Then include the price of the solar panel. The price (right now) for C7 LED bulbs is @ $1.40 -$1.60 per bulb. I wonder how many years you'd have to use them to break even? I'm sure the bulbs will last if you use LED's. I just took the easy way out and bought new LED's. Very happy with them all around: Looks and energy savings...