A matched pair of Auto Lamp beehives, never mounted, never wired.
Auto Lamp Company of Chicago made accessory lighting for decades, and the beehive is their best-looking piece — a stepped, domed clear lens in a chromed ring, small enough to look right on a bumper or a valance without shouting. This is a pair of Model 491 lamps in new old stock condition: unmounted, unwired, no scratches on the plating and no chips in the lenses.
The lens rings are embossed AUTO LAMP – CHICAGO – MODEL 491 on the top and SAE PI R 68 on the bottom. That SAE string is worth reading properly, because it tells you what these are certified for: under SAE J759, R is a reversing (back-up) lamp, P is a front position lamp and I is a turn signal. So they're back-up lamps first, but the certification covers all three uses — which gives you options on a custom build.
The lenses are glass, not plastic — worth knowing, because by the late 1960s plenty of accessory lighting had gone to acrylic and glass holds up better and looks right. Each lamp measures 2-5/8 inches across the mounting base, with the glass standing about 1-3/4 inches proud of the bezel.
Both lamps come with their rubber mounting pads and the mounting hardware, so it's a complete pair ready to go on a car rather than a pair of orphaned lenses.
🔧 Features and Details
- 🎯 Auto Lamp Company, Chicago — Model 491, a matched pair
- 📦 NOS — new old stock. Never mounted, never wired, never installed
- 💡 Certified as a back-up lamp (SAE R), and also for front position (P) and turn signal (I) use
- 🔍 Glass lenses — clear, stepped beehive profile, not plastic
- ✨ Chromed rings, bright plating throughout
- 📏 2-5/8 in. across the mounting base, glass projects about 1-3/4 in.
- 🔨 Complete with 2 rubber mounting pads and 4 mounting bolts with nuts
- 🏁 Universal accessory mount — not vehicle-specific, fits where you put it
- 🔌 The bulb you fit sets the voltage — wire them to whatever system your car runs
- 🔎 Embossed
AUTO LAMP - CHICAGO - MODEL 491 and SAE PI R 68
🚗 Known Fitment and Applications
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Universal accessory lamps. They mount to a bumper, valance, apron or panel using the supplied bolts and rubber pads — no vehicle-specific bracket required.
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Front, rear or anywhere you need light. The SAE certification covers back-up, front position and turn signal use, so these are equally at home as reverse lamps, parking lamps, turn signals or auxiliary lighting.
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No fixed voltage — these are lamp housings, and the bulb you fit determines whether they run 6V or 12V. They'll work on whatever your car runs.
- Hot rod, custom, kustom, bomb, truck and trailer applications, and period-accessory restorations
On dating these, straight up: the 68 in the SAE marking is the certification year under SAE J759, which points to 1968 or later. You'll see these listed elsewhere as 1950s — the styling invites it — but the marking is the only hard evidence on the part, and it says what it says. They're described here as vintage accessory lamps without a decade attached. If you know these better than the marking suggests, I'd be glad to hear it.
Additional applications beyond those listed may exist.
✅ Condition Summary
New old stock and flawless. The plating is bright with no pitting or scratches, the glass lenses are clean with no chips or cracks, and neither lamp has been mounted or wired. They have not been tested or disassembled — they've simply never been hooked up, so whether bulbs are fitted is not confirmed. Sold as-is on that basis. All mounting hardware is present. Please look through the photos.
📋 Buyer Notes
Go through the photos before buying — the lenses, the plating, the embossed markings and the included hardware are all shown, and the photos are part of the description. These are universal accessory lamps, so confirming they suit your application and your electrical system is the buyer's responsibility, and other uses may exist beyond those listed. Untested and sold as-is. Questions are welcome before purchase. If you're building something that needs period lighting, there's more in the store worth a look.
