When dash lights failed on my 82 300Sd, turn-turn-turn of dimmer knob got back very weak illumination. So, pulled cluster and when 30+ y.o. soldering iron failed, cut approx 1" scrap off new bicycle brake cable, pried up each of the brass strips just enough to insert an end. This solderless jumper "cable" quick fix worked fine. Could eventually corrode, but should last for years. Don

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John 5:25

The second one I did, I considered such an approach. It’s not flowing much current, and the internal wire was tiny, but all the same, I had zero control over a high resistance contact. And I wanted the insulation on the jumper personally. I could get a very tunable friction fit from the little hole, and additional strands could be wrapped under or soldered on top. That’s what I ultimately did second time...

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Current Diesels:
1981 240D (73K)
1982 300CD (169k)
1985 190D (169k)
1991 350SD (113k)
1991 350SD (206k)
1991 300D (228k)
1993 300SD (291k)
1993 300D 2.5T (338k)
1996 Dodge Ram CTD (442k)
1996 Dodge Ram CTD (265k)

Past Diesels:
1983 300D (228K)
1985 300D (233K)

That and LED lights, I can see the dash at night!

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1981 240D Four on the floor, Orient Red over Parchment, bought with 154,000 but it's a daily driver and up to 180,000 miles, mostly original paint and all original interior.

I just back fed the ashtray light and they all lit up just fine.

I just repaired the rheostat in my 300D w123. Major problem was that the rotary slider was pushing the resistance coil out of its groove. Second problem was a high resistance connection between the end of the resistance coil and the rivet.
The free end of the resistance coil was fixed in its location by a small dab of muffler repair putty (silicate formulation) at its tip within the ceramic base then heated in my wife's oven at 150 degC for 30 minutes.
There was a grey powder like deposit at this point which may indicate a similar compound had been used previously -obviously it would need to be heat resistant, because the dimming function would be dependent on shedding excessive watts as heat. The high resistance connection was fixed by using a square ended awl pressed into the rivet to oscillate it backwards and forwards (about 45 deg total). The rivet was then firmed up with a punch very cautiously (to avoid cracking the ceramic) while backed up with a second punch in a vice. Resistance of the connection was then checked at 1 ohm or less.
I tied the rotary slider to its post with a few loops of cotton thread to help in replacing it. They were easily cut and pulled away when the assembly was complete. It is important to bend the retaining arms at the top plate with using needle nose pliers to obtain a firm re assembly.
I lubricated the sliding surfaces with dielectric grease after reassembly. Otherwise everything is too sticky and slippy.
While an ohmmeter indicates regulation over about 10 ohms, time will tell whether all this works.
Andrew

Sounds like great work. Let us know how it turns out, or better yet, share some pictures!

Jumper lead removed and rheostat refitted today - it works. No photos, sorry. The car in question is my best 123 diesel and a club car (limited registration) and as such, is not used very often. Andrew