No brake lights on my 73 well only half working now, can't even drive it

[WH23G3G]

Hey I just got my 73 Charger back from the shop and drove it all the way home finally the longest it's been in probably 20 years. But realized when I got home my brake lights weren't working. Luckily I didn't get pulled over. But I want to fix it before it's a problem. I checked the stoplight switch and the pink terminal end was burned to the stoplight switch. I cut the wire, rewired the end, put a new switch on and a new fuse. I ground down the mounting area in the trunk of the ground screw and I got the driver side brake lights to work nice and bright. The passenger side doesn't light up at all. They are 1157 combination bulbs tail light and brake lights. When I turn the headlight switch on all the lights on the car light up the way they should. The rear passenger side bulbs though are a little dimmer than the driver's side. But I've got the ground area grinded down totally shiny. Why would I only have one side working now but still the bulbs light up with the headlight switch on? 

[A383Wing]

what about the 4 way flashers, do they work then?

thinking maybe bad turn signal switch

[WH23G3G]

Flashers work good. Brake lights on pass side were dull last time they worked a year ago.

[ODZKing]

I was going to suggest the plug for the passenger side under the bumper behind the plate but if the flashers are working, I don't think so.
My 73 is funny with grounds as well, had the same issue with the driver parking lamp when we were putting everything back together. I let it go thinking I'd come back to it once it was all together, and I did and it works fine ... go figure.
In any case, I gotta go with Wing, maybe the signal switch or, and I know it sounds crazy, for a couple dollars at NAPA, get a new headlamp hi-beam switch and put it in. For some reason if that isn't making ground or is shorted it screws with the lights.   

[WH23G3G]

I just did another test on it. I took out the bulbs on the side that isn't working and turned the headlight switch on and probed the terminals with the test light and on each socket 1 terminal had power(lit up my test light). When I turned off the headlight switch and mashed the brake pedal in of course the one side that works came on and I probed the two terminals on the side that wasn't working and there was no power at all. What does that mean? I'm guessing when you hit the brakes the terminal other filament on a 1157 bulb should light up. So I guess one lights up for tail lights and one for brake lights.

[A383Wing]

yes, one is for brake/turn lights, the other is for tail lights..totally different circuits.

Again. look at all lights without parking lights on..do all lights work when 4-way flashers are on? Do all brake lights work when brake pedal is pressed? What about pressing brake pedal and turning the turn signals on? (you will need a helper with this)

[WH23G3G]

I got the brake lights working now. I don't even know what I really did. I switched out one bulb and now it is brighter. The other socket I had so much trouble getting the new bulb in I had to install the old bulb but it lit up dim. At least they're all working now. I had to get some used tail light housings which weren't a whole lot better than my cracked original ones. And moving over the harness into the tail light housings was such a pain because of the tail light sockets. You had to bend up the outside edge and then when you get them in again they never are snug again. I was wondering about getting a new tail light harness from year one. But how would you get those tail light sockets in or is it the same way? I drove my Charger around a little more today too out on some close by backroads since the weather isn't the best. Another progess made, my speedometer works and pretty solid too. It's a police speedometer too and it seems pretty accurate.

[A383Wing]

bet you had a bulb in backwards.....or both contacts on the one bulb were touching the same wire end contact in the socket

[WH23G3G]

Is that why one is still dim? Someone else told me that's why it could be dim.

[ODZKing]

Well, it's not impossible to do but the little pins/studs what ever you want to call them are at different places on the bulb base. So you've really gotta jam them in there to get them wrong. But like I said it's possible.

[WH23G3G]

I guess a new tail light harness is in order from Year One. I don't want lights going in and out of working order. I just hope the sockets that come on the Year One harness have a better way of being secured through the OEM plastic tail light housings. Someone should be redoing these tail light housings because they are all broken at least somewhere.

[Nacho-RT74]

tail light harness? I don't think you got the tail light sections, just the body harness between kick panel and trunk