Well, Bruce....the plot thickens.
The 1777 bulb is not approved for the navigation wing-tips. The 1777 is a clear, glass domed bulb intended for tail navigation lights.
The wingtip lamps are actually a mirrored bulb.....they have a half-domed internally-mirrored reflective surface. Even more confusing....such bulbs come in two different basic versions...and can be numbered by 3 or 4 different PN's depending upon their manufacturer.
BUT.....keeping in mind that Whelen, Grimes, Universal, Cessna and GE all may use different PN's for the same mil-spec bulb.....here's some info that may help one decide:
The original spec for the 170 was for a 14 volt 21 Watt (1.5A) lamp. This is commonly known as the Grimes 1512 bulb (and also once shared the same PN with Cessna, although Cessna has superceded or no longer recognizes that number.)
The FAA uprated their visiblilty requirements/regulations in the late '70's and subsequent aircraft specified a 14 volt 26 Watt (1.85A) bulb with the same internally mirrored reflector. This is most commonly known as the A-7512-12 bulb (although Whelen PN is W1290-14).
The later 26 Watt bulb will physically fit into the earlier 1512 socket in our wingtips, but they are pulling more ampereage (if you're worried about that small amount....about .7A for two bulbs.)
The higher wattage bulbs put out a bit more light, but my reference tables don't enumerate that in these pn's. Both PN's are rated at 300 hrs. life.
There is another internally mirrored lamp/bulb known as the A- 7079B (with or without the preceding "A") but it is NOT intended for the nav lights (and probably wouldn't fit anyway). It is a larger globe on that bulb. But I mention it because the nav lamps (1512/7512-12) may fit into the rotating BEACONS that the 7079B bulb was actually designed for. Unfortunately, they do not put out the same light, as the 7079B was typically rated at 40 Watts,....but if you're calculating current demand on a limited circuit....
Now, not to muddy the water.....but.....
...if you call Cessna they'll likely tell you most of these numbers are no longer valid and that (for example) the nav lamp is actually now a PN 900328-06 (superceding the 0423006-6) and that you must first convert your wingtip to accept Service Kit A-
1285G12 or A-
1285R12, and THEN you can fit the correct bulb into your navigation wingtip.
Don't fall for it.
As near as I can determine (visions of Jack Nicholson again)
...."Heeres the Deeal...." Grimes made the original wingtip fixtures by the zillions during WW-2 and Cessna bought a bunch of surplus stuff to make airplanes out of. (a major reason so many of the original gyros found in our airplanes were made by Tennstedt Division of General Motors, mfr'd under a gov't contract.)
Grimes quit makin' 'em and Whelen started making identical replacements under a Whelen PN. (Care to guess? Yep.
W-
1285.) So when Cessna had to repair/replace fixtures they had to use a new part numbering system....their fix being a Whelen 1285 part with either a green (G) or red (R) lens.....and then designated according to the aircraft system voltage (12) or (24)....hence their
Alteration to Kit
A-
1285G12 or
A-
1285R12 part numbers.
Being such perfectionists...they could no longer supply a Grimes bulb (1512) with the older 21 Watt rating for aircraft needing the newer 26 watt Grimes 7512-14....and in any case, with their attentive/compulsive disorder, they couldn't substitute a Grimes part number for a Whelen fixture so they superceded their inventory of identical bulbs with Whelen W1290-14 part numbers. Ooops. Cessna found that folks could/would buy those cheaper elsewhere so

they re-numbered their inventory to mask the China/Mexico suppliers of the same basic bulb to Cessna PN 900-328-06.

(
keep in mind that other than your choice of wattage, it makes no difference which bulb [1512/7512-12/W-1290]
you install in your wingtip!)
For my tail, I like my 50-cent (beats the heck out of $10.50) automotive 1200 hour rated 1156 backup tail lamp and, not being current-limited, my 7512-14 26 Watt wingtip nav lamps.
You
can get the nav lights from Aircraft Spruce 877-477-7823, their PN (just what we needed.....yet another Part Number!)

...
Nav lamp (old Grimes PN 1512) 14 volt,
21 Watt = Spruce PN 11-01954 priced at $13.95.
Nav lamp (old PN A-7512-12 or W-1290-14) 14 volt,
26 watt = Spruce PN 11-01964 priced at $13.95.
But...
... finally.....just to give us all a laugh because everyone selling aircraft parts thinks
we're stupid....if you order the 26 Watt identical bulb from the same place (Spruce)
but use the Grimes/Whelen part number......W-1290-14....you'll get that same bulb for
three dollars less....only $10.95.
