LED dashboard lights 67-68

[CanyonCarver515]

Has anyone tried these?

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/1967...emQQcategoryZ80739QQihZ009QQitemZ190182681372

The ad claims that original lights have a blue color and that they turn green over time. Somehow I'm not sure I believe this.

Otherwise, their system seems neat.

You input is appreciated as I have cold feet about ordering this kit.

 

[iskwezm]

if you pull the cluster,the lenses ARE blue. I removed my lenses and made the dash lights clear. I dont think it would be hard to get some multi colored l.e.d's and use a switch to change the dash colors.

I HAVE used the led's before,not sure if its the same company,but the ad looks the same.i think i got mine from whitefacegauges.com and they are bright.I think they had colors too

 

[enferno]

+1 for whitefacegauges.com

they plug in just like stock bulbs, but they are a TON brighter and come in a bunch of different colors. LED's pretty much never burn out too, unless they get surged or shorted (duh)

 

[Red5oh]

I bought a set of BA9s replacements for the guage cluster, but I picked a smaller, single LED (from Allied Electronics). I ended up removing the blue case around it and it looks great. I measured the current before and after, and it is absolutely amazing. I have the white face gauges as well, and I liked the way it looks.

Another place I will use in the future is http://superbrightleds.com as they seem to have them all and at a decent price.

 

[gjz30075]

Canyoncarver, I have that exact set for my '66. I opted for the green color, simply because that's what I'm used to. It is not much brighter than stock but quite acceptable, I think. You have the usual 'hotspots' associated with LEDs because they are not good at casting light. The ebay ad picture is pretty accurate with what you'll see. I'm pretty happy with them and the seller.
Good luck with your decision.

 

[iskwezm]

You have the usual 'hotspots' associated with LEDs because they are not good at casting light.

True, L.E.D.s are directional light, and not dispersed very well

 

[bnickel]

someone else on here used some Glow Wire stuff and wrapped it around the gauge openings as well as using the LED's too. worked really well. it was a few years ago and i doubt the pics are still here but you can do a search for glow wire or street wire and see if you can find them

 

[suki243]

I think i found the thread you were talkn about

http://forums.stangnet.com/showthread.php?t=615698&highlight=gauges

 

[bnickel]

yep, that's one of them. there was another member who did it on a 67 or 68 cluster as well and it went into more detail about how they hot glued the glow wires to the back and basically did an entire write-up on the process. i'm thinking it may have been Chelle (t_chelle16) who did it. i'll see if i can find it.

 

[bnickel]

well, i did a search for her username and gauges and couldn't find the thread i was talking about. it's a pretty old write-up and i couldn't get on her website. i'll try to send her a PM and see if she can post the write-up here for you.

 

[CanyonCarver515]

Thanks for all the great advice and research. This is turning into a very informative thread. I didn't expect any less.

 

[suki243]

hmm wasn't able to find the one you were lookn for bnickle, but i did find this other one with like 30somethin leds...

http://forums.stangnet.com/showthread.php?t=570539&highlight=gauges

I like the neons as courtesy lights...

 

[bnickel]

hmm wasn't able to find the one you were lookn for bnickle, but i did find this other one with like 30somethin leds...

http://forums.stangnet.com/showthread.php?t=570539&highlight=gauges

I like the neons as courtesy lights...

yeah she posted that article quite a while back before the infamous server crash of 06, so it may have gotten wiped out, that's why i PM'd her to see if she still had it.

 

[65ShelbyClone]

True, L.E.D.s are directional light, and not dispersed very well

The problem is that most "high intensity" LEDs get their high mcd rating because they focus light into a narrow beam, usually 10-15 degrees. The trick is finding high intensity AND wide angle LEDs, which usually cost more. There are other tricks that can be done to get better light dispersion such as using fine sandpaper to frost the LED lense like a frosted light bulb.

Also, unlike filtered lightbulbs, LEDs emit a very narrow spread of color wavelength that often screws with the appearance of contrasting colors. Under a 660nm red LED, light colors appear red and dark colors appear mostly black.

I thought about trying out a DIY LED dash conversion myself, but it wouldn't be blue. I find that blue is tough on my eyes in low light.