O. L. T.

iTrader: (17)

1. no, just the needles.

2. you can choose to use as many as you want according to the intensity you desire. so within that, there will be between 8 and 16 that light the face white.

3. yes, the foil adds weight. it is part of the balance needed. you cannot place the led at the base and leave the needle tip featherweight. that WOULD mess up the calibration. once the led is mounted i add the foil for backlight and balance the needle with model epoxy and black paint to the rear of the needle until it comes out the same weight dist. as the stock needle.

O. L. T.

iTrader: (17)

UPDATE:

There will indeed be a bit of calibration to the needle now because i changed the position of the led today to one i like better. Calibration is done by removing the copper/brass weight in the rear of the needle and installing one of the weight needed to balance the needle.

O. L. T.

iTrader: (17)

I'm done and it's in. You think i could have matched the cluster any better to my Blaupunkt Casablanca head unit? lol. (sorry for the quality of the pics, it is 3 am.)

https://www.clublexus.com/gallery/da...headspeedo.jpg

https://www.clublexus.com/gallery/da...3879speedo.jpg

Edit: the backlight is stock.

nextlevelcoupe

iTrader: (1)

absolulety amazing project!! cathode tube alternative...did you use the led's from that site you told me about?-i used these led's https://www.netdisty.net/ds/WF200/default.asp from www.ledronics.com ..they are 8000k cool white leds and yielded less than satisfactory results.(too dim in the cluster),but gives cool white color,the led's are placed in stock position,but give direct focused light without spreading like incandescent light does,i guess i might need to add or customize more led's to the dash to give a brighter look. here's a pic of the led used:

nextlevelcoupe

iTrader: (1)

here's how it looks in my dash and ac controls...i have RED needles and the the right side of the dash/ac controls is the cool white led's-the left side is stock...the pic's colors are wrong(damn digicam) the dash is more WHITE than blue and the needles are RED...and the screen for the ac is AMBER. how the hell do you correct the color on these digicams?

nextlevelcoupe

iTrader: (1)

2

nextlevelcoupe

iTrader: (1)

3

nextlevelcoupe

iTrader: (1)

hey onelasttry,i'll give you the project i was working on to see if there is anything you can do to further enhance this current dash project..pm me with your location...here are the parts(cold cathode tubes from the ls 400):

O. L. T.

iTrader: (17)

Sweet!!!!! I like it! I actually meant to use these led's because the waterfall lighting on the needles looks amazing in person. It is a smooth blend from the base to the tip, with just a slight shade difference as the light spreader tapers off to the tip. the pics don't really do it justice. in person, i prefer the waterfall because it has a custom blended look such as blended paint fades out. I used a "secret" source for the white 2600 mcd led's. lol. The 1100 blue burns great and 2600 burns just as well. it took me a little over 6 hours per needle because i originally had the entire needle lit up like you do, then decided to cascade the light into a fade to black setting (which never actually does fade out, just lightly) and it gave it a more smooth custom look. IMO the led's do something the expensive cathode can't do..... a custom waterfall fade to black. That's why i chose the focused lasar led's.

You did a great job putting it together. what have you decided on as your final result? are you going to use the red and pure white led's you have, or are you going to try something else?

O. L. T.

iTrader: (17)

your going to hate me for saying this, but i cannot stand cathode tubes. I can do more with the led's for less than a 5th of the price. i can also burn the backlight at a pure white that rivals the cathode tubes performance with no discoloration at all. Cathode tubes are just too fragile and require too many mods and spare parts (ballasts, shock absorbing mounts, etc. ) and at a cost of $500 bucks, why not just use led's and create the same, if not better look since you can custom tailor the results to shadow or fade where needed? Enzo payed only what is stated on my little www button down there. I'll just never be a cathode fan. too much work, not enough flexibility... and waaaaaay to dang expensive. truthfully, i'll help you all i can, but i won't lay a finger on them.

nextlevelcoupe

iTrader: (1)

i only changed the backlit display...the needles are stock(i didn't want to change them because 95-96 is the only year to offer this color but,that waterfall effect you have there is really hot!!! i might change my mind on that mod)..i can get the cathode tubes shown here for about $80 pair from the LS(genuine lexus dasboard parts)(i would only be working with these tubes)which is affordable but,i don't know how to get them powered up..the results would be so sweeet if we can get these up and running...flourescent backlighting just like the LS?..harder to work on but,the results would be beautiful! if i can provide the cathode tubes..you provide the means to power them..maybe the right inverter for an affordable price...let's do it bro! i'll donate these to do what you can with-as a"prototype project..and maybe we can take it from there....what do you think?

nextlevelcoupe

iTrader: (1)

btw,notice the "cold" spots of the led lighting in my pic of the dash .do you have the same problem?or did you put enough leds to solve that issue of brightness and even intensity ?

O. L. T.

iTrader: (17)

Yep, i noticed the cold spots from your 8k's but i was keeping my mouth shut i haven't had a problem with my 2600's but my technique in aiming them and using mirrored backlight is an 8 hours process. Spreading them is like creating art, only i don't get to sign them and sell 'em for 50,000

O. L. T.

iTrader: (17)

that's where the extra expense starts to add in. aside of ballasts, you'll have to mod the cluster for high voltage. big headache. i do agree, they will look good, but you should see what it looks like when i use the 2600's. no difference.

I'll look around for some ballasts, but i'll need to do a bit of research before i try anything.

nextlevelcoupe

iTrader: (1)

sounds good...lets pull our resources together and do it!-this can be an alternate,more expensive option to the current project. are your led's really white..or is "cool " white like mine?