built in shift light :P

-shahul

 

The gauges are going well so far. I have a stock gauge cluster now to test the lighting. It turns out that the stock bulbs (3 of them) for the backlighting is actually an amber color and not white enough IMO. I've tried some LEDs, but the problem with them are that they project light in a cone (30 degrees) which only lights up the corners of some of the gauges.

A new option that I'm going to test is EL wires. These flexable wires glow just like EL backlights. And can be really bright. These will snake around behind the gauges and produce an even glow throughout. These have other advantages like bypassing the stock lighting control and so you can turn them on and off manually by adding a switch or even a small circuit to turn them on with a photocell depending on amount of daylight.

I should be on track to provide some pictures end of next week.

Bryan

 

Shift lights reqire additional circuitry which I don't have knowledge of yet. But it would be a nice side project.

Bryan

 

nice!...i'd love to see over 7000rpms be more accurate than a filled in red line

 

Very smart idea with the EL wires, proper light distribution has always been a tough obstacle to get around when doing new guages. Can't wait to see the final product .

 

Quick Updates:

All the parts I need for this project are here. The EL wire also arrived and the light levels are good, but I'll see if I can make it better by using a different inverter.

I've been working on getting the first set of gauges done so I can take pictures for everyone to see. I had to make some templates for applying color to different parts of the gauge face. The process of assembling one set of gauge face is taking a little longer than I expected but I think in the end it will be well worth it. These gauges will be unique to each individual because you can specify the color to use in different areas of the gauge. Instead of buying something that everyone else has, this could really have that one of a kind look to it.

Having said that, these gauges are mostly hand made so I hope all of you will understand if there are some delays from when we do start taking orders and when the gauges actually ship.

The pictures will be available Friday. Stay tuned.

Bryan

 

Excellent! I can't wait.

 

Sweet!!!!!! - I can't wait to see how they turn out...

 

Me too....

 

 

I wounder if the BMW M3 gauges would fit or be useful? they are nice gauges!

Combat look in to that see what you find...

 

B. D. AOLer?

 

No Bimmer guages, just no....they look soo sooo plain and boring.

 

Here is the first set of gauges. Everything fits perfectly, all the indicator lights are there, just darkened.





The lighting does seem a little dim, but the EL wire needs a little work. Also, there are some edges that don't get enough light.(the 180mph marker) That is due to a plastic barrier built into the frame underneath. Still working on it.

 

Those look awesome! Can the H on the temperature be made red?

Can't wait to see it with the needles..

The night shots need some work..