Angel Eye Progress

[Kooter]

well, heres the progress to which i am at currently, now im waiting 2 get the led's from GMK, 8 white 3000. hopefully itll turn out good. any1 got good mountaing tips?
http://images.cardomain.com/member_img_a/215000-215999/215338_193_full.jpg

[JScullin]

I cut the middle prong off the metal cups & cut the top off where the middle opening where the cups attach to the light. I used some JB Weld Automotive epoxy that says it's good up to 300* and put dabs in a triangular pattern on the ring & attached them to the housing.

It's about 2-3 months later & they look fine. Only thing I wish I had done cleaner was in hiding the LED's. I wrapped some electrical tape around them & put a dab of nail polish hardener to keep it secure. It worked but gave it a cloudy white look, but at night you can't see it & it's not really noticable unless you get right upto the headlight.

[Ness1216]

Just be as careful as you can thats my advice. I had to drill a little to be able to get the wires to go through the back behind the cowl. Once cowl is put back on you wont be able to see the wires. My only regret was not sealing up my passenger side very well when I finally resealed it the eye had gotten a little dirty from the moisture but it looks great at night. I think mine turned out good though. I didnt cover up leds with tape cause then my gap would be too big but I like how mine look without tape around leds. Also Be VERY careful when drilling to put leds in. I had a horrible time with this caude the ring kept braking off.

[JScullin]

I tucked the wires underneath the headlight middle part & then ran them out the back of the headlight through the little rubber drainage thing. Did no drilling of the headlights at all.

[CATerina]

You should have waited for me and got the 5000MCD next week.

[Ness1216]

Originally posted by: JScullin
I tucked the wires underneath the headlight middle part & then ran them out the back of the headlight through the little rubber drainage thing. Did no drilling of the headlights at all.

I think I did the same thing you did I just have trouble explainging things in detail.

[Fett]

This is going to be my next project. They always look so good.

[Ness1216]

hmm i never posted pics of mine on here lemme go take a few pics right now im bored. I have white leds but they look almost blue.

[Kooter]

i dont have any L.E.D's right now, if any1 would liek 2 hook me up with 8 white ill pay them later;)

[JScullin]

I'm guessing the stronger LED's are a must because mine slightly gradient up at the top of the ring. I'm sure the brighter ones wouldn't.

Looks cool none the less.

http://www.cougardb.com/image.php?id=1016&raw=1

[Kooter]

hey jscullen, u got pix of how u mounted them, that would be apprieciated even more cuz im kinda :confused: on the way u said 2 mount them. if any1 has pix that would be nice:cool:

[Ness1216]

Ok heres the pics I just took. Almost stepped on a frog, poor guy.

sorry the pics arent too good, i still need to figure out my cameras settings.

[BatCougar]

I am in the process of doing this too. I have found that no matter what brightness of LED (3000. 5000) the light will not travel up to the top of the eye. You would almost have to put the cuts in the plastic right on top of each other to get it bright at the top and then that would defeat the purpose. Light leakes out every possible place it can, so I really don't think that you will ever get it bright at the top.

I can't wait to finish up mine, just waiting to paint the insides of the headlights and then get the LEDs from GMK and I will be set. Should be finished sometime next week.

Any pics of this in progress would be greatly appreciated (meaning pics of how you mounted them, I have already seen the how to.

[EllenD]

I wish my camera would take good pictures of mine but it uses an automatic flash at night and they come out white. Anyway, the first time I did it I used the blind wands and the light didn't travel evenly to the top. So I ordered some clear plastic rods online, pretty good quality, and made the cuts closer together. My entire eyes light up completely. Only problem is that they are so bright that the light kind of bounces off the back of the headlights and reflects out, so you can still see the ring but there is also a red glow coming from all around the ring. I'll have to try to borrow a better camera and get some pics up.

[jojolmnop]

how would 10000 mcd leds (http://www.superbrightleds.com/leds/w4_specs.htm) look?

just to make sure, they don't generate too much heat, right?

[EllenD]

I don't think heat is an issue, but I'm not sure. I mean, they aren't bulbs, so I wouldn't think it would be a problem, especially in the headlight casing.

[jojolmnop]

yeah, i believe i remember that they don't generate any heat but i guess i'm just waiting to be told otherwise.

[Ness1216]

i dont think heat would be an issue at all. If anything you have to worry how much heat your headlights are putting out.

[2Liter]

lcd's generate light by exciting certain chemicals inside of them. They produce no noticable heat. Have at it... :)

[RodneyBur]

I made the mistake of putting hot glue in my lights to hold a couple things in. DO NOT DO THIS. I realized after a closer inspection that the heat from the lights would cause the glue to melt. DUH. Now I have glue in the casing. It is only noticeable up close, but still not the way I wanted it. I also used black tape to hide the LEDs. Don't do this either. The heat has some effects on the tape too. I did not use any nail polish hardner or anything like it, but I wouldn't even mess with the tape.

I plan on redoing my lights in order to paint them again anyway. The paint I bought is darker than the Laser Red than I thought it would be, so it has to go. My planned changes I am making on the Angel Eyes are:

1. Using small peice of plastic pipe to hold the LEDs. A small piece of PCV pipe would hold the LEDs perfectly. I plan on shaving it a little so the ring fits smoothly onto it. It will also be painted the same color as the headlight casing.

2. Hold the Angel Eye ring onto the casing using screws. Run them from the back of the casing into the back of the ring so that the tip can be seen from the front. The screws may be a little visible at close inspection, but well worth the satisfaction that the ring will not move. 3 screws should be more than enough. One could work if it was big enough and I ran it through the back of the plastic pipe before I inserted the LEDs. It would be completely invisble thataway.

3. Get the strongest damn LEDs that you can. The stronger the better. I wouldn't hesitate one bit to put 10000mcd leds in the ring. I have red in mine and they suck. They are not nearly as bright as I thought they would be. If it was easy I would have taken them out very quickly and redid them.

Hope that helps.

Ness and JScullin: What are the strength of your LEDs?

[CATerina]

To hold in the ring. Take a needle and heat it up. Then push it through the back of the eye. It is so small you dont see it and it wont fall out if done right. I would also mount it on the parking light ring. Take off the plastic cover and use those holes to mount it in.

http://images.cardomain.com/member_img_a/259000-259999/259904_25_full.jpg

[JScullin]

5mm, 3.7v 2600mcd, 26ma

The ones you get at Radioshack.

[CATerina]

3mm 5000 MCD with a 220 resistor. Looks great.

[2low4potHoles]

i need to get around and do this sometime , where do u get the rings?

[Kooter]

lol, i honestly had 2 take them out of the boxes of window blinds:naughty: but hey they said they didnt sell them, yet they are on there site. buts itll end up being like 10 dollars just for a couple of rods that cost 1.29. so i say no 2 shipping. try your local ace hardware, thats where tropiccoguar got his

[tropiccougar01]

No Kooter, i got mine at Home Depot. $1.97 in the blinds and window treatment section.

[Ness1216]

Originally posted by: tropiccougar01
No Kooter, i got mine at Home Depot. $1.97 in the blinds and window treatment section.

same here. each rod should make two rings. I used superglue to hold the angel eyes on and they are still on after a month. I think my glue had anti heat crap though. Electrical tape wont hold the stickiness once its hot though.

[2low4potHoles]

how do u bend ,,,, them wat u use to heat them to bend them .. or how do u get the shape that u need how big to make the ring...... im tard i know

[Kooter]

heres all the info u need....click me for angel info (http://www.cougardb.com/howtoshow.php?howtoid=1)

[tropiccougar01]

Yes, that how-to Kooter just posted is great. Also, Phant0mzero and CATerina are very big helps when it comes to the process if u have any questions.

[BatCougar]

Does anyone know the exact Circumference of the Headlight?