bhazard Posted June 15, 2016 Share Posted June 15, 2016 Currently have the headlights out of the car and separated for some de-chroming. Wondering if anyone has pics/writeups of other modifications such as LED's, halo rings, etc. I'm removing the amber piece over the turn signal, leaving the clear piece. Considering an LED strip inside that clear piece. http://www.subaruoutback.org/forums/attachments/gen-3-2005-2009/281362d1466034118-headlight-modifications-2016-06-15.jpg Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RJ255 Posted June 16, 2016 Share Posted June 16, 2016 I did an LED strip in the clear piece on my own lights and have installed angel eyes on a customers lights. No writeup, but I have pics of the strip. However the LED strip I did was a fully custom board I fabricated and was a lot of custom work. I'm not sure if you're just doing a premade strip Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bhazard Posted June 17, 2016 Author Share Posted June 17, 2016 Pics? I'd be using a pre made strip most likely. Thinking switchback style and using it in place of the regular turn signal. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RJ255 Posted June 17, 2016 Share Posted June 17, 2016 http://legacygt.com/forums/showthread.php/rj255s-lighting-mods-thread-238536.html I did a custom board with about 50 nichia leds, had to do some cutting to make it all fit. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paul7ro Posted June 23, 2016 Share Posted June 23, 2016 Many threads about headlights mods like the ff: http://legacygt.com/forums/showthread.php/black-out-headlight-17817.html http://legacygt.com/forums/showthread.php/headlight-clearing-w-pics-3737.html?t=3737 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bhazard Posted August 18, 2016 Author Share Posted August 18, 2016 Finally got around to ordering the 6" switchback strips from Diode dynamics. http://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20160818/20f71a57ea11144cb3b2de99861cb609.jpg http://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20160818/95ac9bfdc8acf99ad3f850a5f5090b21.jpg http://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20160818/20b78ee81b35357bd728b18046765703.jpg http://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20160818/2869a5418f979732fd9010f02736632f.jpg They're just mocked up. Still gotta de-chrome the housings and buff the lenses. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jayrex Posted August 21, 2016 Share Posted August 21, 2016 Not as fancy as LED strips, but I used LED bulbs. I like it. http://legacygt.com/forums/showthread.php/led-bulb-flasher-swap-info-4th-gen-legacy-wagon-245452.html One thing I wish I did was dremel off the little tabs on the turn signal lens-bar that held in the yellow piece. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bhazard Posted September 2, 2016 Author Share Posted September 2, 2016 http://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20160902/b04bdc3f9ff6be1f22dba8a073ee6f0e.jpg Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MTBwrench Posted September 2, 2016 Share Posted September 2, 2016 I would paint the signal reflector bowls with something like VHT nightshades black chrome. You'll still have that blacked out look, but those switchback strips would reflect a ton of light! MTBwrench's Stage 3 5EAT #racewagon 266awhp/255awtq @17.5psi, Tuned By Graham of Boosted Performance Everyone knows what I taste like. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
waynieRS Posted September 2, 2016 Share Posted September 2, 2016 following this i want to do something similar Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bhazard Posted September 2, 2016 Author Share Posted September 2, 2016 I would paint the signal reflector bowls with something like VHT nightshades black chrome. You'll still have that blacked out look, but those switchback strips would reflect a ton of light! The strips point outward away from the bowl, so there won't be much reflecting going on anyway. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
utc_pyro Posted September 2, 2016 Share Posted September 2, 2016 The strips point outward away from the bowl, so there won't be much reflecting going on anyway. I think he's refering to the actual turn light bulb area. I have some of those strips I was playing with... They really arent bright enough to be your ONLY turn signal. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bhazard Posted September 3, 2016 Author Share Posted September 3, 2016 The stock turn signal bulb will be gone. I'm not sure what LED strips you messed with before but these are a fairly new product at diode dynamics and they are really bright. Not worried about people not seeing them at all. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
seanyb505 Posted September 3, 2016 Share Posted September 3, 2016 Really interested in how bright the strips are in real world driving. I left my turn signal bucket chrome, but even pulling the tape off took some of the chrome off. My turn signals aren't terribly bright, but I can still see the amber reflection if there's a car in front of me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
utc_pyro Posted September 3, 2016 Share Posted September 3, 2016 I'm not sure what LED strips you messed with before but these are a fairly new product at diode dynamics and they are really bright. Not worried about people not seeing them at all. <WRONG INFORMATION REMOVED>. Super bright at night, but the visibility isn't that great mid day. Though I'm the person putting those AND v3 trions in my new build for turns, so my standards for "bright" might be a bit high . Using JDM HID housings so there is an extra bulb in the crossbar ment for corner markers. Replacing that with HPL CROSSFIRE MINI to serve as DRL's with the 3" XB strips to light up the area as turns. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RJ255 Posted September 4, 2016 Share Posted September 4, 2016 Morimoto XB's, basically the same thing (same chip LED's, same coating, same plant in China). Super bright at night, but the visibility isn't that great mid day. Though I'm the person putting those AND v3 trions in my new build for turns, so my standards for "bright" might be a bit high . Using JDM HID housings so there is an extra bulb in the crossbar ment for corner markers. Replacing that with HPL CROSSFIRE MINI to serve as DRL's with the 3" XB strips to light up the area as turns. As someone who's seen both products side by side, the morimoto and diode dynamics, they are not the same at all. The color of the white LEDs for the DD ones is much cleaner and closer to 5000k. The amber is also far brighter. Also the coating is not as soft and gummy as the morimoto. The quality is better. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Carl08Leg Posted September 6, 2016 Share Posted September 6, 2016 Was it difficult to take your lights apart, and what was your process for doing it? I wanted to get into customizing my own headlights. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
seanyb505 Posted September 6, 2016 Share Posted September 6, 2016 What threads did you find when you searched? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
waynieRS Posted September 7, 2016 Share Posted September 7, 2016 Was it difficult to take your lights apart, and what was your process for doing it? I wanted to get into customizing my own headlights. taking the lights apart are easy .. a few screws a couple of clips and a bit of time with a hot air gun ... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RJ255 Posted September 7, 2016 Share Posted September 7, 2016 Was it difficult to take your lights apart, and what was your process for doing it? I wanted to get into customizing my own headlights. As someone who does this for a living, I would say these lights are easy to take apart. Make sure you have good tools, and it will go smoothly: 1) oven large enough to fit at least one light, preferably electric 2) gloves to protect your hands 3) torx bit to remove lens screws 4) flathead screwdriver 5) flat snapring pliers to pry the lens from the housing Its also a good idea to get some extra butyl sealant. Process: 1) Preheat oven to 235-250 degrees fahrenheit (I used 240) 2) While the oven preheats, use the torx bit (T20 I think?) To remove the screw holding the lens to the back housing. They will be around the edge of the headlight, make sure you get them all, else the light will not open. 3) when the oven is finished preheating, throw the light in for 15-20 minutes. 4) when the timer is up, put some sort of protective gloves on and take the light out, it will be fairly hot. 5) work the snapring pliers into the groove between the front lens cover and the back housing, gently separating the two, and work from the bottom of the headlight to the top. Make sure any tabs on the housing edge are pushed back, or they will likely rip off (you need them for resealing). 6) the light should come apart easily if it is warm enough. Once the lens is separated from the housing, set it aside, and take a flathead screwdriver and flatten the original sealant in the channel while it is still hot. Resealing is generally the opposite with spring clamps, but with a bit of extra butyl sealant added. Sorry if I left anything out, I just wrote it out on the fly. Let me know if anyone wants a more detailed writeup. But generally, these lights are a breeze to open. From there it's just disassembly with common tools to remove the internals. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Horm2124 Posted September 7, 2016 Share Posted September 7, 2016 Really interested in how bright the strips are in real world driving. I left my turn signal bucket chrome, but even pulling the tape off took some of the chrome off. My turn signals aren't terribly bright, but I can still see the amber reflection if there's a car in front of me. I removed the reflectors and painted the light casing in my headlights black a few weeks ago. I used play-do to mark of the area around the turn signals. The play-do didn't damage the chrome coating at all. If you take your time with the play-do and you can make it look good. http://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20160907/da75b6c2a5c8275b514ef01a46883826.jpg http://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20160907/55d401847afc19080bc6a1f29af271d5.jpg Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bhazard Posted September 7, 2016 Author Share Posted September 7, 2016 http://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20160907/0e293d5976178321c85c9c1a5577953e.jpg http://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20160907/5929637ef525fbc7e171a71a638b1e0f.jpg http://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20160907/4604f760126cd034788f95853dfc7f78.jpg Still need to buff the lenses Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Carl08Leg Posted September 8, 2016 Share Posted September 8, 2016 Thanks for the info i always see a ton of different temperatures for doing it in the oven but all ovens are different so im most likely going to use a heat gun Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RJ255 Posted September 8, 2016 Share Posted September 8, 2016 Thanks for the info i always see a ton of different temperatures for doing it in the oven but all ovens are different so im most likely going to use a heat gun I personally don't recommend the heatgun method as it's annoying and can be frustrating, but it should work. I've never had an issue with that temperature range in three different ovens in several years of experience, but it is true that different ovens can vary. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Carl08Leg Posted September 10, 2016 Share Posted September 10, 2016 Im going to be learning how to do it myself with cheap cranked headlights i can get from a repair shop and try both methods thanks for telling me Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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