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Terrible, I know. But I turned my Beamtechs into Halogen, sort of.
I've been running the Hella 7" headlights with Beamtech LEDs, very white color at 5500K but with my stock 83 it was a bit jarring. So why not the best of both options, low power consumption, bright light, and 3200K Halogen color temp?
I bought some of this stuff, Lee Filter part # 626. They have a bunch of colors for different starting this specific one filters 5500K LEDs to 3200K. I bought a big assortment pack. You only need one sheet:
Here's the applications list (lol that font, so 70's photographer!):
I bought it from a local theatrical lighting guy but that link is the same thing. I cut a 2" x 2.25" square and wrapped it around the LED, held on with an O-ring
It's a bit overlength in order to just butt up against the inside of the bulb cover inside the Hella fixture.
And here's a side by side shot, with unchanged on the left, new on the right
I like it! I like the yellow light of older cars and agree bright white's look jarring (and blue, yuck). LED's do get a little warm so keep an eye on them. Not hot like a halogen, but warm.
Last edited by Maxwedge; May 13, 2022 at 06:08 AM.
Thanks! I took a ride last night for about 30 minutes and I'm really pleased with the quality of the light...no longer super white and not sickly yellow. The lighting guy said the gels are made take plenty of heat, high watt incandescent heat. But to your point I'll be keeping a eye on them
It looks like the Hella and Beamtech are ~$150 all in on Amazon right now. The Lee 626 filter gel is ~ $10 for the sheet, you need a very small amount as seen above.
It turns out the LEDs are hot enough to distort the gel sheet and intense enough to fade the color. In the first attempt, it laid right on LEDs
For attempt #2, I put the gel around the should of the LED mount with a strip of double stick. With some extra distance, I hope it keeps its color, doesn't melt, and we'll see if the adhesive survives.