Bi-LED Projector Headlight Assemblies for FD
Quick update.
The new high temp resin held up to the heat torture test like a champ. Now for the bad news, the resin is more brittle and the screw bosses shattered when threading in the self tapping screws. Argh!!! Fixed one problem, created another.
There is another resin I can try, or I can tap the bosses with machine threads. Air entrapment isn't helping at all either since the tiny little bubbles in the resin that tend to rise to the highest point (which happens to be the screw bosses) are acting as crack propagation points. I believe this is a solvable problem.
In the mean time my wife has convinced me to paint the kitchen cabinets so progress is slow at the moment.
The new high temp resin held up to the heat torture test like a champ. Now for the bad news, the resin is more brittle and the screw bosses shattered when threading in the self tapping screws. Argh!!! Fixed one problem, created another.
There is another resin I can try, or I can tap the bosses with machine threads. Air entrapment isn't helping at all either since the tiny little bubbles in the resin that tend to rise to the highest point (which happens to be the screw bosses) are acting as crack propagation points. I believe this is a solvable problem.
In the mean time my wife has convinced me to paint the kitchen cabinets so progress is slow at the moment.
Things are looking very promising. The new resin passed the heat testing, and I didn't have any issues with brittleness. They have been in my car now for a couple of months and I have driven at night probably a dozen times . The light output is great, the alignment is great, and the MLED's haven't skipped a beat. I also tested the assembled housings for water intrusion by holding them under a faucet and rotating them around in all directions for a few minutes - no water got in. I will repeat this test with the next few sets I build just to be sure. I also haven't had any lens fogging issues now that I am no longer using petroleum jelly as mold release on the dowel pins (dumb idea) and I am making sure to remove all of the other mold release residue from the parts prior to assembly.
I am also now heat curing the castings at 160F in a laboratory oven for 16 hours. I also finally found an adhesive that I am happy with, that is black so it blends in nicely. And finally I have a pretty good idea for how to do the wire harness and have already made a few. Needless to say, I have learned a lot through this process.
Not ready for a group buy yet. I am taking my time on these and I want to make sure they are solid before I take anyone's money. I also admittedly got burned out on the whole thing and took a break for a while.
I am also now heat curing the castings at 160F in a laboratory oven for 16 hours. I also finally found an adhesive that I am happy with, that is black so it blends in nicely. And finally I have a pretty good idea for how to do the wire harness and have already made a few. Needless to say, I have learned a lot through this process.
Not ready for a group buy yet. I am taking my time on these and I want to make sure they are solid before I take anyone's money. I also admittedly got burned out on the whole thing and took a break for a while.
Yep, long overdue update!
So here's the deal. The manufacturing process is all figured out, the tests have gone well, and the lights have been performing great in my car. I have completed three sets so far, and have learned a TON in the process. I have a batch of the Spyder/Sonar housings on hand.
Unfortunately, one of the things I have learned is these require far more labor than I had hoped and there isn't really any way around that. Its just tedious. Even the process of cleaning the parts/lenses and keeping lint and dust out of the assemblies is a challenge.
This leads me to the problem. The last thing I want to do is commit to making X number of sets and then not be able to deliver on my promises. I only have so much time to put toward these, and I still have a full time job and a family to tend to. This is supposed to be a fun side gig for me and I don't want that to change. So I am thinking that a group buy is out of the question. I am going to continue to produce castings at my own pace while I figure out a reasonable and fair way to offer these for sale. Auction listings are one possible avenue. Or random drawings. I know this isn't what everyone is hoping for but its the reality of the situation.
The "good" news is that I live in Michigan and car season is pretty much over. I have a track event next weekend and after that, the car will be put away for winter and I will have more time for the headlights.
So here's the deal. The manufacturing process is all figured out, the tests have gone well, and the lights have been performing great in my car. I have completed three sets so far, and have learned a TON in the process. I have a batch of the Spyder/Sonar housings on hand.
Unfortunately, one of the things I have learned is these require far more labor than I had hoped and there isn't really any way around that. Its just tedious. Even the process of cleaning the parts/lenses and keeping lint and dust out of the assemblies is a challenge.
This leads me to the problem. The last thing I want to do is commit to making X number of sets and then not be able to deliver on my promises. I only have so much time to put toward these, and I still have a full time job and a family to tend to. This is supposed to be a fun side gig for me and I don't want that to change. So I am thinking that a group buy is out of the question. I am going to continue to produce castings at my own pace while I figure out a reasonable and fair way to offer these for sale. Auction listings are one possible avenue. Or random drawings. I know this isn't what everyone is hoping for but its the reality of the situation.
The "good" news is that I live in Michigan and car season is pretty much over. I have a track event next weekend and after that, the car will be put away for winter and I will have more time for the headlights.
Black will be the standard. I really would rather not offer the "chrome". It takes a lot more time, and I am not a fan of any of the rattle-can chrome paints I have tried. They all scratch and smudge too easily even after a lengthy cure time. It makes assembly more of a pain in the *** than it already is. If I do end up offering chrome, it will be more $$$.
Joined: Aug 2004
Posts: 4,785
Likes: 145
From: Colorado Springs, CO
Black will be the standard. I really would rather not offer the "chrome". It takes a lot more time, and I am not a fan of any of the rattle-can chrome paints I have tried. They all scratch and smudge too easily even after a lengthy cure time. It makes assembly more of a pain in the *** than it already is. If I do end up offering chrome, it will be more $$$.
Id be down for a set if you make them. In my honest opinion yours looks way higher quality than SBG projectors they offer and i have them on my car, your horizontal beam pattern you show projected on the garage is how the cut off lines supposed to be "Horizontal" not angled and there is nothing I can do to fix the SBG projectors unless I some how cut out all the glue/adhesive that was used and corrected the projector angle. Also yours is LED, which is a great upgrade.
Will follow this potential group buy.
Will follow this potential group buy.
Id be down for a set if you make them. In my honest opinion yours looks way higher quality than SBG projectors they offer and i have them on my car, your horizontal beam pattern you show projected on the garage is how the cut off lines supposed to be "Horizontal" not angled and there is nothing I can do to fix the SBG projectors unless I some how cut out all the glue/adhesive that was used and corrected the projector angle. Also yours is LED, which is a great upgrade.
Will follow this potential group buy.
Will follow this potential group buy.
If you don't like the quality of the SBG HID projectors, after 100's hand-crafted, used for decades, and lit for countless hours, replace 'em with OEM and sell the SBG HID kit on classifieds for over $700 used. You're comparing apples to oranges here.
WE would all like to see a LED projector kit made, no need to dis on the FD community.
Your honest opinion is worthless garbage ignorant trash.
If you don't like the quality of the SBG HID projectors, after 100's hand-crafted, used for decades, and lit for countless hours, replace 'em with OEM and sell the SBG HID kit on classifieds for over $700 used. You're comparing apples to oranges here.
WE would all like to see a LED projector kit made, no need to dis on the FD community.
If you don't like the quality of the SBG HID projectors, after 100's hand-crafted, used for decades, and lit for countless hours, replace 'em with OEM and sell the SBG HID kit on classifieds for over $700 used. You're comparing apples to oranges here.
WE would all like to see a LED projector kit made, no need to dis on the FD community.
Also, your comment is "worthless garbage ignorant trash" as it adds nothing to the discussion.
Thanks, glad im not the only one who thinks the same about his comment, to each their own. Best to ignore people like that who cant handle someone pointing out flaws and seeing competition such as what this guy is making as an alternative projector. Dont want to turn this guys group buy thread into something else.
It was a bit over dramatic. The point was that sbg quality is proven after years of use, while these arent even past testing. There is no reason to bash sbg.
I would like to see these produced because friendly competition is good.
I would like to see these produced because friendly competition is good.
Level the cutoff is the hardest part of the retro FYI, everything else is a walk in the park. I spent 4 hours on my retro and more than half of it is aiming the beam, and I’m still a hair off on the passenger side. If I pay premium for s set of production light I would expect that part to be done correctly.