LET Instrument Bulbs - had some made!

[kellzey]

Okay... I had some LED instrument bulbs made for my 914-6 project car. I know that this has been discussed ad nauseum, but I had the correct bulbs made with the correct Ba7s base.




In my opinion, they offer some variation from stock bulbs.

The limitations on getting brighter lighting via LED really has a lot to do with the configuration of the bulbs in the instruments. The tachometer and speedometer really should have three lights to look better. Also the speedometer is deeper then the rest of the gauges. The two bulbs in the speedometer are actually farther away from the face plate then the other gauges. And the tube in which the are inserted are should be shorter (in my opinion) That's why this instrument is the dimmest.

You are also limited by the fact that the LED bulbs tend to direct light in one direction. I tried the same bulbs with a diffusing lense (reflects light sideways, but these were even dimmer when used in the instruments).

So here are some pictures...

(sorry for crappy pics. It is really hard to take digital photos in virtually no light.).

This is stock...




1. Blue LED is the brightest and looks the best (IMHO)




2. White (superbright) is second brightest and is a better white than stock. (superbright has every-so-slight bluish tint to it... Sort of like Xenon headlights)




3. Red looks good too, but is the weakest as far as brightness (just slightly better than stock bulbs). These bulbs have the lowest output of the three colors I had made. I knew this based upon the bulb specs. Again, just slightly better than stock, but they DO look cool!




Here is what you have to keep in mind.

1. LED bulbs will last virtually forever (about 10,000 hours) and will not get dim or "yellow" over time (inlike incadescent bulbs). They generate no heat.

2. There is no brightness control for these bulbs. They are either on or off. They require a constant voltage, however these bulbs have an internal resistor and can handle the varying voltage of our funky charging system. (about 11 to 14 volts)

3. You cannot use this for the alternator light. Something about the resistence of the filament used for this circuit...

4. You CAN use these for the remaining indicator lights. I would select the white bulbs for the indicators and dummy lights.

5. The speedometer and tachometer each takes two bulbs for peripheral lighting.

6. I believe the clock and fuel gauges each have one bulb

7. These bulbs are a direct replacement for the standard OEM bulbs, and will fit in the same bulb housing. They have the correct Ba7s base.

Do you like?

Now they do not necessarily offer a BRIGHTER solution then stock bulbs.... they offer color choices, and a brighter white.

The incandescent bulbs can yellow a bit.

Here is a side-by-side of a stock bulb next to a superwhite bulb in the Tachometer.

[mjshira]

nice post, thanks

[kellzey]

Oh... and did I mention I have 300 of them...

[Jandrews]

Pretty cool. Do they really illuminate kind of spotty like the picture shows, with a very specific area coverage? Said another way, do they provide less "diffusion" than the incandescant bulbs?

Are you going to sell some?


JA

[kellzey]

Also... my 914-6 gauges had some custom work done...

The indicator needles are yellow to match the car... so they don't show up as well with the blue and red LEDs...

[mjshira]

are those specifc to 914's or will they work in a 911?

[K. Roman]

Has anybody replaced their indicator needles with a clear type of needle so it could be lit from the back and illuminated?

[MotoSook]

Nice 3-way guage for the oil info, Karl.

[82SC]

how hard would it be to have someone produce faceplates with the numbers and hash marks semi transparent...

there must be a company that does custom faces...maybe have a frosted piece of acrylic and silk screen on the VDO design...

hmmmmmmmmmm

[Yellowbird RS]

Nice mod.!
where did you get the leds?

[kellzey]

My opinion is YES, they are a bit more spotty. This is due to the directional nature of the LED bulb.

The alternative is to design a bulb with five or six smaller bulbs soldered together and spread out, but you are limited by space and the fabrication cost would be higher.

I tried another type of bulb that had a lens that reflected the light sideways, but I felt these bulbs made the instruments much dimmer.

Here is a picture of the sideways bulb...

[mjshira]

and do they work in a 911?

[kellzey]

I had the bulbs custom made for me in China.

Yes, they will work in a 911 as long as your 911 gauge has the Ba7s base bulb (as shown at the top of this thread). I believe these work for all of the early 911s up to about 1989)??? Just pull out a gauge and pull out a bulb receptical.

Somebody correct me, I am not a 911 expert.... 914s are a bit more limited in production differences.

If anybody is interested I can sell them @ $1.25 a bulb. Keep in mind the limitations as stated in the first post... No variable brightness and only slightly better than stock. But they will last much longer than stock bulbs, will not yellow over time, and you have color choices!

S/H would be $2.50 (to cover postage, padded envelope, handling) for any number of bulbs via U.S. mail anywhere in the U.S.

Just multiply the number of bulbs you want times $1.25 and add $2.50.

I can do Paypal (karl@iepg.com).

In the Paypal comments area you would need to all specify how many you want of each color. (i.e., 7 red and 5 white)

If you want to send a cashier's check or postal money order, them PM or e-mail me and I will send you my address.

Sorry, I don't want to deal with shipping outside the U.S.

[mjshira]

thanks. I have a 72 so I don't know if those are the same..? So I will check and get back to you.

[alf]

Sign me up, but would someone tell me how many bulbs there are in the entire 911 cluster?

alf

[mjshira]

you beat me to it Alf. (the question)

[K. Roman]

I've got a question.
How did you go about getting custom bulbs made in China???

Also, would you be able to get custom gauge faces with clear numbers and markings also made in China.

Thanks.

[kellzey]

I did some research and I found a bulb manufacturer.

I'm not sure about the gauge faces... part of the problem is..

The gauge faces have "tabs" that position the face in the housing and keep it at a distance away from the glass lense. It would be difficult and expensive to come up with a solution that mounts identical to the stock part.

Plus you have the mechanism behind the face plate that might block portions light shining through the face (if it were semi-opaque).

You would also have to disassemble the gauges, and recrimp the bezels on., plus remove the indicator needles and there is a possibility of screwing up the calibration...

In my opinion... not worth it.

Oh, and you can get ANYTHING made in China... well almost anything!

[K. Roman]

Good job by the way, I hope these don't run out too soon, I'd love to pick some up myself.

[LeRoux Strydom]

Originally posted by kellzey
S/H would be $2.50 (to cover postage, padded envelope, handling) for any number of bulbs via U.S. mail anywhere in the U.S.

Sorry, I don't want to deal with shipping outside the U.S.

US Mail does deliver outside the US as well, you know. Why don't you want to sell to us poor suckers outside the US? Is our money no good?

I'd be happy to pay the extra postage, and it would be dead easy to get the money to you any way you want.

Please, let us in on the deal!

LeRoux