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How to: Shead light over your panel switch

AUSMHLY

Yoda
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Hi all,

Well, as my friends say, I have too much time on my hands. I wish.
Now that the exercise of how to brighten up the gauge face in the Healey is through, I took a side step to the panel switches.

If you want to see your radio buttons or even the 4 toggle switches at night, you either know where every thing is by brail or you have night vision goggles on.

I played around with a bunch of different lights. (Déjà-vu all over again). What I came up with was a package sold by Windplus. Purchased at AutoZone. WindPlus # LM02029-60/6 (See photo).

It contains the cigarette lighter, dimmer switch and two small led boxes. Each led box contains two blue micro leds.

What I did was to open each led box and cut it in half, length wise. Now you can use double sided tape (which comes in the kit) and attach it under the top of the dash lip. It will be completely hidden and will illuminate your toggle switches and radio.

And easy way wire it up is to run the wires under the dash top and down into the back of the dash face. Being the cigarette lighter plug has a fuse in it, simply solder one wire to the front push pin and another wire to one of the side pins. Splice into the red with white strip wire that goes to the gauges. Now it will come on when the panel switch is activated. Can be wired into a positive or negative car, depending on if the wire from the center pin of the cigarette lighter goes to hot or ground.

Once you dim to your likening, place the dimmer control anywhere you like. (once set, no need to use again. Hide under the dash).

Photos attached.

Happy Motoring!
Roger
 
That Roger is always thinkin’! When I redid my dashpad, I replaced the half round foam face with a piece of wood. Then drilled for 6 LEDs. I replaced the dash light switch with a main light switch that has two positions. Now, the first click down is just the gauges. The second click down are the gauges and dashpad together. More work to do it my way for sure. /bcforum/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/yesnod.gif
 

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Hey Disco Stew (from the Simpsons)

Let's see a photo of the disco ball hanging from the rear view mirror, lol.

Why am I reinventing the wheel here. I should just post my next idea as......Hey, I want to come up with something to do this.....blah blah blah. But before I do, I'll let Greg MacGyver show off his version first.

OK Mr. MacGyver, nice job. The double duty switch is a nice touch too.

So kids, if you want to just light up the toggle area, go with my humble design. If you want to see not only the toggle area, but also where the glove box knob is, go with the deluxe kit Mr. Smarty pants Greg has come up with. Dude, you Rock!....and Roll!

Happy Motoring!
Roger

PS. Hey Greg, I was toying with the idea of a nuclear, atom splitting, environmentally green, self rejuvenating, non animal tested, echo friendly, carbon based, hint of jasmine, fast lane, fast track approved, kid tested and engineered to work flawlessly, yet look simple.....coffee up holder. Before I get into this project, show me what you've come up with. Kaaa Chow!
 
Hi Roger,
I can’t say I’ve got a dedicated coffee cup holder. I did install a nice espresso machine though. Takes a while for the steam to get up to temp, but I’m on the freeway by then, so it’s pretty easy to froth the milk while going in a straight line.
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Dude, where's my car?
Mr G, that is just so.......right!
You crack me up.

I see you introduced a little wood paneling in the center consul.
Not bad. Nice try rookie.

Wait till you see my imported Italian, (I mean English) marble, with the mother load gold vain running through it. And speaking of vain, I'm in the process of replacing the entire wood dash, center section and center consul with triple plated on double plated way-super-shinny reflective mirrors. That's right.

It'll be great being me, looking at me! While everyone else is looking at me....looking at me!
OK, so you got an espresso machine. Yeah, well I've got a pretty darn cool co-piot. She's a looker.
Neener neener neener.
 
AUSMHLY said:
I'm in the process of replacing the entire wood dash, center section and center consul with triple plated on double plated way-super-shinny reflective mirrors.


. . . . . . . . . . . . BLING! /bcforum/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/cool.gif
 
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