My painter wasn't too happy with my request to get 'detailed' with them....but he knocked it out of the park as usual!
I also started testing the magical chemical properties of hydro-chlorine vs Cheap Chrome on projector shrouds...and it is awesome!
Built these for a customer in Tennessee per his specifications and they turned out great.
My painter wasn't too happy with my request to get 'detailed' with them....but he knocked it out of the park as usual! I also started testing the magical chemical properties of hydro-chlorine vs Cheap Chrome on projector shrouds...and it is awesome!
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So....this isn't the first Semi I've worked on...and it won't be the last.....BUT, I will be the last time I 'assume' anything with electrical systems.
This was a 3 month battle trying to get these damn lights to work properly after the initial install....but in the end, we finally got it and the driver is stoked! Now if only these behemoth's could fit in my shop! Customer brought his Dodge Challenger in for an HID upgrade.
He wanted something that matched his headlights and these Morimoto 6000k HIDs did just that.....now he can see MUCH better at night. ....although I do not condone installing HIDs into the fogs...because the housings aren't designed to properly throw out THAT much light....it is what it is. This was a fun one. Took way to long to complete, but hey....I'm a busy one-man army over here!
Customer brought in his already Star Wars themed Dodge and said he had an idea.....he gave me a headlight and his R2D2 model and said "make this happen!" That's all I needed to hear! We started with a good performance platform: 3" FXR Bi-Xenon Projectors matched with Morimoto HID bulbs and ballasts...or and a MOPAR uber relay harness. From there I did my "Resting Demon' eye mod so it looks Blue when everything is off. Also added Blue Accent Demon Eye lighting to help with the lens. For the Lens I did a custom one-off etch of the X-Wing Fighter Jet that Luke Skywalker flew (with Artoo DeToo). Behind the shroud I placed a COB-Style Blue LED Halo After that was done, Painting was next. Instead of making these EXACTLY like R2, I wanted to match his truck a little bit...so that's why I didn't do any White paint. I had everything painted his OEM Blue color, then painted over 90% of that with Matte Black. After, of course, I laid down some Rebel Alliance logos and converted the Apollo shroud to look like R2s top/head/thingy. Customer already purchased some SUPER Bright Triton V3 Switchback Running/Turn LEDs, so that was taken care of. What else is one this thing.....oh yeah! Something NOONE....I repeat....NOONE (To my knowledge and about 3 hours of research online) has ever created......a Princess Leia Hologram Projector LED. Yup....that's right Star Wars Nerds....if you have an R2 unit, you HAVE to have this. This thing can actually project a 10'+ Leia image on the wall. This kids got the first one ever....in his truck! Come at me Lucas Films! ;) What a fun build....my first 'themed' build and a great customer to work with. Customer called me for a headlight upgrade.......because the front of her 300C was mangled during a wreck...and the cost of her expensive OEM HID Projectors were VERY expensive....plus she wanted to modify the new lights....so here is what we did:
New Passenger Side Headlights New Passenger Side Valeo Ballast New D1S Morimoto HID Bulbs New Clear Lenses for OEM Projectors Oracle Vehicle Specific Plasma Halo Kit Morimoto LED Plasma Strips Switchback module for Halo's to turn off when turn signals activated Matte Black Internal Paint After tweaking the OEM projectors...I was able to achieve a MUCH better cutoff and the new bulbs really changed the output of the projectors. Too bad that AAC/Oracle can't get their quality control.....under control....and match their own kit's colors....but whatever....customer was happy. Client from out of town brought his Dodge Dart up for some driving light upgrades.
Dodge did a pretty good job on these Bi-Xenon Projectors as OEM lighting modules...except one thing...they left out the HID part......nothing Trax can't handle. Main Headlight Upgrade - 5000K 35watt Morimoto DSP Elite HID System - 9006 Fog Light Upgrade - 5000K 35watt Morimoto DSP Elite HID System - H11 This produced a substantial upgrade in the night-time driving experience! Client brought in her 2014 Jeep Grand Cherokee for a pretty cool project.
The Dealership told her she had HIDs and after some digging we were able to determine that she does not :) So she wanted HIDs everywhere, blacked out headlights and smoked taillights....from there, I started adding little bits and pieces to make this one unique. Here is what I did: Smoked Taillights Morimoto 35 watt Low beam and Fog light HID systems Blacked Out Internal Headlight Plasma XB LED Strip in open slot in headlight bezel Custom Tweaked and Spaced OEM Projector 3" FX-R Clear Lens Swap The Valeo projectors aren't known for having the best cutoff, but after some tweaking and spacing....with the 3" FXR lens, this baby looked great.....very sharp and focused cutoff. Then add the Morimoto HIDs and BAM....better than any OEM Jeep out there....and the 1st of it's kind for this year. The Plasma LED strip made these lights look SICK.....very menacing and futuristic. Now she can clearly see at night and with all the chrome and red gone...this vehicle is sure to turn some heads! A returning client brought his Dodge back in for more HIDs and a better intake.
For the intake, we did S & B Filter's Dodge intake kit, as they have one of the nicest looking and simple intake kits in the business. Definitely a noticeable improvement. I also added some matching 6k Morimoto HIDs to his fog lights...so now he's good to go at night....even moreso now than before. Client in Massachusetts sent me his OEM reflector headlights for some lights to finish off his ride.....so here is what I did:
Morimoto Mini H1 Bi-Xenon Projectors Morimoto H1 6000k HID Kit Orbit Projector Shroud Matte Black everything Yellow OEM Matched accented Orbit Shroud Client from Montana sent me down his 2013 Toyota Tacoma headlights to be upgraded to HID Bi-Xenon Projectors. On the menu were some TYC Headlights, 2.5" FX-R Bi-Xenon Projector with Clear Lens, Morimoto 5000k 50 watt HID Bulbs, Morimoto 50 watt DSP Ballasts, Apollo V2.0 Shrouds with Super Bright White XBled Halos and internals Matte Blacked out!
...and that's saying alot. Anyone that's every installed an HID kit on a Dodge 9 yrs or newer will know that 'One Does Not Simply Install an HID kit in a Dodge' (insert meme here).
With the Megladon Mopar harness that TheRetroFitSource sells, they make it soooo much easier than running to Radio Shack for the correct capacitors and resistors to make it work.... Amel brought his truck in for what will be the first of many lighting upgrades. This round is Morimoto 35watt 6000k HID Low/High beam. Next will be his fog lights, then light bar...and then Projector Upgrade!! Past client brought in his sweet Ford Escort that he's done some pretty crazy work on. One of which is why this retrofit is somewhat unique....he's converted the front end of his US Escort to that of an Australian Escort...so that means the headlights are a bit different. He had to pull a bunch of strings Down Under (take that how you will) to even get them to ship him these headlights.
As you can tell, the lenses are JUNK, but that doesn't matter, they are fluted and will be getting remade custom with clear lenses.....that's something I have yet to tackle, but I would like to look into it further possibly. So for now, these are done! 3" FX-R Bi-Xenon Projectors Clear Lens with 'Trax' Logo White Resting Demon Eye Paint Amber Accent Demon Eye Lighting Apollo v3.0 Shroud with custom modified panels to fit Satin Black Internal Paint Been working on this project for over 3 months......not continuously, but I had a split second to 'retro' the projectors on the car (while it was here getting some crap ballasts replaced) then fast forward 2 months and I'm finally ready to complete the project....this is what went in:
3" FX-R Projector with 'Trax' logo etched into the lenses Fake 2.5" Projector retrofitted in OEM turn signal spot Dual Apollo V2 Shrouds Dual Plasma Halos (Yukon Direct Fit kit) Morimoto 35ive D2S Ballasts Osram Xenarc Bulbs Switchback Bulb in OEM location (behind fake Projector) Custom Fiberglassed Turn Signal/Running LEDs in OEM Side location Matte Black Internal Paint I installed HIDs into this car back in March-ish this year, and after a few months my client was wanting better lights....what better way than upgrading to Projectors! He wanted to take it to a different level than a simple retro. He wanted to get rid of the 'ribs' that normally surround the Denali upgraded headlights, so we went with a regular Yukon aftermarket light to clean up some of the lines. With that out of the way, he wanted the 'dual' look of high-end cars, so we went with a fake projector up top. Normally with fake projectors, they are just that....fake, and there to look OEM....not perform. Well, this one was different. I did the normal mounting (just aesthetic....not aligning them to output)...and once installed on car and SUPER bright switchback bulb behind the lens, I noticed an issue.....this thing PUTS OUT LIGHT....normally it'd be just a good indicator light...but the Driving Lights output light, and by that, I mean throws light a hundred or more feet.....so that may be an issue down the road, as I've never ran into something like this...but the customer and I agreed that he'd run around with them like this for now and see if issue pop up...if so, we'll simply bypass the running light portion into the High Beam setting. Crazy cool that it does it, but not necessary in my mind. Moving on, my client wanted to do something with the boring side mini light....I suggested a cool switchback led pod of some sort and with the mention of fiberglass, he was hooked....so I fabricated a custom 'ribbed' mount and went from there. After everything was done, threw some matte black paint down and she was good to go. These turned out SICK and are among the coolest looking lights I've done so far. Buddy of mine brought in his Honda Accord Coupe to get some gnarly headlights done.....goal here (besides being different) was to do something I've never done before, but put some new products and new techniques to use.
Here is what we did: Clear Lens swap on OEM Projectors with 'Trax' etched in lens Blue Demon Eyes in projectors Morimoto 35ive 6000k HID kit for low beam High Beam LED Matrix conversion on custom pod Sequential turn-on for LEDs Switchback led strip in 360 degree case White for Running Lights Amber for Turn Signals Blacked out inner shroud Whited out exterior shroud and turn signal area Custom Hand-placed Paisley vinyl graphics with Clear Coat sealant These lights are pretty cool....maybe not for everyone, but they sum up what 'custom' headlights should look like....a bit of everything. This cars plan is to be at SEMA 2k14....so we have a LOT more planned: airbags, full system, and who knows what else.....stay tuned A customer brought in his 2003 Hyundai Tiburon for a lighting system upgrade.
They purchased new headlights (as the old ones were hazy and scratched beyond repair)....so they wanted to be able to see even better than OEM headlights were able to provide.......step in Morimoto 35ive kit. Install was simple and the effects of the kit were immediately noticeable. A buddy brought in his friend for some audio and visual upgrades to his 2013 Hyundai Sonata.
We went with the Pioneer Avic-Z150BH for DVD, CD, MP3, Bluetooth, Backup Camera, Navigation, Steering Wheel controls and HD Radio. Retained the OEM Steering wheel controls Installed a backup camera Then I added some Morimoto HIDs to his OEM Projector Headlights Hope this one will come back for some custom headlights down the road :) Friend of a friend brought in his Ford F-150 Harley Edition for a serious lighting overhaul.
New Spyder Projector Headlights with CCFL Halos and LED accent lights LED Turn Signal Bulbs Morimoto HID Kit RBP Black Grill Blue Back-lit Grill Accent Lights Blue Back-lit OEM Grill Accent Lights Smoked 3rd Brake Light Housing with LEDs 9 (that's right.....9) LED Halo Switches to control all the lighting as well as subwoofer system accent lights Interior LED Package Upgrade, Blue Interior Floor Areas Lit, BLUE (Parts Not Yet Installed) Custom LED Fog Light Cluster in OEM Spot Customer sent me some pics and a nice detailed feedback email today....it's always good to get quality feedback instead of 'thanks' or nothing at all.
These lights turned out great on the car and the customer is stoked! Customer dubbed project, "Beyond JDM" featured some pretty gnarly products...most of which I haven't used before now....so this was very exciting even for me.
Customer provided some JDM RSX headlight housings, I got the rest: Honda S2000 Low-Beam Projectors 'Black Series' Clear Lens Upgrade OSRAM Xenarc CBI D2S 4300k HID bulbs Gatling Gun Projector Shroud Retro was pretty straight forward....had to borrow a local car from a car enthusiast to ensure proper alignment of headlights; as customer is out-of-state. The Black Series Lens Upgrade was a must and provided an even better output on an industry standard for low-beam projectors. The OEM S2k projectors needed to be modified to fit the housing...and even after modifying the reflector as much as I have ever needed to, everything still barely fit. All-in-all this thing turned out pretty sweet....I think it'll fit the project perfectly! So this set of headlights is a LOOOOOOOONG time coming.
I've literally had these lights for over 2 years. Back in the day, a customer purchased these, used, from a guy in Florida. Well, the pics he showed my client weren't even CLOSE to what he got in the mail. Basically, these were smoked on the outside (which was horribly peeling) because the internal shroud was poorly made and had melted. That wasn't the only thing that was poorly done......everything else was. Now, I normally don't like to talk trash on my competitors; but I got started after watching this guy's videos on YouTube....and after learning my own way, I see how he was doing everything wrong. After opening them up, the cheap plastic that was used for 'custom' shrouds cannot withstand the heat an HID bulb puts off....it was basic ABS plastic. The said shroud was held on, but what I can only assume was a full tube of silicone PER EACH headlight bucket....so THAT was awesome to scrape off. Once exposed, I can see where the projector has been mangled from removal off the OEM car and modified (chewed by a beaver) to fit this reflector bucket. One projector even had a 'Fine Tuning Adjustment Screw' that was strategically placed/rammed into the side of the projector, from the rear, to 'move' it over a few inches......wtf? After all the adhesives were removed, I did some slight body work on them and painted the charred up remains of the reflector bowl Black.....this is all Promo work, as I offered to help this client out free of charge....so the bowl being completely chewed up didn't have a full days worth of body work available to clean it up....but the black hides alot. After everything was good to go, I was going to add some halo lighting behind the new Apollo Version 1 shroud, but the projector was an OEM style, and if I had placed anything else between the projectors and the shroud, it would have pushed it out JUST enough to hit the lens when it goes back on.....due to the fact that the original retrofitter was apparently afraid to cut the headlight up and sit the projector back further..... All in all, after everything is back together, these will be nice headlights once again.....after a good cut/buff, they'll look damn good. As for the guy that retro'd these originally......I'm glad you're no longer the 'top retrofitter' online....as I fear for the customers you did work with. Sometimes things happen that make me second guess doing alot of out of state, and out of country, installations....especially since I don't make my own products. I'm putting my business name on the line with other peoples' products. This case, was a very rare case, as you simply DO NOT see these products go bad. If you do a search for Burnt FX-R Projector, you'll have a hard time finding anything....after talking with my suppliers, it seems these were apart of a bad batch. They made it just a little over a year until the bowls started to burn and flake.
So, I am warrantying these with NEW FX-R (version 3.0s) and upgrading the CCFL halo lighting to the new XB Plasma LED lighting......a much needed upgrade. Everything went well, and as you can see in the last few pics, the customer will need a good cut/buff on the lenses once he gets them back! With all of the new products available, I felt as though I had to update my 3 year old headlights so I can show off options to customers......so, instead of Re-Retrofitting my Old headlights, I found a buyer (in Hawaii) who was looking for a set of lights. He didn't want them ALL black, so I told him I'd swap whatever he sent me (new headlights) so they would be AS chrome as possible.....I also re-retrofitted some NEW XB Led Halo's behind some new Gatling Gun chrome shrouds.
These were my first Chrome on Black on Chrome headlights and I'm kinda diggin' them....for OEM purposes....they look OEM-ish...but also aftermarket if you're a Solstice owner. A cool feature I found when doing this retrofit...with the New Clear plastic that's being used for shrouds (instead of white) and the light coats of Chrome they use on them....the XB LED halos are SO bright that they actually shine through EVERYTHING....you get the desired 'Iron Man' look with this....but you get an added cool feature of seeing the entire circle behind the shroud......pretty neat. Was given the opportunity to work on some pretty wicked headlights over the past few months....I say that because multiple delays on just about everything, including my own personal knee surgery....but we finally got them finished up and back over to the East Coast.
The owner had some pretty wild ideas with this one, but based on what he does for a living, these match his lifestyle....so I was more than happy to do these for him. These headlights have just about everything we offer on custom headlights....not everything, but pretty damned close: Bi-Xenon Projectors with 35 watt 6000k HID Bulbs and Ballasts from Morimoto E46 Extended Shroud (Painted Black) 100mm Plasma Morimoto XBLed Halo (White) Red Demon Eye Projector Lens Accenting Lighting White/Amber Switchback LED strips 'sewn' into OEM Shroud Shroud painted a custom 'TigerStyle' with Black and Red/Gold Paint I'll have more On-Car pics once they get wired up. Did the project a few months back, and since the customer lives up in Montana, it took a while to justify cleaning the truck for some good pictures...but they have finally arrived in my inbox!!
If you can remember, here is what was retrofitted: 3" FX-R Bi-Xenon Projectors 35 watt Osram Xenarc HID Bulbs 35 watt Denso Slim Ballasts Here are some final shots of the customer 'potting' his ballasts (so they are waterproof) as well as final installed pics of the headlights....turned our great! |
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