NOS2006

Instead of soldering them in place, is it possible to hot glue them? That's what I found on this guy's instructions page:

http://www.ledgauges.com/camaroinstructions.html

EDIT: Also, are the LEDs in the HVAC, switches, and door handles plug-and-play? Or is there wire stripping involved in that?

SS DNA

iTrader: (7)

I would not Hot Glue them for durability concerns....

Just solder them

evilbadz

iTrader: (1)

I've replaced alsmost every light in my car with LEDs, I think you can buy plug and play ones, but the ones I usually get which are 20k MCD white LEDs are just 3.2v / 20mA ones. Depending on the source voltage, which is mostly around 13-13.5 running, you will probably need to solder a resistor inline so the LED doesn't fry in about a 100 ms. It's not that hard usually, just takes some time.

NOS2006

Where do you find your LEDs? And what size resistors should I get for each light?

Disclaimer: Sorry, but I'm pretty new to this (being a 17 year old kid just starting to modify my car) and I'm just trying to learn how to correctly mod my car. I know the basics, like soldering wires together, splicing wires together, splitting wires, etc. I just don't know certain "electrician" terms, I guess you could call them. So, again, sorry for any incompetencies on my part.

evilbadz

iTrader: (1)

I get mine off eBay, other people choose other sites. The resistor you will need depends on the LED specs, but once you know the forward voltage and current you can use http://led.linear1.org/1led.wiz to figure out what resistor to use. That one only works for single LEDs but they have a link that will help if you are planning on using a few.

NOS2006

That's awesome. AND it's teaching me stuff at the same time. Sweet.

Someone said that you don't have to use resistors for behind your speedometer and the rest of you cluster. They said the LEDs are in a series, so they act as resistors to themselves. True or false?

evilbadz

iTrader: (1)

That depends entirely on what LEDs you use. They dont really act as resistors to themselves, it's just each one requires a certain voltage to work. If something requires 3 volts to work, and you have a 12 volt source, logically you can put 4 of them in series and have no leftover voltage to burn anything out.

NOS2006

Yep, true..

Tried doing my foglight switch today before work.. but how do you take out the orangeish film back there? I'm stuck!

marcus769

That web site kicks ***.. I love LEDs. I am going to go nuts with them.. I got more ideas from that site. That radio lighting looks very nice. I dont think i could put up with my stock radio though... I like the extra RMS power of the aftermarket radios. The HVAC lights are really nice too!

tylerdj

iTrader: (31)

I got my LED's from LS1_SS on the boards...great product. After I got the led's into the holders and tested them, I used a dot of hot glue to keep the led secure and from falling out. Just make sure you don't get it on any of the connections.

marcus769

Hot glue will work fine, just be careful of course.. LEDS can be bought at ALL Radio Shack stores. they are in drawers towards the back of the store. You can pull up the Voltage calcular on their computer right in the store. They can be bought in bulk on Ebay, but if you want them NOW, head out to Radio Shack. They average anywhere from $1-$3 each.. I got some red 5mm 20mA 3000mcds for $1.37. The resistors i used were 1/2 watters and they come in a pack of 5 for $0.99. Very cheap!