I'd like to make my gauges glow blue instead of orange. I hate the orange.

Has anyone successfully completed this on an R56? I caught a thread in a search with a bunch of pics of R53s that had done the mod.

Thanks

 

There is a thread of a British comapny that does it but, I don't think they do it anymore.

 

Are there actually orange LED behind the dash or is it just a matter of switching out the gel colors?

 

This is a great thread. I have wanted to do the same thing. Not terribly fond of the orange gauges.

 

There is/was a company overseas that did it. You need to change out all the discrete LEDs behind the gauges for ones of a different color, as well as alter the diffuser lens behind the Graphical display (as it is tinted orange). It can be done for sure, just not trivial.

 

I remember reading about that company overseas everyone is talking about, they needed the your car for a couple hours to change out all the lights. They said that you couldn't just change out the gauges for new ones because of the ECU or something along those lines.

 

Just curious...

Would blue show up in the daytime?

 

It does seem like if we can change our ambient lighting that they would've/could've set it up for us to change the gauge lighting as well. My ambient is always set on orange merely because the gauges HAVE to be orange.

 

My dad had a VW that used blue and you could see it in the day time, my sister had a Honda Civic that had blue and you could see that too; so I would assume that you would be able to see the blue.

 

orange is better for those with vision contrast issues, esp at night. I drove a rental Vdub Crappa recently and I had difficulty reading the purplish-blue gauges at night.

 

Red and orangge do now mess you your night vision. All the guages in aircraft are red, or at least they use to be, for that reason.

Jim

 

I recall a ton of green cockpit lights on military A/C. Mostly cargo (C-5,141, &130s). Orange in F-15s.

 

I don't question that at all. Back when I bent wrenches on Army A/C they were red and later with the airlines they were red too. Perhaps green is also night vision friendly. I kind of like the orange, but maybe it is only because it brings back fond memories as welll as helping me see better at night.

Jim

 

Probably cost... as most monochrome CRTs were green and green electroluminescence is more common. Probably slightly more visible in the daytime. Green is fine at night too. Way better than white or blue, but not quite as good as red. Actually, I refuse to buy laptops that have white/blue indicators that can't be turned off--it's incredibly aggravating at night.

White/blue force our eyes to use cones and gain down rod response, reducing night vision. Using red light ensures we only use rods for vision, which have much better sensitivity.

That said... white does look pretty. :D

 

A few things here, Blue is very easy to see during the day in my car granted it is an R53. I am also sure the same guy who changed my LED's can do yours if you send him what you want done.

As far as Aircraft cockpit lights, they come in all Colors and almost are always turned down at night. Boeing 727's are Mostly Green and White,MD10 and MD11 are Green on the FMC and Blue & Red on the TV Tubes. Airbus A 300 and A 310 are a complete other story and I wont even get into it but I will say the Computer has a French Accent that makes most of us sick when on Final approach as it calls in altitude and Wind Sheer.

 

AH HA a pilot! I've been dying to ask you a question about the runway numbering....I can't seem to find any logic or rhyme to the numbering... watching the numbers/letters roll past as we taxi after landing and before take off...whats the convention? Also, when taxiing, do the engines "push" the aircraft or are the wheels geared to the engine somehow (i can't see this being the case given the sudden rpms the wheels must experience during touch down)?
Why in the older planes, do I smell hydrolic fluid during taxi/takeoff?

Is it easy to "drive" the plane when you taxi?

Thanks!

 

The numbering on the runway itself is the magentic heading or runway orientation.(so if the runway pointed directly eastwest it would be numbered 27/09) The numbers and letters on the little signs are much like street signs and indicate which taxiway you are on or about to cross..

The gearing required to turn the wheels would be a mess and very very heavy. The engines push/pull the aircraft by moving the air. It takes a bit of practice, but taxiing an airplane is fairly straightforward.. Larger jets usually use a tiller wheel.. however some still rely on the rudder pedals and brakes.

As far as the older aircraft.. there may be some small leaks somewhere that are allowing tiny tiny amounts into the environmental systems.

Cheers!

 

I know its a old thread but i just did my needles in red, however it wont show up very well in pictures cause i am a poor photographer

 

http://www.essentialmini.co.uk/

 

They dont do them anymore.
I will if someone needs me to but i doubt anyone will want that done.

 

If I'm not mistaken, they have to occasionally change these numbers due to variations in magnetic north every X amount of years. Can't remember the time frame but I do remember reading about some airports having to adjust it a few years back.

 

As for the lights in your gauges, they are Surface Mount Technology LEDs or SMT LEDs. Very tiny and not really smart to mess with if you have no experience with them unless you like the cost of new gauges to try on your own.

Previous thread:
https://www.northamericanmotoring.co...d.php?t=183554

People who do it:
http://www.oznium.com/plcc-2

 

I know they are Plcc-2
and they are a huge pain to deal with but i think the result is worth it.

 

From what I've seen, they look great when completed. Also, the needle is orange and needs to be painted

 

yeah the needle is orange, i used nail polish remover to clean the orange paint off the back
then red model paint to paint the needle red.
but without changing the root Led they would still light up orange at night.