mytrplseven

First I'd like to thank all of those who offered opinions, observations or encouragemnet on my LED gauge lighting project. While I am still exploring alternative approaches to light output attenuation other than the "painters tape" that I used as a test item, I am offering the following pictorial of the procedures
used to date. I hope this will answer any questions any may have about the process. Enjoy the show

snb13

To dim the lights more, instead of using painter's tape, you could try lighting gel. It's available from most theatrical supply houses in varying colors. A deep, saturated blue may be just the ticket. It can be doubled up if needed.

mytrplseven

I decided that since I like the light level that I would encase the painters blue tape in epoxy resin. I masked off the LED strip and used a small paint brush and filled it in. It came out great and at this point, for me, time to move on to putting the rest of the car together. I'm sure that when others decide to take on this project, they'll experiment with other ideas and that's fine. Thanks for your suggestion.

Wrayp

I really like the results from this mod. When it comes time for me to pull my cluster out I will have to give this a try.

It should be possible to use PWM (Pulse Width Modulation) to dim the lights electronically. Ideally, you could control this using the voltage from the dimmer switch. Then simply dial the dimmer to the desired brightness level. I'll have to check next time I drive my car, anyone know off hand if the dimmer controls any lights besides the gauge cluster?

mytrplseven

All the panel lights are on the same dimmer circuit like any other car. After finding the light level being perfect with the painters blue tape, I decided to just mask and paint epoxy onto the tape and keep it. After installing the gauge cluster in the panel, the original lights, although dim, add a little brightness and definition, if needed, but I really like the results.

william_b_noble

aaah, guys? why are you diming the LEDs that way? just use a 555 in a standard
PWM circuit like the application note shows, and use a NPN transistor to give it a bit more power handling capacity - about 30 cents worth of parts and you will have adjustable brightness and no excess heat.