Hey guys this was my meorial day project because I had nothing else to do. I read the other DIY on this and it seemed pretty confusing so I thought I would write a new one to try to help clarify how to do this. I am also aware that using the pre-made LED bulbs would be a lot easier but this is quite a bit cheaper and much more fun
What you will need:
-2 390ohm 1/2 watt resistors
-10 LED's (or more) these are the ones I used
http://www.unique-leds.com/index.php...roduct_id=1876
-Soldering Iron and Solder
-PCB from radio shack or where ever else they sell those. This is the one I used
http://www.radioshack.com/product/in...ductId=2103804
but it would be easier if it already has contacts on it like this one
http://www.radioshack.com/product/in...ductId=2103798
They also do not need to be that big because you only use a small part of them.
-Hot glue gun and glue
-Wrapping wire (optional): This can also be found at radio shack
http://www.radioshack.com/product/in...ductId=2062642
-Optional but recommended items:
-Black spray paint
-A digital multi-meter (DMM) they look like this
These can be found at walmart for about $10 or so I paid $40 for mine al lowes so go to walmart
-Breadboard: Very useful tool for testing circuits before soldering.
This can also be found at radio shack
http://www.radioshack.com/product/in...ductId=2882885
If you buy a breadboard you will also need jumpers/alligator clips and a power source. The jumpers and alligator clips can be found at radio shack as well just take a look around /ask someone or search the site. The power supply is a little more complicated but you can get creative. Any 12v source will work its just a matter of finding one. FYI I do this but do not recommend it (computer power supplies have 12v outputs so those work but I am going to leave out how for safety
. My newest method is pretty simple because I have r/c cars I used the battery pack thingy for the controller and its 12-14v depending on how fresh the batteries are so it works perfectly.
Now that the intro is done we will start actually doing some work here
Step 1 : Remove the dome light housing from the car.
Pretty easy to do just get a screwdriver up there and pry it out. The whole area in the ceiling doesnt come out just the area around the lights I made the mistake of trying to remove the whole thing from the headliner and then figured this out.
Step 2 : Remove covers from housing
Be careful they will break if you apply to much force!
For the center piece where it hangs over on the door/off end if you push upward there it will pop off.
This should be what you are looking at now minus the boards in mine lol.
Step 3 : Pull out the stock bulbs and bend the tabs down or cut them off whichever you prefer
This shows the bent tabs
Step 4 : Cut out the PCB so they fit nicely in the dome lights this will take some trimming and time to make it look good. KEEP IN MIND BOTH SIDES ARE DIFFERENT. Just wanted to make that clear so you don't just copy the first one and think it will fit in the other side. Scissors will work and wire cutters work too.
Step 5 : Before I soldered the leds on I sprayed the boards with a quick coat of black spraypaint so they dont look weird in the car. If you have a board with solder rings on it make sure to spray the other side lol.
Step 6 : You are now ready to start soldering on your LED's but first you need to do some calculations
1 Find the spec sheet for the LED's you are using mine is here
http://www.unique-leds.com/index.php...roduct_id=1876
2 Go to
http://ledcalc.com/ and click on single led (yes I am aware we are using more than one led) Enter the specs where they are required
For me:
Supply voltage: 14.5v (yes this is high but precautionary)
Volt Drop: 3.2 (middle of its range)
Desired current: 30mA (5mA below max)
If you are using my setup then it should have told you to use a 390ohm 1/2 watt resistor and that is what we will be using.
Step 7 : Look at the LED's and there will be a notch in one of the corners, if you hold the led so that notch is in the right top quarter of the led then the right side has the 2 negative leads and the left side has the two positive leads. Line all the leds up so the right is negative and the left is positive or vice-versa just remember which way you did it. The LED's are now on the board but not held in by anything so flip it over while holding the LED's on or tape them down and solder so all the positive leads touch and all the negative leads touch and form two straight lines on the underside of the board.
Each one of these rows should be connected in a straight line.
Step 8 : The resistor must be added and I chose to just put mine on the underside of the board this should be next to the positive line you made with the LED's this should be close but not too close .
Solder any part on one side of the resistor to the positive line you made and the other side to a wire so you can connect it to the holder piece. Solder another wire to the negative line. Repeat this for both sides if you already haven't done that. Done soldering on the PCB
Step 9 : Now that you are done with the soldering on the PCB coat the underside where all the connections are in hot glue like so
This will keep the components from shorting out on anything and make sure nothing comes undone.
Step 10 : There should be holes going to the other side of the plastic holder thingy so I put the wires through there and soldered them on the other side to connect to the power.
Step 11 : Reassemble the dome light housing. I used dabs of hot glue to hold in the PCBs and that seemed to work pretty well. Other than that pop it all back together and put it in the car and enjoy the result
I will take more pics when it gets dark
Let me know what you think!
DIY: LED Dome Lights
I did the same, it was going to be too much trouble to try anything else, so I forced them in a bit. They're slightly crooked, but they're equally crooked and fit, plus they're bright as crap. I like them
