Projector Conversion
 

The projectors were something I had wanted to do for quite a while now.....I wanted HID's, without blinding every on coming car.

I also want to thank Todd at Retro Solutions for hooking me up with the projector kit.

I first started by dropping the bumper down do give me a bit of wiggle room. Next up I baked the headlights and separated the lens from the housing.

http://i619.photobucket.com/albums/t.../Photo0265.jpg

Pull the reflector deal out by prying the little tangs up and slide it out, save this for later as it will be used to cover the small hole.

http://i619.photobucket.com/albums/t.../Photo0266.jpg

I used a GM lug nut cap with a hold drilled in the center, to center my hole saw......it fit perfect.

http://i619.photobucket.com/albums/t.../Photo0267.jpg

http://i619.photobucket.com/albums/t.../Photo0268.jpg

I gave the hole saw a few turns by hand to get it started and make sure it was not going to jump around.

http://i619.photobucket.com/albums/t.../Photo0269.jpg

After the hold was drilled I took a hand file to clean it up and get the projector to a "pressed fit".

http://i619.photobucket.com/albums/t.../Photo0270.jpg

http://i619.photobucket.com/albums/t.../Photo0271.jpg

Next I took the projector lens and held it up to the back of the housing and made some reference marks.

http://i619.photobucket.com/albums/t.../Photo0272.jpg

I cut it out using a "hot knife" attachment for my soldering iron.

http://i619.photobucket.com/albums/t.../Photo0273.jpg

After it was cut I cleaned it up with a angle grinder.

http://i619.photobucket.com/albums/t.../Photo0274.jpg

The opening behind the headlight needed to be opened up a bit to fit the projectors in.

http://i619.photobucket.com/albums/t.../Photo0275.jpg

http://i619.photobucket.com/albums/t.../Photo0276.jpg

After everything fit I mounted the headlights for a test run.

http://i619.photobucket.com/albums/t.../Photo0277.jpg

http://i619.photobucket.com/albums/t.../Photo0278.jpg

After I wired everything in I checked beam alignment and everything seemed perfect so I pulled the lights back out to finish them up.

I ended up running a bead of Jb around the projector lens just in case.

http://i619.photobucket.com/albums/t.../Photo0280.jpg

I then took the housings and smeared all the original sealant back into the groove using a heat gun and a pocket screwdriver.

http://i619.photobucket.com/albums/t.../Photo0281.jpg

After I removed original reflector thingy it left a small hole in the lens, so I cut it up a bit to fill in the hole.

http://i619.photobucket.com/albums/t...hoto0279-1.jpg

http://i619.photobucket.com/albums/t.../Photo0282.jpg

http://i619.photobucket.com/albums/t.../Photo0283.jpg

After everything was re-assembled they went back in the oven to re-seal the two half's.

http://i619.photobucket.com/albums/t.../Photo0285.jpg

It was time to finally complete them by installing the lights and finish sealing everything up. This is the only part I could not find a real clean solution for, but thing it will work fine.

I used some of this "dum dum" stuff to seal the projectors to the housing.

http://i619.photobucket.com/albums/t.../Photo0286.jpg

It works into the gaps easily, but for those who have not played with it before....be sure to wet your fingertips first.....its some sticky sh!t.

Here is what it looked like before they went back in.

http://i619.photobucket.com/albums/t.../Photo0287.jpg

Everything back together.

http://i619.photobucket.com/albums/t.../Photo0288.jpg

This is the beam "pattern" before I took it down the road for the first time.

http://i619.photobucket.com/albums/t.../Photo0289.jpg

Its hard to tell from the picture, but the design of the beam cutoff left a dark spot it the center of the road. I adjusted the passenger side light up a bit to fill that void, and this is what I ended up with.

http://i619.photobucket.com/albums/t.../Photo0290.jpg

Overall I am very impressed with the results. I drove around for awhile afterwords and was surprised with the amount/ quality of the light they produced. The best part is.......I was not flashed - even once by oncoming traffic.

In the beginning I had planned on color matching the fascia piece, but after thinking it over awhile it seem a bit to over the top for my tastes. Same goes for the halo rings and LED back light thingy included with the kit, a bit too much rice for me ...so I chose not to use them.

If anyone else attempts this there is a few things I learned.

First off, try not to touch the headlight reflector with your fingers - it leaves a mark and scratches VERY easily. I used the softest towel I could find and it still left very fine scratches.

Secondly, be extremely careful with the retainers that hold the reflector into the housing.... they are very weak and break easily. Nothing that Super Glue cannot fix - but its still time wasted.

Nicely done....good job!:thumbs up yellow:

Man those look good Dave. I chuckled thinking about if I was trying to do that how many pieces the reflecters would have made when I got frustrated & started smashing things with a hammer...lol

Thanks guys!

Hammer probably would not be the best tool for the job.....lol.

Dang Dave,

Just when I thought there wasn't anything more you can do to your truck, you go and do something like this....







and totally redeem yourself!

Looks great!:thumbs up yellow: