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My Xenon HID conversion

Vee_Que said:
BMW E30 have decent projectors, heck even EA-ED LWB Falcons use em, mazda 626's, the Honda accord euro projectors do a good job of blinding everyone on the road in front of you....
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US and rest of world E30 projectors are completely difference. But for once, I think the US projectors are superior for a number of reasons. They can also be found an E34 and E32 5 and 7 series.
My US E30 projectors with clear (unfluted) lens swap and 9005 bulbs.
3165340368_e651a50176.jpg


Rest of world E30 projector with with H1 bulb running at 19v (don't ask)
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The $40 hid kit.
http://www.ddmtuning.com/hidkihidbuhi.html
 
tjts1 said:
The $40 hid kit.
http://www.ddmtuning.com/hidkihidbuhi.html
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FWIW, I don't recommend doing business with ddmtuning. No offense intended to tjts1. They take a LONG time to answer email & their answers a vague at best. They don't seem to know specific details about their products.

I reccomend http://www.sharphid.com/ for HID related products. They answer email promptly, they know what it is they are selling & they know what they are talking about.
 
Question about molding lenses.

I finally have a lens removed from a junker (read, the aluminum is swiss cheese) but the glass lens is good. I am going to get a negative mold of the inside of the glass to use as a medium to mold the acrylic or lexan sheet.

Issue is that it needs to be tough enough to go through several 'trials' without damage. It also must withstand temperatures of about f 380? for at least 20 seconds.

Initially I was going to use plaster (too dusty, brittle) then cement (brittle, hard to work) then I was thinking using plastic body filler as a 'skin' then gradually additional layers of the stuff until it's a solid block. OR I can fill the cavity with 1" PVC pipe with end caps to add some rigidity.

My question is how thick can plastic filler/Bond-O be used? Would it be better to use plaster in the cavity instead?

When i say worked, I need to be able to smooth the surface & remove the flute marks from the plastic.

Anyone have ideas?
 
GrandmaSideways said:
DDM tuning makes a lot of the kits I see.
Sharp HID sells marked up DDM Tuning kits.
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Looks to me that DDM only sells BMW stuff.

I've tried doing business with DDM, took weeks to get a response from them & when I finally did, they couldn't answer any questions about the items they were selling.

I'm sorry, but I'd rather spend a little more & get answers than spend less & deal with clueless people.
 
Behold the mold!

Finally perfected a method of molding the lenses that doesn't shrink too much, isn't so brittle that it cracks in 2 & isn't so dusty that it contaminates the formed lenses. Getting the right combination of catalyst to resin helped as too much catalyst makes it brittle & not enough makes it not set completely.

Our friend, Bond-O. Plus some 1x3 wood. The secret is in the master lens preparation.

IMG_0881.jpg

backside with wooden support.

IMG_0882.jpg
still in the lens being formed.

IMG_0883.jpg
just removed. It's not perfect, but the shape & dimensions are there.

IMG_0884.jpg
Detail right corner...

IMG_0885.jpg
Detail left corner.

What's left is the smoothing of the front surface. I'll hand sand it smooth & then apply a skin coat of filler and then sand it with 600. Trim the edges & try a few test molds to see if it works.

If heat becomes an issue, I'll try either cooling the mold first or apply some heat resistant paint.

With this setup I can try to mold with varying thickness and grades of acrylic or lexan. I can even try to make a central ring to make the area ahead of the projectors accept MR-10 slugs to help prevent abrasion & UV damage.

At this point I don't know if I'll leave the flutes on the lens mold except for the central portion that is or go for the jewel look.
 
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Not sure. the 780 is on ramps at the moment as various projects got put off by rain. WHICH HASN'T STOPPED FOR ALMOST 2 WEEKS.

Anyone know if Bond-O can withstand 10-15 seconds of 380? f heat?
 
Ursan said:
Not sure. the 780 is on ramps at the moment as various projects got put off by rain. WHICH HASN'T STOPPED FOR ALMOST 2 WEEKS.

Anyone know if Bond-O can withstand 10-15 seconds of 380? f heat?
Click to expand...

I kind of want to say yes to that heat... Im trying to remember back when I exposed it to that kind of heat that it with stood it pretty well.
 
Texas240 said:
I kind of want to say yes to that heat... Im trying to remember back when I exposed it to that kind of heat that it with stood it pretty well.
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Good to know, but it needs to stay vary hard otherwise the optical quality will suck.

Maybe I should invest in some seriously hard high temp enamel.

Doesn't POR15 have some of that stuff?
 
Have you thought about using fiberglass? I'm sure there is some form of fg that can withstand high temps.
 
dont forget that if you wind up with an el cheapo oven off of craigslist you can always order a powder coating kit for it :oogle:
 
Sorry for the delays.

I'm still living out of my in-laws place & I won't have the opportunity to finish this until I have a place of my own.
 
UPDATE!

I am finally moved into my house. I'll start working on this project again in the comfort of my very own workshop. I'm slowly finding the various parts that I've purchased over the years. I'm still sitting on the fence whether I'm going to mold or de-flute the lenses.
 
UPDATE!

I am finally moved into my house. I'll start working on this project again in the comfort of my very own workshop. I'm slowly finding the various parts that I've purchased over the years. I'm still sitting on the fence whether I'm going to mold or de-flute the lenses.

Double post?

WHY?
 
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