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How To: 07/08 Gauge Color Change

68K views 136 replies 48 participants last post by  drizzy 
#1 · (Edited)
I decided to finally go ahead and change my gauge backlight color after seeing xxdevilzeroxx's bike, as well as the several other ones posted in the "Changing you backlight color in your gauges" thread.

First off, I want to point you to that thread, which has tons of valuable information. Click Here

Second, This mod requires knowing how to solder. I learned by googling "how to solder." Specifically, I found this page to be extremely helpful, especially with the technique used to solder PLCC LEDs. Click Here

Tools Needed:
Sockets, Screwdriver, Allens keys, Soldering iron (mine was 25 watts), Rosin-Core solder (I used .032 diameter), Tweezers, Needle Nose pliers, 2 spoons, and most importantly PATIENCE

LEDs Needed:
AT LEAST 10 Surface Mount LEDs (4 for the tach, 6 for the odo., speedo, etc.), 3.5mm x 2.8mm Refer to the other thread for more info about the LEDs. I got mine from eBay. 20 LEDs for about $10 shipped.

Time:
15 minutes to get the gauges out, 10 to take it apart, about an hour to solder, 20 minutes to put it all back, and at least 15 minutes to admire your work. Total = 2 hours, less if you know how to solder.

PLEASE BE CAREFUL. I am not responsible for any damage you may cause. TAKE YOUR TIME. Go slow and be careful not to burn yourself or the board.

Now on to the good stuff...

1. Remove the windscreen and pull back the rubber boot circled in green



2. Remove the 3 bolts circled in the picture (I believe they're 10mm)



3. Remove the 2 nuts that hold your mirrors and the bolt circled on each side to remove the fairing bracket



4. Remove the gauge cluster and the 3 Phillips screws that hold the cluster to the bracket



5. Remove the 9 screws circled



6. Remove the 5 screws circled (4 black, 1 silver)



7. Use 2 spoons to remove the needle. Be careful not to break anything. A LITTLE force will pull it off



8. These next 2 pictures show all of the LEDs that you will be replacing. The first 4 are easy. The other 6 are not. I just pried the LCD screen back far enough so that a AAA battery would hold it up away from the board. Again, BE CAREFUL.





9. Now follow the instructions in the 2nd link I posted above. Remove the old LEDs and solder in the new ones. I did mine one at a time. Note that the LEDs are directional. Each one has a small indentation on one corner that shows the cathode (shown as K on the circuit board) side. That should remove any guesswork involved with placement.

Again, Take your time. Be careful not to burn the board or any plastic attached to the board, especially when working underneath the LCD screen. It is a very tight fit.

10. Now it's time to test it out. I just put the tach screen back on and hooked it up to the bike. Turn the key and see this



11. If every LED lights your good to go. Just put everything back together and get it back on the bike to enjoy YOUR custom gauges.

NOTE: It is very important to get the needle back to the correct position. To do so, the needle must rest at "0" but not be able to go any further past "0." In other words, play around with positioning the needle until the point when it sits at "0" when you push it all the way to the right. When you plug it back in it should do a full sweep and stop back at "0." Hope that makes sense.

If one or more of the LEDs don't light up then you probably have it set wrong. Just turn it around and resolder it. Then test it again. If it still doesn't work then post up with your problem.

Final Product:






Thanks to xxdevilzeroxx for his advice, as well to all others that have performed this mod.


Now, DO IT, and enjoy. :D
 
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#37 ·
I see that, i also want red and they are listed as SMT not SMD ....are they the same?
Yep they're the same thing. Both stand for surface mount leds. Just be sure the size you order is 3.5mm x 2.8mm.

ok im about to checkout on eled website the green i ordered is in stock but the white says 0 in stock. should i order anyway and hope they restock or backordered? i call and just get a machine.
I don't know what to tell you. I'd personally leave a message and send an email until I got a response. I'm sure they have some or they could get some, but I would wait until I knew for sure. Otherwise try another site.

Here are some others...

Unique-leds.com

DigiKey

Red on eBay

Green on eBay

Just do an eBay search for "plcc-2" Make sure they are 3.5 x 2.8. Also watch the mcd, some are saying 2000 plus, which is probably too bright.
 
#31 ·
ok im about to checkout on eled website the green i ordered is in stock but the white says 0 in stock. should i order anyway and hope they restock or backordered? i call and just get a machine.
 
#33 ·
#39 ·
i just went ahead with the order. i ordered enough green to do the whole thing green in case the white is backordered. ill see what they email me once its processed.
 
#42 ·
i just got an email saying order shipped tracking number and all but the site still has 0 quantity listed white. maybe they just havent updated it i guessill be surprised.
 
#44 ·
yup i been soldering since rc car days as a kid so it should be an easy cheap cool mod for me
 
#51 ·
Look at the second link I posted in my first post. Its very detailed. Short answer yes, just do it quickly.

yeah thats how I would get them off. just got mine ordered up from oznium cant wait to do this mod thanks again for this how to guys!
No problem. Post your pics in here when you're done!

so is everyone going with all white or what? im getting 10 white and 10 green. i wanna do the speedo green to represent kawi since my bike is all black.

so anyone else doing colors?
I might end up switching for a red tach. I still like the white lcd screen though.

Hey, this sounds like a good project. How much is the whole gauge cluster in case I mess it up? lol
LOL, there's one for $250 on eBay now. I wouldn't worry about it though. Just take your time and be careful and you'll end up with a great looking custom gauge cluster.
 
#46 ·
yeah thats how I would get them off. just got mine ordered up from oznium cant wait to do this mod thanks again for this how to guys!
 
#47 ·
so is everyone going with all white or what? im getting 10 white and 10 green. i wanna do the speedo green to represent kawi since my bike is all black.

so anyone else doing colors?
 
#48 ·
I like the idea on the green but is it realy going to be a kawi type green? or do you just want two colors. I was also thinking on a different color on the speedo but was a little nervous the light would bleed over to the other side ya know what im saying
 
#50 ·
if you look at the old link he refers to in the beginning of the post, and look through some of them, youll see the green looks nice and kawi lookin.
 
#53 · (Edited)
Thanks for the great directions tycar just got mine done and they look sweet!
 
#59 · (Edited)
trying to but it wont let me attach the file for some reason might be me though? I'll keep trying
 
#58 ·
according to my tracking number mine come tommorrow
 
#61 ·
After seeing this i might have to try this out. it doesnt look as hard as i would have thought. but i think it would take me a little longer. just to solder i'd be extra careful to not screw up something otherwise i'd be pissed off if i did. lol i think we all would. A friend of mine just bought the new zx10r 2008 and i was really impressed. the pictures just dont show for it at all. i just dont like the front. But the tach, odo.... is white. I think it looks awsome. I really hate the color on our's
 
#62 ·
ok think I got it pheww!! by the way it only took about an hour

 
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