Mod aftermarket switch to be darker like oem

Nabbed the extra led I need. Some evening this week I'll solder it to the board and take some pics. I'm noticing that my compressor switch has trouble illuminating the full width of the lettering. I think it might be blocked by the plastic of the switch cover because the lettering extends beyond the cavity where the led can backlight it. "Aiming" the led doesnt seem to help, neither does making it brighter. The switch cover has various channels on the back that surround each led to limit the area each one can illuminate. I'd suggest when ordering custom switches from CH4x4 that you keep any words short, "air compressor" seems too long. I'll see if I can do some dremel work to improve it as I did with the seat heater switches but since many prefer to avoid such nonsense it would be better for them to order accordingly.

 

So are the two resistors different ohms? 1k and 3k? I read both values on your thread, also, did you replace both with 10k, or did you use different values for each of them? Is the 3mm LED just 12v? No other ratings? Thanks!

 

You can make them the same resistance or different depending on whether you want the "on" indicator brighter or not. Both leds are grounded the same in the pcb whether that's to chassis ground or dimmer ground in your wiring so if you connect the ground wire in the switch to dimmer ground both leds will dim with the dash lights. If you just ground to the chassis then they'll be brighter to begin with and won't be dimable. The switches I bought on Amazon came with both at 1K while the switch from ch4x4 had both at 3k. Leds are typically 2-3v not 12V but the resistor both limits the current and drops most of the voltage so the leds won't poof which is what happens when an led sees 12v without a high enough value resistor. Since the current is very low the resistor wattage can be low as well. A 1/4Watt axial lead resistor is what physical size is used and the correct wattage as well. I'm trying them with 10k resistors on both leds but some switches appear dimmer or brighter due to the icon or print size etched into the black paint that covers the white plastic the switch cover is made of. When I'm done I can show them altogether along with the resistor values used in each. I seriously doubt any will still be sporting a 1k behind either led. I haven't been able to get a voltage reading on dimmer ground so I'm not sure exactly what the voltage difference is which means until I actually connect one to the dash lights I wont be certain but everything I've seen points to upping the resistance to bring these switches in line with the rest of the dash. The process of changing them is really the meat of the issue so that you know the steps to take to do it.

 

When you talk about dimming them, are you saying you're wiring into the same dimmer switch that controls the rest of the guages on the HUD?

 

Yes, on my 2014 the wires are green and green/white. You can tap them anywhere you find them, either at the dimmer itself, the switches left of the console, or the smaller black plug that connects to the AC controls(this is the one I'm using for all my center console switches). This information is from the flyeyze installation guide though they only mention the AC harness, I've verified the wire placement in the other two locations.

 

did you locate which wires you used for your overhead switches?

 

Tapped the dimmer circuit from the smaller AC control plug (12V - solid green, variable 12V dimmer ground - green/white). Works pretty good. But I missed swapping one of the "on" leds and its resistor. Fortunately it's a switch in the cubby panel so I won't need to dismantle the dash again.

 

Well I swapped my Dark Blue CH4x4 Green LED Circuit Boardsu for some NEW Blue AOB Green LED Circuit Boards Today!



I have to say I’m a HUGE fan! I have two more that I plan on attempting to switch out the actual LEDs from one to the other. I’m not going to be able to switch the circuit boards in those bc one switch is momentary and the other is on-off. However, I was glad to get these done though and see how they turned out. I highly recommend doing this. It’s a nice touch

 

Looks perfect. Any details on resistors and bulbs? Are these pre-made boards or did you make these?

 

I just purchased the AOB Switches and swapped out the insides of them and the insides of the CH4X4 switches. I kept it simple.

 

Oh, I see.

 

I’ve had my CH4x4 switches for like 2 or 3 years so I just figured I’d try to see if I could switch out the color. I didn’t care for any of the AOB switches for what I needed in those spots and it worked. They had the Rock Lights, which I did get and almost used. I also purchased the Bed Lights one but it’s kinda weird having an actual Bed but I did get it just in case I want to use it later. We will see later on

 

Those turned out good. I'll have to maybe look in to it.

 

Man, it'd be great to find a supplier of a nice LED + resistor value that matches OEM, to solder onto any switch.

 

Isnt it easier to just buy switches that dont suck.

 

AirOnBoard, the only provider I know that sells "OEM Light Blue" switches, doesn't make Toyota tall-style switches in the OEM light blue style. I'd rather mod a switch with $2 in parts, than buy two switches and bastardize them.

And I have an AirOnBoard OEM style switch in the small style, and the board are not the same size.