7x6 Mini H1 7.0 retrofit (EASY: no cutting/jbweld)

**However, a dremel IS needed, just no cutting or jb weld required.**

Notes before we begin:
This is pretty much a guide for the 95-97 owners that would like to diy retrofit with the 7x6 housings.

This will cover ONLY the method to installing the projectors into the housings and NOT anything electrical other than the routing of the solenoid wire through the housing.

I understand a lot of people have had to resort to major hacking/cutting of the 7x6 to get them to fit, so I was excited when I discovered this easy method. I am by no means a master retrofitter. But I thought this was a VERY easy retrofit that anyone can do granted they have access or willingness to buy the tools needed to do it. And I thought this method came out very nice and wanted to share for those anxious about getting their hands dirty with a diy.. I give major props to the members here that offer services and by no means want to deter people from considering a professionally built set, especially with the more advanced installs that do require major hacking/accessories/aesthetics. This doesn't have All the bells and whistles as some do. Such as painted housings or halos. But could be done. Its simply an addition to the process... This is for a quick and easy retrofit with projectors only. Or at least a guide to get you started for you newbs out there As far as the hid kit and other misc wiring, please search the forums or Google it as there's lots of info out there already covered on that.

*Also, with respect to other retrofitting vendors here as well as simply no interest myself in taking on any projects, I will not be building any upon request. This set was built for my brothers 93 dodge but also applies to the 95-97 tacos, and turned out to be such an easy and well built set I just had to share here. Please reach out to those vendors here, or otherwise, if you would like a set built for you*

Materials used:

Mini H1 7.0 projector kit $270($282 w/butyl)

Pilot Performance Lighting WI-HL5A H4 Conversion 6054 Head Lamp, D.O.T/SAE, Color Box

Pilot Housings $38.23
x2 1/2inch shallow flange (pipe flange, like from your shower knob) $2.50/ea
Butyl Rubber (add-on with retro kit. Note Pilots uses grey)
Dremel $47
Heat gun $25

$9 Allstar Performance ALL76282 Gray 16-14 Gauge Weather Pack Seal, (Set of 10)

weather pack seal (grommet for solenoid wires. Can also be added to projector kit via purchasing an extra 9006 Male connector for $5 here)
Drill (4.5mm drill bit, MAYBE one size bigger)
Electrical tape
NOS Energy Drink (optional)

*I already had most of the materials on hand except the pipe flanges, and housings of course*

Cost all depends on what you'll need. If you have the tools needed then it'll be fairly cheap. About $330 plus whatever for shipping on the housings and projectors...

If you're extremely new to retrofitting and haven't a clue, here's a few more tips..
The Dremel can be used as a drill for the solenoid wire hole if you don't have a drill. Your home oven can be used to split/reseal the housings. But I suggest purchasing a heat gun. Its a cheap investment at $25. And can be used for many other things, including restoring faded plastics like flares and valence. I cannot comment on oven temps/times for these housings. But if I had to guess, 250° for a few minutes, like 5, should do it. But take that with a grain of salt. Please Google that to make sure. The lenses are very easy to take off though. Also a wide flathead screwdriver, or wide gasket scraper, is ideal to wedge between the lens and housing to split. I used a very small prybar on these because it was what was next to me. But a regular ol flathead screwdriver will work just fine. Hell even a butter knife would work.


This was a pretty easy install. It took me a few hours, but I was being very meticulous and took my time. I perused throughout ace hardware trying to find something that would fit (besides a pvc cap that didn't work out so well the last 7x6 retro we did) onto the back of the pilot housings that would work better and possibly not even require cutting and jb welding the projector directly to the reflector by cutting. That was a last resort option because we wanted to retain the ability to adjust the projector on the truck, as well as disassemble without having to break/cut the projector back out, if the need ever arose.

Have not installed them yet so can't comment on the longevity of this method. But I'm extremely confident they will perform great. Jb weld could certainly be used on the caps(flanges) but really isnt necessary. I even bought some as I planned on using it. But the way the projectors mount in, it actually presses tightly against the reflector, which in turn tightens the cap/flange on the back onto the housing. I ended up just using a combination of butyl and electrical tape to seal them up.



[INSTALL]
First I found these metal pipe flanges, and decided to give them a shot.
There was two different kinds, one a bit deeper than the other. The deeper one, part #40359 in the red box, is the one that was needed as the other was too shallow.



Turns out, the flanges fit PERFECTLY!!
Deep flange vvv

vs shallow flange vvv





Question is, were the projectors gonna fit. I was awaiting the arrival of the 7.0's in the mail, but I did have a set of 6.0's on hand that I used to test fit. They really didn't work and would not fit but mostly due to the design of the stepped reflector bowl on the 6.0. So I was really hoping the 7.0 would be just enough to make it fit (as the stepped bowl was not implemented into the 7.0). Sure enough, when I finally got my hands on the new 7.0's, that extra bit of room worked perfectly!



First I separated the lenses. Heat gun slowly about 3 times around is all it took, and they peeled off.



Next step is to dremel out the h4 retainer plastics.
Edit: I'm now thinking it may be possible to just cut the h4 plastic retainer out with a razor/box cutter. If you wanted to save even more money by not buying a Dremel. Probly be a good idea to hear it slightly with the heat gun and itd Probly cut pretty easily. Would take longer though.




Then I drilled a small hole for the solenoid wires to go through. Used a 4.5mm bit.



Used a weather pack seal as a grommet for the wires. Was a very very tight fit, but finally got the seal in. I inserted it from the inside of housing, out. Then fed the wires through, also a very tight fit. Had to take the wires out of the connector to feed them through. Now these grommets don't necessarily need to be used. There's other methods. I already had a ton of these with my Delphi weather pack connector kit. Theretrofitsource does use these But does not offer them for sale alone. I suppose if you call them they could probably include some extras for you for a small fee. Otherwise, for $5.00, you could include an additional 9006 Male connector (or female, or any connector for that matter that uses them) found here and you'll get two seals which is all you need. As long as you don't bugger them up trying to get them in. This was honestly the hardest part. Dremeling is Probly second hardest, can be precarious that... But these seals were a pita to squeeze in. Probably could've made the hole bigger. But I like it tight... Heh.






Here they are from the back, with the projectors in and nut hand tightened. Also to note, I used only the large silicone washer on the shaft of the projector, and nothing else of the install hardware that came with the projectors. I'm not sure the silicone washer even contacts the metal flange, but used it anyways.





Now, these projectors are still very close to not fitting. The lens actually touches the projector lens. And even puts a LITTLE pressure on the lens. But it wasn't enough to deter me. I had hoped that they would seal up and remain like that, but there ended up being a very slight gap between the lens and housing around the edge. I used a thick (probly too thick) bead of butyl around the housing. Then heat it up VERY slightly with the heat gun (did not want the glue too soft), laid the lens down, and slowly squeezed it on by hand. I did not use clamps, because I was afraid after releasing the clamps, the lens would loosen and pop out ever so slightly. So i just squeezed with a little pressure by hand, and held it there for about five minutes or so. As I suspected, the lens still would not sit flush, but was not enough to worry about as it was penetrating the glue all around. another thing that will help, is the fact the headlight trim bezel/ring used to hold the headlight in to the truck will help keep positive pressure on it so there's no chance of it falling off or coming loose.

However I did go an extra step and decided to run an extra tiny bead all around the gap. It would've been better to lay the first bead of butyl over and out the edge a bit. Then you could just squeeze the remaining that spooged out, into the gap... So after the thin layer of extra butyl added in the gap, I ran a strip of electrical tape (heated very slightly after applied) to help hide and seal it better even further, as well as not being exposed and tacky, sticking to anything it touches.




Then came the task of making sure the cap was sealed. Just used a bead of butyl around the edge, as well as electrical tape. Put some heat on it as well to help it adhere better.








Last but not least, I utilized the rubber grommet that came with the housings and trimmed it up a bit to fit on the back.


Turned inside out vvv


trimmed off that flange to make it flush vvv


Grommet flipped back and fitted on shaft vvv



Here it is with the bulb retainer resting on top. The bulb retainer can then be installed, screwing each screw in slowly, a little bit each screw, until the retainer is fully tightened down. It's not super tight so the retainer screw clips arent going to bend. Just enough to hold the rubber grommet tightly in and create a seal around the shaft.



Here I used more electrical tape and "loosely" applied a strip around the grommet where it meets the butyl seal I created.



Again I put one strip of electrical tape "loosely" on, so that the nut can be tightened down at any time by simply removing the strip of tape and inverting the grommet allowing access to the nut. I hand tightened the nut multiple times throughout install and it did in fact tighten down one or two more threads total. I do not think tightening it any further will be needed. This will still be tight enough to retain function, but still loose enough to be able to be rotated for fine tune adjustment of the cutoff.

 

Awww it's a 1st gen trick..

Looks good though.

 

I cut the living fuck outa mine ahaha. Then again i wanted the shrouds to sit flush with the housing. Yours look close enough though!

 

That's a mighty fine job sir!

 

Excellent job !,

 

These lights are On sale Black Friday special, they were 306.00 with the added items
On sale for 229.00 for the complete stage III kit
But could not find those buckets anymore?

Any ideas where to get them so I know they are deep enough?

 

ordered some matchbox projectors and rgb halos for my sportsman 850

 

@1997tacomav6
https://www.summitracing.com/parts/...MIvNTjlL-Q5gIVUh6tBh3P_gqUEAUYASABEgIWSPD_BwE

However everyone else seems to be out of stock on the pilots. So they may have been discontinued and wouldn't be surprised if you ended up with a hiccup in your order of the summit ones. I couldn't even find them on eBay.. So Idk, you might try your luck with other brands that can be shipped quickly. Summit says estimated ship date is 12/16.

Edit: yep, upon further research, looks like people have had issues ordering these when they are 'currently unavailable' from other sources. So I would look elsewhere. I mean, I did do those 3 years ago so I'm not surprised. Sorry mang. Good luck tho.

 

Thanks.
I found them on the pilot website.

BUT NO LONGER AVAILABLE
THEY STOPPED MAKING THESES.

I Sent them an email, so should find out soon.

Summit is out of them too

http://www.pilotautomotive.com/lighting/WI-HL5A.html

 

Amazon has them as well

Pilot WI-HL6A 4656 Head Lamp Conversion Kit

https://www.amazon.com/Pilot-WI-HL6...refinements=p_89:Pilot&rnid=2528832011&sr=8-1

 

Good find. Thanks! These are the ones I used on my last convert.

 

Those are 6x4 tho, not 7x6

I just talked to the company and they no longer make the 7x6 for our truck any more
WI-HL5A

 

Shoot, didn't notice that. Yup wrong size. That sucks cause it was the last cheap option. Most of the cheap H4 conversion headlights have a cheap glass lens that will distort the cutoff somewhat. Your next best choice is a United Pacific 31377 https://www.summitracing.com/parts/upd-31377/

 

i used these. surprisingly have a nice glass lens but they are quite shallow and require alot of cutting

https://www.ebay.com/ulk/itm/332483687256

 

Yeah my method might not work anymore @1997tacomav6 . Looks like y'all will have to resort back to the hacking and cutting of the bowl to get em to fit.. Also a side note, on trying to use glass lens ones might not work with this method quite as well because the plastic lens actually worked in my favor by flexing just a tad to help the lens seat into the channel of the housing. Glass might work but you'll probly need to use a LOT of Butyl. Every mm of extra space you can squeeze out of them will help. But thats to say IF they are the same dimensions and style of the pilots to begin with so as to use the pipe flange method...

Been scouring the net again for other 7x6 options and the closest thing I can find to the pilots are gonna be these types.


They all look very very similar to the pilots with the exception of the little drl light they put in. And the rubber grommet on the back. But the question is, is the shaft diameter (bulb retainer area) the same diameter as the pilots and can be modified just the same, to utilize the metal pipe flange that I used. Lots of ifs, but i think those will be your best shot. And if all else fails, you'll just have to resort to hacking and welding them in. And at that point, I'd be tempted to just order some of those "fancy" led type housings. Lol. But id imagine some of those would work pretty good. Maybe not the light bar styled ones, but the led projector types. A lot more affordable (and practical/effective) options for those now, even though the styles on some arent very appealing for older vehicles.. When i did mine a few years ago, the only other option was the jw speaker ones and they werent much more affordable than retrofits.

 

One more option would be to vacuform yourself a custom lens. But this requires just as much effort and work as the hack&weld option, and looks quite silly..I had considered it back then but as a last resort option. I would have had to make a vacuforming station to begin with. And experiment with different plastics and whatnot. But I thought about making some custom shrouds via vacuforming back then with other lights I was working on. Just an idea for anyone that wants something a little more unique whilst retaining projector adjustability(being able to adjust projector in the housing for aiming purposes post retrofit). Honestly tho, hack&weld is still the most practical method I think. You just need to make sure they're aligned properly because once it's welded, ain't no goin back!

Here's an interesting build a guy did tho. Doesn't look purdy but it gets the job done. At the very least it might give someone an idea for their own retrofit(if not the vacuforming, then the method he used to mount the projector).
https://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=578291

And the custom shrouds video I stumbled upon where I first learned about vacuforming back in the day.
https://youtu.be/t2uGPe0aZgU

 

Ok, thanks, I saw a few people that used to make these on the internet years ago and they actually use this housing as one option so I'm going to go ahead take a shot on it it has an optical clear glass lens and a metal housing yep thank you

 

METAL housings!? AND glass lenses!? Hm! Those seem really nice mang! Im very curious to see how those turn out!

 

Thanks for all that information I prefer Glass lens just because I've read a lot of reviews for the plastic starts to degrade and work a little bit because I'm driving all the time I'm going to see if I can make glass one work and all use some of your information if I need to text Emmett last lens out a little bit

 

I'll keep you posted and as I said the glass is supposed to be Optical quality on these glass lenses I figure if I'm going to do this I'll do it once and do it right even if it takes me longer to do it I was quoted $700 to have one done in a plastic mounting so I'll be way ahead of the game with a better housing