? about my upcoming retrofit and aftermarket headlight housings

I'm getting ready to tackle the BHLM & LS460 retrofit. I am thinking about picking up a set of aftermarket headlights to either use for the retrofit, or to use on the truck while doing the retrofit.

My OEM headlight lenses are a bit hazed and have some 1/2"-3/4" cracks/fractures on the surface that don't seem to go through the whole lens, but I'm still a little concerned.

Any suggestions or experience?

I know the recommended aftermarket lights are TYC or Depo from Amazon(or is it Depot brand as in Headlight Depot?).

Thanks,

Johnny

 

Let me respond since I've had a hand in 3 retrofits for a couple of buddies and my own.

Vision is the worst - China made. The side marker & blinker light cut outs were butchered and they just shoved the bulbs in there. The blinker lens popped off too inside the housing. They even stapled some areas! THe bezzle cracked in 1 spot. I do not recommend these. Bad fit on final assembly to align the grill and hood. Bad craftsmanship overall.

JDM is decent - China made. The housing material was a bit soft. The original butyl sealant was a bit soft and chalky, easiest to work with. They do have ones on eBay that I've seen, already blacked out and with clear side marker lens. I did completely replace the sealant material and it should hold up well. Final fit was pretty good.

TYC is pretty good - Taiwan made - strong thick housing material. Very strong butyl. I had to reheat it twice to pull the housing & lens off since it was so tacky. I had to use a heat gun to heat and pull out the butyl. The bezzle assembly was easy to remove to black out. Final fit was perfect, grill and hood aligned like the OEM. Aiming is more difficult, the adjustment bolts are rounded off at the top the ratchet socket slips quite easily.

I've not used 'Depo' which is the best from what I've heard. I've not experienced one myself. But see if someone can comment on the fine points on the fit and finish of 'Depo'.

 

Are those LS460s Bi-Xenon?

I've had good luck with "Eagle Eyes" brand and TYC is known as one of the better designs based on looks and Depo being right up there as well.

 

lol @ AnT and Brockoli waiting for me to fail horribly and and post "WTS LS460 TRS kit"!

I know this is going to be a challenge, and I'm positively in WAY over my head, but I'll take my time and see how it turns out. I'll try and take pics as I work through the BHLM/retrofit.

 

I'm guess I'm a bit of a masochist...I'm waiting on another kit from TRS to retro my Hella 500 black magic's.

I can't ever seem do anything the easy way

 

Thanks morphius and Andrew...I'm leaning towards the DEPO brand right now. I'll wait another day or two and see if anyone else chimes in before I place an order.

 

Yea, the LS460s are BiXenon.. after seeing how my LS460's are built.. it is a bit of a challenge, but nonetheless, it is not impossible!

on the black magics, nice!.. i kind of want the black magics.. but im content with what i have

 

i hope you guys all FAIL! and i remain the only one with LS460s (to my knowledge)






no no no im kidding, i wouldnt want that upon anyone who will be tackling the LS460. If i can be of any help, let me know. I will do my best

 

I had originally thought about using TL's or the FX-R's, but after talking to Matt at TRS, I couldn't help but take a shot at these.

What's the worst that can happen...I spend 3 or 4 days ruining approximately $600.00 in materials.

 

oh...and AnT, thanks for the offer! Hard for me to imagine not having some questions for you and the guys at TRS during the process.