3rd Gen BHLM and light mods

Or a hub of good influences, depends on how you view it.

 

My BHLM Journey

Figured I would recall my recent experiences with the BHLM to add a bit more info to the wealth of information in this thread.

Long story short, I needed a new drivers side headlight as three of the mounting tabs on my current one were broken.

So I ordered a used headlight from ebay, though when it arrived I realized that it was not the LED DRL version that the seller had said that it was.

No worries. I knew about baking headlights, and with one busted headlight, and one cheap ($90) headlight at my disposal, I decided to crack it open and swap the inner pieces to get a headlight back in my truck.

I don't have a lot of photos, as there are many present in this thread. This is mostly to recount my efforts associated with this mod for the community.

I started by watching a set of videos from a TW member who does this a lot. His videos made this out to be an incredibly difficult mod that only the well versed should attempt.

That, however, was not my experience in the slightest. This mod was a piece of cake.

I did the oven at 240 and stuck the headlight in for 20 minutes. I started on my busted headlight as a practice run.

Headlight came out, I started at the lower inside corner that everyone recommends. I used one tool, a medium flat bladed screwdriver to get the lens and housing separated initially.

After that it was all fingers. No need for fancy spreaders or a multitude of tools. Just get your fingers in the initial separation and apply steady force to the housing and lens. They are remarkably durable and were not bothered by the pulling. The first headlight didn't even go back in the oven, as it was separated in just a couple of minutes.

Disassembly of the inside of the headlight is easy.

Second headlight was the same as the first, though this headlight went back in the oven once for an additional five minutes, to reheat the seal near the side marker portion of the headlight to help it break free easier. But it too came apart easily and without damage.

For removing the seal in the channel I set the oven to 200 and tossed the back housing in for 5 minutes. I WOULD NOT go above 200 or longer than 5 minutes when just the black back housing is in the oven.

I would pull the housing out and put it on my carpeted floor to being removing the seal. The carpet helped keep the housing in place, and I used the floor to allow me to get a knee or leg on the housing to keep it in place while I pulled and pushed on the seal. The same medium sized screwdriver was used to work the seal out of the channel, while my other hand applied a bit of tension to the peeled up seal.

I would only work on the housing while it was warm to the touch as this seemed to help the seal flow from the channel much easier. Plus, I wouldn't get frustrated with the process, as I would only work on the channel for 2-3 minutes before tossing it back in the oven for 5 more minutes and doing something else (folding laundry, youtube video, etc.)

With the channel clear I painted the insides. I went with smoked side markers using an old can of RC car tint. I did a single, very very light coating on the turn signal bucket with the same tint. In hindsight this probably isn't required as the black slotted plastic piece that goes in front of that section makes the turn signal bucket look dark already. I painted the rest of the interior black using leftover cans of SEM trim paint (more expensive than the local auto parts store stuff, but I only used it so I wouldn't have to drive anywhere to pick up new cans). It has a flat black appearance, which is the perfect fit.

I left the high beam bucket alone, and left the stock projector in the low beams. I resealed the headlights using E6000 sealant. I let them cure for two days inside my warm house and then reinstalled them on the truck.

It rained all of last night and I could find no traces of fog inside the lenses.

Pictures:

Complete vs incomplete

Untitled by Michael Rickerd, on Flickr

Fitted (hard to get decent pictures)

Untitled by Michael Rickerd, on Flickr

I didn't go into deep detail (though I will if you have questions) as many others have already done this better than I could.

 

Got mine apart. Paint drying. Was gonna use black permeated silicone but I see others recommending butyl. I ordered the butyl on Amazon.

do I just put a bead of this folded around the edge of the lens stuff it into the housing and bake for 8 minutes until golden brown?

edit* Just completed this mod. took me all weekend fri - sun with sat used to fix some paint mistakes. the hardest most time consuming part was removing the old rubber. It took me close to 10 hours getting it completely clean. I was meticulous on this step as i wanted to ensure a leak free bond when i put it back together. took a trip down to harbor freight and bought 8 small clamps. put a bead of retro rubber into the headlight bucket channel and clamped the plastic cover on and put it in the oven clamped. 265 for 7 minutes per retro rubber instructions. bond looks to be good so far, time will tell. This was my first time tackling a mod like this and honestly i think swapping my 5.29 diffs front and rear was easier in some ways than this mod. In the end, i'm very happy with the results. Take your time, give yourself a good few days if it's your first time and warn your wife ahead of time so you don't get yelled at like me!

 

Ready to give it a go. Wish me luck.

 

Got my practice set of junk yard headlights done! Definitely think I will go with satin for the paint next time but I am quite happy with the results. Really transforms the look of the front end. Also a week in in Portland rain everyday I have gotten no moisture in the lights. Factory units are definitely gonna have some parts thrown in them when their time comes. Suspension and tires are priority right now.

 

Nice, some body colored Meso fillers would add to the look also

 

+1. Especially on light colors like that CAV

 

Definitely getting these for my next set but I am gonna decide if I want to do cavalry or black!

 

@MESO are you making a dual projector mount for inside the housing to mount 2 projectors. if not do you know if anyone is making it?

 

Which housings

 

Housings/ Mounting bracket to allow dual RX350/Morimoto Projector lenses inside the stock headlight vice single projector and bulb/reflector bucket.

 

Ok.. stock headlights. Dual projector won’t fit unless you cut a huge hole in the back where the high beam is. If you start out with different housings as a base(Anzo, oemassive, etc) then dUals will fit

 

ok good to know. I had a feeling that I would have to start somewhere other than OEM to accomplish this. Mind if I shoot you a PM. I have an interior electronics question that you might be able to help with.

 

Is that matte/flat black?

 

Figured I’d throw this out there as I doubt Retrofit Source will reply to me over the weekend..

Yesterday I was getting all set to start my retrofit tonight after work, disassembled one projector and painted the cutoff shield black.

When I opened the second projector’s box and removed it I noticed it had what looked like a tester pigtail coming out of the solenoid. Weird but it reminded me I should probably test everything now.. I grabbed a 9V battery and tested the second projector, the cutoff shield sticks. I tried to move the shield manually and it moves down but not without a bit of effort. I removed the pigtail and tested the first projector which I had already painted and it works perfectly.
After examining the second projector more it seems like it’s getting some rub or binding against where the rod crosses through the metal housing, as there’s some rust where I don’t have any on projector #1.


So I’ve got an email out to TRS but figured I’d send a flyer out here to see if anyone has an easy remedy? Finally got a 3 day weekend at work and wanted to try and knock this out!

 

It is Krylon fusion matte black. I want to use satin next time I think

 

I agree, satin would definitely look better

 

I'm debating making a write-up of tips and advice and do's and don'ts (mostly don'ts) that I've picked up from doing this project, for people who can sometimes struggle with such projects. I finally just sealed mine up and I'm less satisfied, more relieved. Electrical work comes tomorrow. Biggest tip, though, if you're uncertain? Just pay someone who's done it a bunch to do it for you, unless you really crave that "I did it myself" aspect. Definitely a project that gets easier on repeat go's.

 

Post the do’s/don’t- help the next guy… I’ll be doing it eventually and don’t have any desire to sub it out.

 

So here's all my compiled information, freshly updated in 2020. Picture, parts list, then tips.



First up, here's all the things I ordered:

Spoiler: Parts List

For all the painting/blacking out, I used Krylon Fusion Black Satin rattlecans.

From Lightwerkz ("SAVE15" code, prices may change/have changed since then)

MORIMOTOD2S35BAL x1 $110.00 D2S: Morimoto XB35 2.0
D2SMORIMOTOXBHID x1 $50.00 D2S: Morimoto XB HID (Kelvin Rating: D2S: XB 6500K)
RX350PROJECTORS x1 $330.00 Bi-Xenon: Lexus RX350 Projectors: Lexus RX350 (Non-AFS) (Clear Lenses: STi-R Clear Lenses Performance Tuning: (Must add clear lens) Projector/Lens Tuning Service)
HDRELAYH11 x1 $30.00 HD Relay: H11/H9/H8
SPLITTERS x2 $10.00 High Beam Splitter (Single) Version: H11 Male > H11/9006 Female
RRBLACK x1 $17.00 Morimoto RetroRubber Butyl Glue (Black)

I wanted to add an orange passive demon eye to the projectors, so I used orange Caliper paint, a rattle can that I got from Autozone.

Recommend picking up aftermarket gaskets for your headlights, I was pointed towards the following, which still require some creativity but work (NOTE: the ones linked are 70mm, you'll want the 65mm ones, which appear to be out of stock right now)

Auxbeam Rubber Housing Seal Cap Dust Cover for LED Car Lights Retrofit, LED Light Bulb Kit, Pack of 2 (65MM)

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B073QP6TZY/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

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I wanted to run MESO's Stage 2's, but in all amber instead of white/amber switchback. So I ultimately bought a pair of S2 inserts from MESO, and bought the strips from Diode Dynamics separately. They don't sell a dual controller for all amber at time of writing, so you'll have to wire in two separate controllers per headlight for the LED strips (if you go stage 2)

From MESO:
Stage 2 Sidemarkers (pair), No LED x1 $25.00

From Diode Dynamics:
HD LED Amber Strip (single) x4 $160.00

I also wanted to retain some reflective functionality on my sidemarkers, so I picked up some high grade reflective tape off Amazon. It's the same stuff that we use on our mining equipment for extra visibilty, it's great.
From Amazon:
"Oralite (Reflexite) V92-DB-COLORS Microprismatic Conspicuity Tape: 2 in. x 15 ft. (Orange)"

$23 Oralite V92-DB-COLORS Microprismatic Conspicuity Tape: 2 in. x 15 ft. (Orange)

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0041PEC5O/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

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I bought amber acrylic inserts for the turn signal buckets' fins from "no vtec 4me" on the boards here, and followed in MESO's footprints by applying a perforated vinyl wrap to them.
From VViViD Vinyl on Amazon:
"VViViD Black Perforated Headlight Wrap Self-Adhesive Cover 12 Inches x 48 Inches Roll DIY"

$10 VViViD Black Perforated Headlight Wrap Self-Adhesive Cover 12"es x 48"es Roll DIY

https://www.amazon.com/VViViD-Black...sive/dp/B01JK3JO5E?ref_=ast_bbp_dp&th=1&psc=1

Bought these turn bulbs from ebay:
"PHILIPS 12763x2 X-treme Ultinon LED Bulb T20 (WY21W) Amber Turn Signal 180lm"
https://www.ebay.com/itm/PHILIPS-12...20-WY21W-Amber-Turn-Signal-180lm/293006735643

Used Gorilla Glue Epoxy to glue the acrylic inserts to the fins.

-----

For the DRL's, I used amber tint spray and bought an amber swapped DRL board.
From eBay:
"VANS Corner Bumper Amber Orange Auto Lens Spray Paint JDM 110ml Can VAN0012"

From "no vtec 4me", amber DRL board. You could also look into the Diode Dynamics RGB DRL boards, now, but I didn't at the time.

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Bought a set of paint-matched headlight trim plates to replace the stock black ones, from MESO.

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Buy a Seal Splitting tool, I use'd this fancy one from TRS and it was a lifesaver.
https://www.theretrofitsource.com/accessories/morimoto-sealsplitter-opening-tool.html

Okay, tips, as I can think of them (might lack organization here, sorry). I've included quotes of advice I was given along the way.

Spoiler: Tips

*Commit to the project, don't start on it then get busy and put it aside for a few months, then go through a major relocation, lose parts, have to reorder, etc. Just do it in a weekend.

*Before you begin, cover the outside of the headlight lens in masking tape. It left a lot of residue for me at the end, but that all came off nicely with bug & tar remover, and elbow grease. Helps prevent unnecessary scratches.

*While unscrewing stuff, use a tray to hold the different screws and make a note of where they go. Personally I taped them all to a piece of cardboard along with a letter identifier, and had a map of the headlight I mocked up to mark where each letter went. Saves a ton of headache on the reassembly.

*Once you've got the two halves apart, I wrapped my headlight lens in plastic wrap. Wanted to keep as much dust out as possible (I still kind of failed, but it could've been a lot worse, especially after how long I let the project idle)

*Cleaning the seal out of the channel - honestly, a heat gun applied for a few seconds onto a 3-5" stretch of sealant was what worked best for me. I made a giant mess trying to pull/chip the stuff out while doing the alternating-in-oven method, but got loooong strips of it out at a time with the heat gun. Your mileage may vary. Flathead screwdriver and good needlenose pliers are your friends.

*When running amber-only DD boards in your meso inserts, you'll want to do the following wiring: Red to colored-off-of-stock-sidemarker-plug, Black to black/white-split-off-of-stock-sidemarker-plug, Yellow to colored-off-of-stock-turn-signal-plug, and don't tap the white into anything. There's a picture further down that explains this better, I think.

*If you end up staring at all these cords in front of you like I did - "Your high beam wiring with the splitter---the single part of the splitter goes to the oem high beam plug. One of the split ends goes to the stock high beam bulb, the other goes to the wires coming from the actuator on the projectors. The projectors should have came with a connector for those two wires that will allow it to plug into the splitter. You'll need to modify the connector that goes to the stock high beam bulb, should be pretty self explanatory when you try to plug it in." The modification(s) I found were that I had to cut out the middle of one of the ends, to create a notch to match the stock connection, I took it down basically to the orange rubber ribbed seal. The other small mod I had to do was file down the latch at the tip of the plug, as the latching mechanism seemed to use the one on the opposite side, a bit further back. Verify this for your plugs before filing or cutting.

*When installing the projector, at least for the RX350, pull out the connector on the back with two little stub wires coming out of the solenoid, and instead put in the supplied ~1ft cord with identical adapter. Yeah, sometimes your brain gets fried and you don't make simple connections like that. Similarly, you'll want to make sure you put the bulb in the projector, then latch that down, THEN put the igniter into that. Yup.

*There's a lot of boxes to hang in your engine bay. Self tapping screws, and hang the stuff underneath the headlights behind the bumper, is what I was advised and seems to be the easiest option for me. Might need to adjust the plan if you've got a non-OEM bumper or go through deep water/mud. I was also suggested to "go to home depot and get some ~3" wide flat aluminum metal and strong 3M 2 side tape. Lay out all the components on and cut the metal to fit. Drill a hole at the top and mount it in the engine back close to the headlights.", which I think is an equally strong option, I just don't have the tools available to me right now to cut metal. I might go back and re-mount later.

*If you replace the sidemarkers, there's a big old hole there now. I went and bought rubber feet for furniture legs, cut most of the rubber off and trimmed it down to fit in the ~3/4" hole, superglued it in then smothered it with silicon after running the projector solenoid wire & turn signal led board wires through a hole i'd cut in the middle of it. Ugly but it works (I hope).

*Re-sealing the lights: I used toothpicks to keep the 5x screwholes open while I laid the retrorubber (...in my 2nd headlight. made a ton of difference vs the first). Was advised to bake the whole thing (lens & housing) at 275F for 8 minutes to get the retrorubber malleable. Worked like a charm.

*Painting - One of mine I scuffed up the chrome, the other I didn't. Honestly I didn't see too much difference, but I wish I had. It felt like the Krylon Fusion still flaked off too easily. Maybe you'll need a primer, or maybe I just wasn't gentle enough in handling. I've got a few imperfections in my paint from where I just couldn't be bothered any further to try and touch it up.

*Tinting the DRL lenses - Apply to the back side of the lenses, not the front. Use it sparingly/in thin coats, it pools easily and darkens the nooks and crannies. Also one can was juuust enough to do both for me. If I had to do it again, I think I might not even do this part. The difference in shades of orange in my headlight kind of bugs me now.

*When buttoning everything back up, there's an OEM gap between the DRL lenses and the main housing, and there's also parts of the projector metal visible inside the ring, even before you crack the lights open and start messing around. You didn't grossly mess up (probably), so don't panic. That said, if you don't leave a chrome ring around the projector housing and go all-black, you might consider painting the metal around the projector lens black--it's pretty noticeable once you've got a matte/satin black housing in there.

*When putting the LED boards into the MESO sidemarker inserts, I ultimately found there was better routing if you instead had the soldered end facing the front of the headlight. It may seem counterintuitive, since there's more room to run wires behind the insert on the elongated side, but , it prevented you from pinching the LED strip wires between the insert and the housing.

*When you're messing with the headlight gasket seals, don't leave open cuts. Take it edge to edge. For example, in his write-up, MESO mentions using a U-shaped notch to make room for the igniter. When I tried to mimic that, I made more of a box shaped cut, and as I tried to stretch the gasket around the igniter, it tore the cut further and I had to scrap that gasket. If I'd gone in a long continuous curving cut, it wouldn't have happened.

*CLEAN CLEAN CLEAN. Work in as clean an environment as you can. Painting, you don't want stray specsks of dust or dirt or hair to get in there and cause irregularities. It may look fine while painting, but trust me, it shows later. Keep the things sealed as much as possible. Once I buttoned it all back up, I noticed a LOT more dust on the inside of my lens than I'd thought had gotten in. Oops. I'll fix that in a few years when these start to yellow/fog up. I also somehow got a tiny speck of what looks like retrorubber stuck on one of my projectors. Thats just gonna live there, because I'm not breaking the lights open again. Clean working environment, clean headlights. Do yourself a favor.

*When trimming the sidemarker housing to accommodate the MESO turn signals, cut before painting. Then measure, then measure again, then cut a liiiittle more, then measure, then paint. I used a dremel because I couldn't find an ultrasonic knife in my price range. It was messy, and you should wear safety glasses & a dust mask at least, because you're powderizing fiberglass while you cut. Also, be careful when cutting along the sloped edge, I cut a little too far and had a gap where you could see from front to back even with the insert mounted. Doesn't matter too much once it's all installed, though.

*For passive demon eyes, you only need to paint the metal above the moving parts on the projector assemble. I taped off everything from the highbeam shield down, and painted above that. I went with orange, and I think it looks really good installed now, but it's just one more piece of "almost but not quite the same shade of orange" in my headlight. And, if I'd instead gone with black, I might not see that one damned speck on the projector as often. Oh well.

*When trying to get the projector+highbeam bucket out, what worked best for me was using the headlight seal splitter, along with small needlenose pliers to push the tabs of the three clips in one by one. I started with the rectangular one at the bottom, then the round one above the high beam bucket, then finished with the one on the side of the projector.

*Looking at my finished project, I think the #1 change I'd make would be to get a less-orange DRL tint. And I know I recommended a specific tint spray up above. When the lights are on it looks fine, but passively, it's just a hair too orange/dark for me. It stands out the most against the other shades of orange on my front end (grille lights, turn signal bucket, reflective tape, DRL lens).

For emphasis, here's some key DON'Ts that I found:

Spoiler: DON'T

*Don't freak out. You've got this.

*Don't let the project sit for a long time. You forget things, you leave it open to dust & damage.

*Don't try to rush the painting. It takes a lot longer to fix a drip than it does to apply a couple more thin coats.

*Don't try to pry the sealant up with a hobby knife. Coulda lost an eye on that one.

*Don't touch the inside of the headlight lens, it's very prone to scratching.

*Don't mess with the DD LED boards/wires too much, I accidentally snapped them at the solder on my first batch.

*Don't take the masking tape off of the headlight lenses until you've got them reinstalled. I've got a few fresh scratches to polish out now. Oops.

*If you can, do a test run on your lights before re-sealing. I thought the inside of my lenses were pretty clean, visibly at least and passed the flashlight test for dust, but once those headlights hit em, they lit up. I wish I'd powered em on first so I could make some sort of effort to de-dust the lens. That's another one I'll have to fix a few years down the line when I open them up for some other reason.

*Personally, I chose not to black out the reflective buckets. I started by blacking out the side facing bits with the horizontal ridges, but changed my mind because I wanted to retain the side-cast light. Also the paint didn't stick well to the chrome (obviously). I'll take performance over full blackout, here.

*Don't be afraid to ask questions. I asked so, so many. I'm pretty sure I'm low-key/unofficially not allowed to pester a couple of the guys on here for at least a few months because I asked so many questions, and even then everyone I've approached has been very patient and very helpful.

Here's some pictures of the parts that I found myself asking a ton of questions for, having difficulty visualizing myself.

Spoiler: Pictures

This is where I mounted the computer & driver's side ballast for the bi-xenons. Used 1/4" cap self tapping screw, 1/2" long. Make sure you don't try to drive those things in with the driver set to "out" The screws I had, they had a wee little lip to them that made it a very tight fit against the morimoto ballast boxes. Adjust at your discretion, I just made it work. Suggested that you maintain as much downward angle as possible for the sockets so that water won't seep in, I had to settle for this due to cord tension.




Same deal on the passenger side, had to mount it at a shallower angle than I'd have preferred but it's still pointing down-ish. Ran the long ballast cable across the front, zip-tied to the bar in front of the radiator. I think that shows up in a later picture.



Driver's side, at the front-driver's corner of the battery along the side of the truck. Used some strong 3M all-weather adhesive/velcro to mount the DD LED board boxes. I thought I'd gotten 4 sets but actually only got 2, so I made do.




Passenger's side, this time along the front of the truck. Same heavy duty velcro, mounted to the flattest part with the most space I could find. This is between the washer fluid reservoir and the radiator.




For the DD LED wiring, if you have the just-amber boards, you want to splice Red to A, Black to B, Yellow to C, and ignore White & D. A&B are on the back side of the stock sidemarker bulb plug, and C&D are on the back side of the stock turn signal plug.