soccerbenk

so do we geto hear how you did the brushed aluminum affect too?

55M2G7L

can you pm me a link too?

55M2G7L

your car is heather mist? i thought it was ssm by the pics, i think im gonig color blind

subtledreamer

thx!!

no because you didn't make me feel guilty haha but dont try now

1280*960, hope it's the right size. if not tell me what yours is and i'll post it up
http://files.subtledream.com/IMG_0411.jpg

and yeah, you arent getting color blind, heather mist does look SSM-ish at certain angles and lighting~

streetracing901

Hotness...*_*

NYZGREATST

looks realll sick!

kRaZy_TL

iTrader: (1)

nice jonathan!! looks good ^5 props. Wanna help me do mine? lolz

subtledreamer

ty! btw Tpatel how come you changed your user name?

thx lawrence! haha didn't you get your headlights cleared already? cuz if you wanna open them up again you gotta get some Honda Bond or else the seal won't be water-tight.

bacardi151

The best looking HMM TL I've EVER seen. Excellent work.

kRaZy_TL

iTrader: (1)

No, I didnt clear them yet. But I want to do my grill like yours. How long did it take you to do the grill?

subtledreamer

Damn bro that's straight out flattering haha... I truly thank you!

Hmm... I say about 3 hours if you know what you are doing. My first time took 4+ hours and that was just the black mesh without the brushed-alu look.

FFWDGRAPHX

Dude... that is the nicest job I've seen so far. Where do you live man, I'll pay you do it for me.




JQ.

subtledreamer

i would just need an airplane ticket and some letters to my professor for missing school haha and thanks for the compliment!

SilverIce2000

what did you use to paint the chrome part of hte grille?? i am same SSM color i wana paint it to the color of my car... also if u have steps of how you did everything that be cool
thanx

mclarenf3387

Where did you get the paint? Is it body colored(kinda hard to tell behind the plastic)?
How much for the paint, and how much did you need? Sorry for all the questions, but I'm doing this as well, and paint is expensive to have to buy a lot of.

Looks great

subtledreamer

Like I said earlier, I wetsanded down the chrome, primered it (3 coats), wetsanded, spray painted (3 coats), wetsand, another 3 coats of paint, wetsand, and finally 2 coats of clearcoat.

For the wetsanding parts, I used a 200-grit for stripping of the chrome and 400/600-grit for the fine sanding later on.

Be sure to take your time between new coats to ensure the previous is dry.

I bought a metallic silver paint from Kragen's (automotive store) that looks like SSM. I think it was ~$5 for a can. Clearcoat ran for another $5-ish and one can of each is more than enough for both headlight housing.

This is a good guide for the clearing of headlights: http://abunchofcars.com/diy_pages/li...t_clearing.htm

If you need help just reply or PM me.
and btw my car isn't SSM, it's Heather Mist Metallic. Think SSM with a hint of gold.

subtledreamer

Thanks alriteee since some people are asking how its done, i'll post some pics from the process. I'll edit post or make new one once I have them uploaded, stay tuned...

subtledreamer

Mini headlight clearing and painting DIY w/ pics


***MUST HAVE TWO PEOPLE TO DO THIS. ONE PERSON = NO WAY***


Headlight removal


Backside of headlight assembly... gotta remove the bulbs and power adapter-thing


Carefully removing HID stuff


Baking time! 200-225F for about 10 mins. be sure to have a wet (and keep wet every few mins) cardboard to set the headlight on. THIS STEP IS IMPORTANT!


After baking immediately start cutting the silicone bond apart with scissors. There are tabs holding the clear cover on the sides so ensure those are unclipped too.


This is what the inside looks like (not the part you are going to paint)


Remove the blasted orange diffuser.


Mask the turn signal bay with Painter's tape (unless you want to spray paint that too, although I don't recommend it and didn't do it)


Wetsand down the chrome with 200-grit sand pape


After wetsand (400 grit), dry the housing and add on the primer. 3 coats would be good.


Wetsand after primering and start spray painting. What I did was 3 coats of paint, wetsand, and another 3 coats of paint.


After the spray paint, wetsand (yeah, again), and finally finish it off with 2 or 3 coats of clearcoat. You can (optional) wetsand again with a 600-grit sandpaper and make it ultra-smooooooth.

CAREFULLY, remove the masking tape. Don't freak out if some of the chrome peels off too because mine did. It's not the end of the world. The clear plastic cover is opaque right over the turn signal area so you can't see the imperfection.

subtledreamer

Reverse the instructions to put everything back together. After baking the headlights again to melt the silicon bond, make sure you clamp the bottom and cover together tightly so no water can get in and fog up. Either that or you can sit on the headlights instead of clamping, like I did
Let the whole thing cool down and you should be set. If you want you can throw the thing in the shower and see if it leaks/fogs up.

Be careful, have fun, and good luck!

El pana/TL32

Good stuff men! These pictures remind me of something I'm working on... You do good work brother! Keep it up....

TL32420

i like the grill....did u buy it or modify your stock one??

subtledreamer

Something you are working on eh? Mind to shed some light on this secret project?

thx! I modified the stock one. It's amazing how much better it looks compared to stock (I am a little biased though of course ).
Here's the thread about the mesh back when I first did it: https://acurazine.com/forums/showthr...ht=mesh+grille

etxxz

1 WORD...frikin-breathtakinly-mindblowing!

i can't imagine the time it took you to complete that task...but it definetly convinced me into clearing my lights! I JUST DONT HAVE THE BALL to do that :applause:

TL_Fo_Life

Hey man thx for the diy Im gonna do it I just need the time.

FFWDGRAPHX

How 'bout I just send them to ya... I think i'd trust you enough with them. Just don't take too long 'cause I'd like 'em back during work hrs.

JQ.

subtledreamer

Check your PM sir

no prob, glad i can help out!

thanks man, yeah took a friggin long time... but the results are definately rewarding. i just ordered some chrome amber bulbs from www.autolumination.com, only 2.99 each

chuckz

i like the housings.............looks hot.........i think it is the first tl i personally have seen that color/scheme! awesome!

PDX3.2TL

Now that is a great paint job! I must say that when I saw it I was like "that's whoa." I had to take a double take and that doesn't really happen to often to me!!!

vtlec01

Good job but am I the only one noticing theres no clear difflector where the orange one went. I wont be clearing my headlights if theres nothing there.

subtledreamer

thank you, good sir

you are too kind!

Yeah I didnt get a clear diffuser. I honestly cannot justify spending $80 on a pair of plastics. Plus I think it looks fine without them, only thing that bothers me a little are the two little holes on the edge.
You can still paint the housing even if you aren't going to pop off the orange diffuser though

Btw guys I just installed the chrome amber bulbs... looks sweet. Only 2.99 a pop too. They are not as bright as the stock bulbs but it's all good.

Here are some pics...

stock amber bulb


chrome amber bulb


left-stock, right-chrome amber


both chrome bulbs

Phesto

^^^where did you buy the chrome amber bulbs I guess i need 4 for my 03

AsianRage

Looks hella cool. Very nice job man.

fsttyms1

.

Phesto

just ordered..........now i'm working up the nerve to clear my headlights

OntarioTL

Where do you find a clear diffuser?

VoLLy

iTrader: (8)

As you can see in the above pics, he doesnt have any diffusers at all, you can still see those little holes where the diffuser tabs go in to as well.

OntarioTL

I realise he didnt use diffusers, but he did mention about not wanting to spend 80 bucks for clear ones. I was just curious on where they are available.

ON.TL

special e. dition

Very nice whip man! Your Grill is exactly what I want to do to mine. Very nice scheme you got going on there mayne!

subtledreamer

good catch. they used to be on http://www.ricks2k.com/ but not anymore (just checked), so i guess you are out of luck unless you find someone who's selling his old pair!

AcUrALiTy

i knew it!!!!, i was visiting my brother for his graduation at whittier, im up in cali for a week, and i saw this TL in a parking lot at a resturant i was eating in, and i knew it looked familiar, pretty sick ass ride in person!, pretty dope to see a fellow acurazine member, plus im from hawaii