bzyrice

iTrader: (10)

Hey guys,

Just picked up a set of 07-08 Depo base taillights. I wanted to tint the white part from the inside. Do I have to cut the taillight apart to do it? Or can I just spray Tint it while the part is inside?

Thanks!

leedogg

I believe bluebatmobile has tint film overlays for just those parts of the tail light.

mglax13

iTrader: (3)

I wouldn't go for a tint overlay because the white part of the tail light isn't right up against the clear lense that covers the entire tail light housing. The white will be tinted while looking strait on, but once you change you angle a bit, it will show again.

The best way to do this would be to take a dremel and literally cut open the tail light, take apart the pieces and black out the white part, then reassemble and epoxy the light back together and make sure it's sealed up well.

I think it will look good.

images

iTrader: (2)

which depo lights did you get? can you post some pictures and how is the fitment?

Timb227

iTrader: (3)

^ He bought the 07-08 Depo base taillights like he said in his first sentence

I have had Depo taillights and did not have a fitment issue. It fit just fine.

Bzyrice, yes, you would have to open them up like explained above in order to tint anything from the inside.

bzyrice

iTrader: (10)

ugh.. I dont feel like opening them up!! haha.. I want to put them on today and cant wait.. gonna take the bumper off today so might as well swap taillights.. maybe ill get another set and try and cut it open.. and then sell mine. .

Search Depo TL taillights on ebay.. you will find them.. per Ack .. the tl taillight guy, the depo taillights are by far the best of the oem copy cat taillights.. so that is why I bought those.

handsom-hustla

iTrader: (3)

^^ you should keep on the base and get the depos done in the mean time. no?? its not impossible but its def not easy cutting them open. when you cut them open all the chips of plastic will be infront of the bezel so its not like u can just cut them open and spray the white part and glue them back together. your going to have to do everything. good luck either way

bzyrice

iTrader: (10)

Yah, but I need to take my bumper off now to get my new exhaust on.. dont feel like waiting anymore since I wont have another day off inawhile.. I will wait to do the taillights another time I guess..

draztic1011

iTrader: (1)

Hit up BforBrian or Ballinfizzle. They were able to tint the white parts by spraying the backside of it with Black paint. You dont have to take the tails off, just take the back part off as if you were swapping the LED modules.

draztic1011

iTrader: (1)

https://acurazine.com/forums/showpos...29&postcount=1

You can see in the last two pics what Brian did. Hope this helps.

bzyrice

iTrader: (10)

ooh thanks man! Now I cant wait for the stores to open! I am planning on getting some hobby paint for RC cars .. Supposedly it is better then night shades.. I am afraid to tint my tails to dark with just normal black spray paint.

draztic1011

iTrader: (1)

You paint ur tails yet?

CLtotheTL32

iTrader: (3)

Like you, I got a set of DEPO 07-08 Base tails, but I opened mine up and painted all of the red pieces black.

I'm in for pics

bzyrice

iTrader: (10)

Well.. I did.. but it came out horrible! Al I wanted was to smoke out the white lens a little darker. So, I read what bforbian and others have done and just spray it from the inside without cutting them open. Problem is that there is a piece, toward the trunk that is impossible to paint WITHOUT cutting the Depo tails. Maybe OEMs are different? I dunno, but now I just came back from Lowes and picked up everything I need to open these things up. I am pretty annoyed tho since this is the one thing holding me up with getting my rear type S lip on and my type s exhaust on. I dont want to take the bumper off a hundred times..

But here are some pics from my iPhone:
You can see the white portion I couldnt get the paint to:



ooh can you post pics.. I am now debating what to do with my taillights.. I was going to keep it simple and just smoke the white portion, but now that I have to open them up I might as well do something creative with them.

And where exactly did you cut it? you got any pics of your cuts? All the threads with DIYs seem to be missing these pics..

CLtotheTL32

iTrader: (3)

Mine aren't put together yet but here's the whole tail light assembly taken apart:



I don't have any pictures of where I cut, but I don't mind taking some for you if you would like. I'm having a local member assist me with this since he's done his before.

This is what the tails will look like once they are all put together:



I think they will look good because I have quite a few black pieces on my car.

bzyrice

iTrader: (10)

^^ Nice work man!

Well, I just opened up one taillight.. WOW THAT SUCKS TO DO.. lol .. Half the time I thought I was gonna break something. I dont know if I didnt cut in the right spot because I had to do some pulling and stuff to get some of these parts out.. But it is finally apart! My dremel died though

So now I am going to go out to Wal-Mart and buy another one. Hope they have one! I am going to try and take apart the second tailight tonight and begin painting tomorrow. Hopefully be in by tomorrow night. But, this is the look I am going for:


Here is my one taillight taken apart:

CLtotheTL32

iTrader: (3)

Looking good man!

When you go to seal them back up, get this stuff called Plastic Weld. It's in a small black bottle. I've heard that works best. I'll be using silicone from blacking out my headlights as well as Plastic Weld to seal mine. I don't want any moisture getting in there.

What you are planning to do with your tail lights will look SICK on your TL. I'm looking forward to seeing them on the car.

bzyrice

iTrader: (10)

Plastic Weld? I found this stuff from Lowes Made by Loctite that is a plastic epoxy bonder. Hope it works! I will be using some gorilla tape to cover it up and really seal it once the plastic weld sets.

Where do I get this Plastic weld stuff?

Going to Wal Mart in 5 minutes so maybe Ill find it there. I really hope they ahve a dremel so I can finish openeing up the second taillight tonight.

swoosh

iTrader: (5)

hey dude how bad was it to cut the thing open ??? i wanna do a different project on my tail lights but am crazy scared that am gonna mess it up bigtime !!!

bzyrice

iTrader: (10)

well. on a scale from 1 to 10.. this is probably a 7-8. This is a pain in the a$$.. at least the first one was.. I havent tried the 2nd one yet.. cuz my dremel finally died after 10 years of service!! lol ..
Just got back from wal-mart and picked up a new dremel. But Avatar was there too.. so now I am watching Avatar.. so project on hold til later tonight or tomorrow morning when I get up..

CLtotheTL32

iTrader: (3)

I'm sure the stuff you got is just like Plastic Weld so don't worry. I'll hopefully be putting my tails back together today

Avatar FTW.

Red Voodoo

Your tails are looking great guys! When it comes to stuff like this (opening fixtures by cutting, etc), I have absolutely no balls. Scared shitless, unless I know I have an ample supply to work with. Hence I had to hire the work out. jptl04 was the O.G. for the style I chose, and bzyrice seems to be going on the same premises but with tinted white diffusers. I'm looking forward to seeing what these look like on your cars.

bzyrice

iTrader: (10)

^^^ Something is wrong with the quoting on this site, so I am just using arrows lol

Anyways, I am not going to have diffusers anymore. I am tinting the lens and removing the diffusers and then adding a little carbon fiber over the reflective lens.. lol.. Hope it turns out ok.. Otherwise I am going to have to buy another set of tails and send them to Ack lol..

swoosh

iTrader: (5)

the thing wrong with quoting and avatars i would like to blame:

billy....a little part of astro....and a part where we have 10000+ guest on Azine LOL !!! overall the thread called: me and my side chick aka the TL !!!

lol@ taking a break watching avatar....if you dont mind me asking, how much did ya pay for the depo tails ? ebay link ?

bzyrice

iTrader: (10)

Wow I need to search for that thread.. haha..

I am about to open the 2nd taillight.. But this is where I got mine from:
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eB...=STRK:MEWNX:IT

I paid 157.00 because there was a sale at the time I bought it. According to Ack the Depos are the only way to go. So that is what I got!

swoosh

iTrader: (5)

^^^

he told me depos dont have a good fitment !!!

bzyrice

iTrader: (10)

^^ well supposed they are the best fitment outside of OEM. I couldnt imagine spending another 100.00 and then cutting them up like I am .. I am trying to open the secone headlight, but am having problems getting the frame out.. ARGH.. this is the biggest pain in the arse ever!! I shouldve just pain Ack haha.. oh well. to late now..

swoosh

iTrader: (5)

exactly what am debating....should i go ACK route to just do it myself

i think i will give it a shot....

CLtotheTL32

iTrader: (3)

Why can't I quote posts? Wtf.

Anyways Red Voodoo I'm scared shitless when tearing my car apart as well. Luckily a local member is pretty much doing mine for me. He used a dremel and cut them open, I sprayed everything black and with Nite Shades, and he's sealing them up. He did a set on his own car so he knows what he's doing.

bzyrice like you, I also got the DEPO tails. I couldn't justify spending more money for a set of tails that I would be tearing apart. If the tail light guy uses them, they must be good. I got mine from the same place you got yours, the ones for $157 shipped or some shit like that.

swoosh I was in your shoes a few months back. I wasn't sure if I wanted to do this myself or have the tail light guy do them. I sent him multiple PMs asking questions and such but I finally made the decision to do them myself. It's nerve racking to say the least but it's a good learning experience and doesn't affect the bank account any more than it has to.

Red Voodoo

Having AckTL05 do the work is your best option if you can afford it. It's not an easy job to do, and he did a pretty damn good job on mine. My lights aren't perfect, but then again, they are custom, so one must have some room for some very slight imperfections. For the amount of work involved, it's well worth the cost of labor he charges for the project.

bzyrice

iTrader: (10)

Finally got the 2nd taillight cracked open!

Time to paint! I really need to clean the clear plastic lens though. What do you guys recommend? Just soap and water? I managed to scratch the inside lens. A really small scratch, but I want to clean it up. Scratch x a good idea on the clear plastic?

CLtotheTL32

iTrader: (3)

From what I've seen AckTL05 does a great job. He bought my Accord Fogs from the BM and he was more than awesome to work with. If I didn't have a local member to help me out and guide me through the process, I would have had AckTL05 do them for me.

bzyrice I've noticed that the clear cover scratches really easily. I honestly don't know what to use to get scratches out though

bzyrice

iTrader: (10)

Dogh.. So redvoodoo what imperfections do you have? I want to try and avoid any with mine before I put them back together.. I know cleaning up the clear plastic should be my first priority.

Im just gonna go ahead and try the scratch X. CltotheTL. Did you get yours put back together yet?

CLtotheTL32

iTrader: (3)

The local member that's helping me out took them to his house to finish them up tonight. I'll be meeting with him sometime tomorrow afternoon to install them

bzyrice

iTrader: (10)

Man thats awesome.. I wish I had someone local to do that for me.. haha.. Oh well.. On to painting!! I want these on by tomorrow night!

CLtotheTL32

iTrader: (3)

I'm fortunate to say the least! Good luck getting yours done. Hopefully both of our cars will be rocking new tails by tomorrow night

bzyrice

iTrader: (10)

Yah so I am spraying mine now.. and it looks pretty good. I may have sprayed too much tint spray and made it too dark. But we will see.

AckTL05

iTrader: (18)

Wish I saw this earlier. I was going to say spray the frost piece from behind lightly, but that is all said and done. I have an extra set here if you want them and you just pay shipping and send me yours so I can use them. Also I get DEPOs for $140 shipped and they are the best alternative besides OEM, which of course is easier to open and id a lot easier to open and pull apart.

Bzyrice: Make sure you clean the lens rigorously and make sure you use gloves because ANY mark will appear. Its almost impossible to make a person set because we are human, and even from the factory these tail lights have imperfections, even OEM. Also make sure your bezels dry good and also sand down the lens piece that the bezel goes in because when you slide in the bezel it WILL chip the paint easily. You think the hardest part is opening them, wait till you put them back together. Try to make it as smooth as possible because once there in, there is no turning back.

CLtotheTL: That is what I did at first, had a member help me out and we did the project together. I don't cut them like the picture you sent me and it looks hard to seal the part that you can see from the trunk being opened, but make sure you seal it PERFECT. I will also tell you that I actually glue them and then seal them twice so they will never fall apart.


USE NEW GASKETS TO EVERYONE!!! They are $5 dollars for the pair from any ACURA dealer and since your cutting the tail lights open they will be "smaller" and cannot be pushed back as much as they originally could, which will leave for leaking and failure. The new gaskets are almost double the size and use gaskets create "grooves" and get worn. If you know how hard it is to get the tail lights installed and taken off the car, $5 is worth the trouble.

AckTL05

iTrader: (18)

CLtoTHETL: How did you even get the bezel out? It looks like its going to be a tough job putting them back together with that flap still attached to the lens. Post some pictures of the final project and good luck. You guys now know why I charge $150, its not so easy and it takes a lot of work.

Bzyrice: I laughed when you said your dremel broke, because I am actually on my fourth one.

bzyrice

iTrader: (10)

THanks for the advice Ack! I am still waiting for my paint to dry. I think i will wait over night to make sure they dry thoroughly.. Hey quick question. How do you get the tint spray over evenly? I am having a touch time spraying it evenly.

Thanks for the offer on the Frost section. I am just going to leave them out. Remember how I wanted to know how it would look? lol.. Well now I am going to find out. Do you know if acura stocks the Gasket? Or will i have to wait a few days to get it? I hope they stock it cuz I want this on my car by tomorrow night!