DIY Red Tint and Smoked Tail Lights (PICTURE HEAVY)

[ninjasaurusrex]

hey so i pretty much followed http://www.ft86club.com/forums/showthread.php?t=7826 but decided to post anyways

initially, i was just wanting to smoke my tail lights, but then one of my friends who has a black tacoma suggested that 'red looks better on black'. i looked at some pictures and decided that i didn't just want to red them, but smoke them as well..

these are the items i used: Shop light, VHT Nightshade Smoke and Red, Flathead screwdriver, Awl, and a 8mm wrench






first you have to take the single clip off of the rear carpet behind the tail light and fold it over to have access to the lights


there were two white zipties on my driver tail light holding wiring, but only one on my passenger one. i used my awl (from my tennis strining tools) to undo the zip tie, i wasn't able to use a screwdriver to undo the ziptie. afterwards there are just 4 nuts to unscrew to get the head light out


i just washed my car so my tails weren't too dirty, but i wiped them down with alcohol and then taped the top part that sticks out when the trunk is open





if i'm not mistaken, this was after 2 light coats of the Red Nightshade



this is where i differed from the original diy. he said he did 1 medium coat of the smoke and i thought that might be a little excessive and i have a heavy hand so i might have had runs...so i decided to do 2 light coats of the smoke tint. i'm not sure if this changes how the finish of the nightshade is, but mine are matted...i'm planning on wet sanding them when i get the chance and putting some clear on it


These are from the next morning








Thanks for reading! I hope it helps someone

[jm1681]

They look nice, I just hate the muted look of nightshaded tails. I think if I were to do this, I'd have to coat and recoat and REcoat with glossy clear, and buff the hell out of them till they shined like mirrors...