Im going to do the LED gauge cluster swap myself. Maybe the hvac too. I checked out radio shack and im gonna get a solder iron there.
My question is... For the DIYs ive read on how to do it the led swaps, they all say 15 to 20 or 15 to 30 watt soldering iron. Wel at radio shack they have 15, 20, 25, 30 and i think a 40 watt iron. Which ones the best to get?? This will also be my first time doing this so whatever will work the easiest with my noobness too.

 

Make sure you do a lot of practice soldering. Find some old electronic device that you don't need anymore, take components off of the circuit board and try to resolder them and have the cooled solder look similar to the other components on the board. Soldering became second nature to me as I was a certified welder. Honestly let a shop do it, rather than not getting it right the first time and having to pay a shop to finish the work. Then again you could be a professional and not even know it.

 

Thats a good idea. I think ill do that. Well if i have any problems my step brother works at a hot rod shop and all he does is metal body work a welding so im sure he could help me out with that.
Any idea on what a good wattage would be for me to get?

 

welding and soldering are not even the same

I suggest a 30. And dont crack any screens!

 

really? it is all about your control of the molten metal and the 2 pieces your connecting.

 

Just curious, why is a higher wattage better?

 

in a sense of scale. LED's are small, welding a car/bike = huge.

 

yeah practice first on something that is dead already.....find an old radio or something and practice removing solder and removing resisters till you got it down......screw up on the car and it gets spendy fast.

 

if its your first time i would hate to see you mess it up. There are some GREAT people on this forum that would be more than happy to do it for you. You are guaranteed an awesome product and 100% functional.

 

I know ive seen two guys on here for it. One guy that has some garage92348010442040 website. How much would that run me for gauge cluster and hvac. I really didn't want to spend a lot of money cuse i just got laid off so moneys an issue this month. It really didn't look that hard that's why i thought i could do it.
I was thinking white and blue for hvac and gauges.

 

i found it easy soldering my gauges and HVAC. Get a 15 watts soldering iron and some thin solder. You should also invest in some locking forceps. Made it easy to hold the tiny LEDs. Take your time and you will be happy with the results.

For the gauge cluster, two tone in the way to go.

 

I think il get a solder and try it out on something. it really doesn't look that hard i just gotta be careful and work slow and i don't have a problem with that. Am i right?

And yeah i think the 2 tone looks good. Im gonna get some normal LEDs though cuse i don't like the super dooper bright ones. They'll just give me a headache.

 

also get yourself a solder sucker or they have solder wire. Its a brass braided wire and it will suck up left over solder.

 

Are you thinking of a solder wick by any chance?

 

yes thank you lol.

 

Garage1217.com FTW. Contact Jeremy. He's awesome and does great work. His prices are good to and he has raw parts if needed. Check my sig for the site also.

 

Here is a writeup on soldering for your swap. Hope it helps
That garage92348010442040 guy wrote it up *LOL*

If you have any questions, feel free to pm me.

And by the way, do NOT use solder wick to remove the screen. Use a solder sucker. Rat shack carries one that works decent in a blue aluminum body.

https://www.scionlife.com/forums/vie...ht=solder+plcc

 

I almost ready to try it on my yaris........been practicing my soldering and it is hard as heck to get one side loose and then the other untill you practice......Jeremy would be worth every penny........LOL....his work is very nice.

Once my wife gets bored with the 087 orange kick it is going to him to get a nice red and blue with white.

 

Okay thanks for the info. The link you gave me i already had in my favorites lol I'll practice and see how i do and i will deffinetly pm you if i have any questions. AND if im not quite confident in my skills then you will deffinetly be getting a call mr. garage92348010442040 guy