More on "Smoked" headlights

[cory.langford@icbc.com (Cory Langford)]

Awesome, the list comes through again :)  

Now that we know how they work (reflective black image) how can we build
some for our Euros. Who is willing to take their set of lenses apart ;)

-- 
Cory Langford
'86 Oettinger turbo project
'83 driver




-----Original Message-----
From: Tobias >< 
Sent: Tuesday, May 07, 2002 1:23 PM
To:  scirocco-l@scirocco.org
Subject: Re: More on "Smoked" headlights



Ok, hold it right there. The blacked out lights for the other models
aren't 
tinted. Tinting the reflector surface kills light output.

How those headlights are designed:
Color all non reflecting surfaces, and any non functional reflecting 
surfaces black.

Then, you need two pieces of black material .. the stuff in the
headlights 
is like super compressed cardboard. From the front this setup looks like
a + 
  .... basically you insert a vertical and horizontal plane into the 
reflector, with an opening for the lightbulb/lightbulb and shield. These 
planes don't interfere with the light sent out since they are at 90
degrees 
to the light source, but, will reflect off the shiney parts because they
are 
essentially opposite them.

Hella also makes a driving light that looks totally black from the
front. 
This utilizes a photosensitive sheet that lets light shine through one
way 
but otherwise looks black.

The other headlights use projectors and basically use a black shield in 
front with a hole in the center for the projector lense.

Tinting/painting any of the "functional" parts of a headlight will just
kill 
the light output. You have to color the headlight based on principals of 
reflection.

There's one other design I saw on a set of rabit lights. Inside the
light, 
behind the glass was a black honeycomb mesh about 10mm deep. Again, this 
only minimizes the light output slighty, but gives the impression of a
black 
headlight standing back a bit.

HTH,
Tobias