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NF/NL instrument cluster questions.... 

 

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 Post subject: NF/NL instrument cluster questions....
Posted: Fri Nov 03, 2006 10:26 am 
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I'm not going to try and do an EL to NL/NF cluster conversion, (too much mucking around, and I don't have a spare car I can drive its it all goes pear shaped!!!) but I am curious about a few things.


1. Has anyone ever tried using the NF/NL needles or dial-pieces on an EF/EL cluster? (I don't think the Dials would fit, wrong shape... but needles might!)

2. I am curious about whether the NF/NL style dials can be obtained for the EF/EL. I have already swapped my EL grey dials for EF black ones, and retained the orange needles,
Image
but I would like to have the italicised font from the EL back, but with a black background,
Image


Any thoughts? (And no, I'm not going to go experimenting making them out of paper and texta's just yet :-) I'd rather use the genuine articles if its at all possible... I'm not much of an artist.)


If I can get the dials and needles from a wrecked fairlane at pick and pay more or somewhere like that, then I might just try it out and see if it works!
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Posted: Fri Nov 03, 2006 11:21 am 
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I have tried exactly that and after about an hour of thinking and putting the two bits together I put it in the "no can do" basket!!

The cluster backgrounds are actually quite different in shape and unless you started cutting them out and hacking to make them fit - they don't match up!!!

 

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Posted: Fri Nov 03, 2006 11:25 am 
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Happy wrote:
I have tried exactly that and after about an hour of thinking and putting the two bits together I put it in the "no can do" basket!!

The cluster backgrounds are actually quite different in shape and unless you started cutting them out and hacking to make them fit - they don't match up!!!


Darn! And here I thought I had an original idea ;-)

I don't like the idea of hacking them up....
I wonder if the needles will fit though?
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Posted: Fri Nov 03, 2006 11:29 am 
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hehe .. yeah I picked up an NF cluster cheap cheap with the thought of doing the same thing about 6 months ago. Surprisingly they are just too different! From the pics you would think without too much trouble you could do it .. but alas :(

 

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Posted: Fri Nov 03, 2006 11:36 am 
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just looking at the pics, seems the needles in the high series are abit longer and might hit the surround of the mid series.

Good idea though, i'll have a look this weekend to see if there is any way of having the high series style made to fit a mid or low series (ie numbers, line shapes)

 

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Posted: Fri Nov 03, 2006 11:38 am 
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concorde wrote:
just looking at the pics, seems the needles in the high series are abit longer and might hit the surround of the mid series.

I was thinking the same thing... (about the needles...)
concorde wrote:
Good idea though, i'll have a look this weekend to see if there is any way of having the high series style made to fit a mid or low series (ie numbers, line shapes)

Let me know how it turns out.
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Posted: Fri Nov 03, 2006 11:43 am 
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i have a template for both high and mid series clusters, just need to find them and check gauge format/size.

 

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Posted: Fri Nov 03, 2006 2:17 pm 
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NL clusters are pure sex, not as good as the digital boxcar one but, if i where you i'd be thinking of putting in the whole cluster, its not hard and theres a few docos on it as well.

 

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Posted: Sat Nov 04, 2006 11:17 am 
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Although I love the NL Cluster, I'm not interested in going through the pain and expense that other members have :-)

I'm happy with my own little mod, but just was thinking out loud about how to make it that little bit nicer.
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Posted: Sun Nov 05, 2006 6:55 pm 
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Man the Fairlane ones look so impressive, definately a mod I'll have to do one day.

 

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Posted: Mon Nov 06, 2006 1:01 am 
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What about this...

Get some EL templates.
Change the font and stuff to NL style (no idea how to do that).
Snad down the needles to make them thinner and more NL like.

Would that work?
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Posted: Mon Nov 06, 2006 11:16 am 
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twirqurky wrote:
What about this...

Get some EL templates.
Change the font and stuff to NL style (no idea how to do that).
Snad down the needles to make them thinner and more NL like.

Would that work?


Yeah that'd work . Getting the lighting even is the trick.
There are loads of people on here that have changed the dials, and even a tech doc on how to do It I think.
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