This page is part of my Custom Lighting Mod series of articles.

DISCLAIMER: If you choose to attempt any of these modifications, you assume all risks thereof. I just wanted to share my experiences here. Neither Agora Models, nor myself, are responsible for any damages that may occur.

Lighting Stage 49

In Stage 49,  we are supposed to be closing up the rear Box Frame section of the model by adding the Roof Section to it. However, we are going to wait until Stage 50 to do this as I want to modify the Warning Bar as well and affixing the Roof now blocks access to our components.

Wiring the Box Frame

I made the decision to use the left-side ladder storage cavity of the Box Frame to store all of my lighting boards and extra wiring, so I drilled a 1/4″ hole in the bottom of the Box Frame at this location:

Next, I attached the Midsection and Cab assemblies to the Box Frame per the instructions in Stage 49. All of the Midsection and Cab wiring was then run through this new hole and into the Box Frame cavity where it was attached to the various Effects Boards:

Rear Beacon Lights

Instead of using the stock Rear Beacon PCBs, I removed them completely. I then used a tiny drop of my Solarez Thin-Hard UV Resin to secure Micro Bit Light (Red) LEDs to the flat surface  of two LED Diffusers I saved from earlier stages:

To help diffuse the light of these plastic ‘LED’s better, I gently sanded the domes of each one:

I then used super glue to secure these modified LED Diffusers on top of the rear Roof Section, as shown. Be careful not to get any glue into the ridge where the Rear Beacon Covers will go:

A quick connection to a Micro Expansion Board proves that our new Rear Beacon lights are working OK:

The wiring of these new LEDs is small enough that it can just be fed directly into the Box Frame cavity. I connected these Rear Beacon lights to my Pulse Effects Board (same as the High Beam Headlights) via 15cm Connecting Cables and 4-port Micro Expansion Boards:

Finally, I tucked all of the Effects Boards, Expansion Boards, and any extra wiring into the left-side cavity of the Box Frame. All of this needs to be carefully arranged inside the Box Frame so it does not stick out the top. You may also notice that I used electrical tape on the boards to keep them from shorting on each other. The various colors are used to indicate which Effects Board things are attached to:

Wiring

The Rear Beacon Lights were connected to the resistored sockets of new Micro 4-port Expansion Boards and the connected to the forward 6-port Expansion Board via 15cm Connecting Cables on the way to the Pulse Effects Board.

Next Custom Lighting Page

LIGHTING 50 – Adding our custom lighting to Stage 50