In any earlier post I detailed how I installed LED strip lights in American Models Budd cars.
Part two will show how to install LED strip lights in one of the new Budd dome cars...in both the lower level and the dome seating area.
The parts list remains the same as the Part one components with one addition. You will need to fabricate a styrene or plexiglass strip to mount the strip lights in the lower level. This will allow you to retain the original LED carrying circuit board supplied with the car should you choose to change the car back to original condition at a later date. Also a fellow forum member Mike A A has alerted me to another type of voltage regulator that is a lot smaller than the one referenced in part one. I have not tried this alternate regulator but it looks like it could also work.
So...first remove the shell:
inside the car you will see this:
The green thing is the circuit board that contains a tiny rectifier (and/or diodes), resistors, 5 tiny LEDs that shine down, 2 larger LEDs that light the dome and the molded dome seating. I chose to not use or modify this board in case something went horribly wrong with my conversion. To remove the board de-solder the truck power wires at each end and remove the two tiny screws at the ends. Retain all parts for possible future use. When the board is off the car you will see this:
The six plastic dots under the board secure the molded dome seats to the board. If you pry gently (repeat GENTLY) between the board and the seats at each of the six locations the seats will come loose but will still be tied to the board by the legs of two LEDs that light the dome. You could (A.) cut the legs of the LEDs ; (B.) de-solder the LEDs from the board; or (C.) enlarge the holes in the seating mold so the LEDs slip out. I chose (C.). Using the hot tip of a pencil soldering iron CAREFULLY WIDEN THE HOLES just enough to allow the LEDs to slip through. Be careful not to touch the seats with the hot iron!
Now you will have this:
OK the next thing to do is manufacture a piece of styrene or plexiglass the same size as the circuit board. Try to use a piece of stock the same thickness as the original board. It will be 11 inches long and 3/4 inch wide. Use the green circuit board as a template to drill seating mount holes (1/16" diameter), board mounting holes (1/8" diameter) and enlarge the original LED holes to about 3/16" or 1/4" diameter so the plug end of the mini plug wires that travel up to the dome can pass through.
Attach some foam tape (offset to one side) and a 15 light strip ( type 3528) of LEDs to the under side. Under the area where the dome seats will be add a mini plug that will attach to the voltage regulator and ANOTHER mini plug that will power the 3 light LED strip in the dome. Next you need a means of connecting the truck power wires together and getting the track power to the rectifier. I did it with 2 color coded wires and a mini plug that will connect to the rectifier. I hot glued the wires to the edges of the board. Attach the seats in the 6 mounting holes allowing the dome light plug to pass through the seats. Finished the new board looks like this:
Test to see if the new board fits onto the mounting posts. Here's where I got into a little trouble. My plexiglass was 1/8" thick. That was just too thick to allow the seats to enter the dome freely. The seats contacted the clear dome plastic and didn't allow the chassis to slip into the shell fully. So instead of starting over I decided to LOWER the entire board slightly. Luckily there are two plastic mounting bosses under the seat area. They were not used originally. To use them I had to shorten them by 1/8" (use a dremel). The original screws were too short so I had to scrounge in my "tiny screws container" to find some that would work. (SIDE NOTE... If you don't have a "tiny screws container" you haven't been ruining nearly enough stuff and salvaging all the reusable parts.) Now another problem arose. The original board mounting posts were too tall now. Luckily they have removable extensions screwed into them. Remove the extensions and save for future use. You can now secure the board to the end posts with what ever screws and shims work for you. When you are satisfied with the fit remove the board so we can install the electronics.
I glued the Rectifier and capacitor in an area under the dome seats. I was able to slip fit the voltage regulator in one of the bathroom areas. Connect the mini plug from the truck wires glued to the board to the mating plug soldered to the AC inputs of the rectifier. Connect a mini plug to the DC outputs on the rectifier to the mating plug on the DC inputs on the voltage regulator. Connect a mini plug to the outputs of the voltage regulator to the mating plug soldered to the 15 light LED strip. Finished the car interior looks like this:
Now reinstall the board and solder the truck power wires at each end of the car to the wires glued to the edges of the board. Power up the car and adjust the DC output to 10 VDC. Hopefully you'll see this:
If so...GOOD JOB! If not 
...go back and check your work.
Now onto the dome lights. With foam tape attach a 3 LED section (with mini-plug attached) to the center of the underside of the dome.
Connect the dome LED strip to the pre-installed mating plug that comes up through the seats from the lower LED strip. Now the entire car should be lit up:
If so.....YOU ARE FINISHED!
I don't mean this post to be the end-all be-all solve every problem you may encounter if you elect to do this project. You may encounter other problems or solutions I haven't covered here. However the difference between an LED strip lit car and the factory supplied LEDs shown at 6 VAC input is tremendous:
GOOD LUCK WITH YOUR CONVERSION!
Mark
