ST1300 LCD Panel Fix

The sometimes-unreadable LCD "nightmare" is now over, thanks to a fortuitous show-and-tell at WeSTOC and to Scott Woodruff at bluegauges.com who has added an optional Reverse Polarity procedure for the LCD panel to his array of colored backlights that changes the display to "black" on colored background. (a grid of LED's)
He will modify the LCD panel plus add backlights or, as I opted to do, a combo package of all-gauge backlights plus the LCD mod for under $200. Turnaround required about two weeks (you want a winter project? this is it!) and I am overjoyed with the result, as the LCD panel has been a pet peeve of mine from day 1. I selected all-white and readability is now excellent in any light condition, with or without sunglasses.
Now, why couldn't Honda have done this from the get-go?
Tim Shevlin Anaheim, CA

Thanks Tim, I was wondering what that combo looked like. I reeeeeeaaallly like that.

Hmm, but my bike is never down for 2 weeks.

Guess I need to find another instrument cluster...

Cool Tim!

Scott does great work!

I went the least expensive route and just had the right side display changed to red LED's.

What a world of difference!

I have yet to encounter a condition where I could not read my right side display since the mod by BlueGauges.

I never use the worthless speedo so, I don't really care if I can read it. Zumo for me on correct speed.

https://www.st-owners.com/forums/showthread.php?t=69490

Looks nice! Maybe in my future list of things to do to my ST!!

Looks great. Definitely added to the list of mods to the ST for me!

It's unreadable? I never have noticed in any situation not being able to read the panel at all. Some circumstances of glare or lighting render it less visible but never unreadable.

dduelin said:

It's unreadable? I never have noticed in any situation not being able to read the panel at all. Some circumstances of glare or lighting render it less visible but never unreadable.

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+1- I've never been unable to read my gauges.

http://www.st1100-1300.eu/data/xengallery_videos/2/2758-2edd11d07385f2283ab1623d8613850d.mp4

from every angle readable , thnx to Rex M who tried and succeed an upgrade of the dash!

dduelin said:

I never have noticed in any situation not being able to read the panel at all.

Click to expand...

Probably depending on seating height, thus viewing angle... I was not... hmm... *impressed* with the amber LCD solution in clear daylight while test riding the 1300...

But like Mellow I'd be concerned about night vision with the shown modification/s... either get it dimmable, or choose a dark "night vision red" as back-light...

ST1100Y said:

Probably depending on seating height, thus viewing angle... I was not... hmm... *impressed* with the amber LCD solution in clear daylight while test riding the 1300...

But like Mellow I'd be concerned about night vision with the shown modification/s... either get it dimmable, or choose a dark "night vision red" as back-light...

Click to expand...

6 years later and no change in comment on my part.

We're now doing something similar in the Netherlands. BlueGauges is well known, but the price is somewhat firm and the shipping back and forth between Europe and the States adds another $100. Plus the risk of losing a shipment, leaving you with an ST1300 and no cockpit . . We started this little project 2 months ago with a spare cockpit to experiment on, and we now have the first 2 bikes upgraded and 2 Cockpit Conversion Days (CCDs) planned! Most people opt for blue LEDs behind the gauges, and white behind the LCD. The improvement in contrast is quite staggering!

Thanks for the info

I've thought about this but an not crazy about pulling the dash. There's no winter out this way so that excuse is out.

I'm curious about the LCD panel. I've never had a problem reading the speedo or tach but maybe would like to change the color. But the LCD gets washed out all the time and it's even worse with a tinted visor. Not that I need to able to see it anytime but there are frequent occasions where I have to wait.

The difference in reversing the LCD lighting is dramatic. But I don't care for that look. It's in stark contrast to the rest of the lighting. Can the the LCD be reversed and have a different color backlight?

Are these SMC LEDs? I suppose adjustable instrument colors are out of the question on a practical non-cubic $$ level.

The LEDs are SMD indeed, and though it's possible to swap them using a regular soldering iron and SMD station is a far better option. The speedo and tacho aren't the issue, but the LCD is hard to read under many circumstances and the dimmer function is moot in the standard setup. With the bright white LEDs behind the LCDs, the dimmer actually becomes useful. I find myself riding with the LCD dimmed at night, and full bright in the daytime.

Reversing the LCD is only possible if you swap the polarisation, which is quite a challenge (but not impossible). It's lit up by no less than 28 SMD LEDs, and LEDs these days are a far cry from the ones Honda had at its disposal years ago. Just upgrading the LEDs alone (e.g. blue under the gauges and perhaps the HISS LED and white under the LCD), combined with placing a white diffusor already makes a world of difference.

Pulling the dash is the easy part though. Remove the wind screen and the plate underneath it, unscrew 4 screws under the shelf and 4 in the side pockets. Then just 2 more, behind each mirror and the dash can be taken out.

Nosegear said:

Cockpit Conversion Days (CCDs)

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Outstanding! That would be a great event to attend if I were somewhat local. Ride in with a disappointing LCD panel and ride out with completely legible panel in all lighting conditions! I'm curious: how long does a conversion take at a CCD? How many would you expect to get completed in on CCD?

You're quite correct abut the usefulness of the dimmer on a stock display: it's useless. On my bike it's never out of the High position and it's weak at that except for night use.

Thanks for the info on removing the dash. This upgrade is something I'll consider after contacting BlueGauges. I've done a lot of soldering over the years but have had no hands-on with an SMCs LED or otherwise.

That's exactly what we're trying to achieve with those days! We want to see them drive off with blue-lit smiles so wide they'll need medical assistance to take their helmets off! BTW, we also replace the HISS LED with a very bright blue one - almost hurts when you see it in the dark . . Kind of looks like a Clifford alarm system was installed.

At this time we estimate we can do some 8 cockpits a day (from 0900-1900). 2 Experienced volunteers remove and restore the cockpits, while the one techie disassembles the cockpit further, removes the old LEDs, bakes in the new ones and tests and reassembles the thing again so that the team can place it back on the bike. The diffusor that smoothens the bright white light that comes from the 28 (!) LEDs is also changed from yellow to white in the process.

The techie needs about 50 minutes per cockpit, but I need to add that we've purchased a dedicated SMD soldering station just for that. The risky part is in the disassembling en reassembling of the cockpit, as the speedo and RPM needles need to be removed (and correctly repositioned lateron) and the HISS LED is soldered to the mainboard *through* the light spreaders. It's very easy to cause cosmetic or even functional damage.

Case you wonder what it all would look like, here are 2 flicks we shot (nothing fancy, just using cell phones).
Dash outside in the dark (starts with a mighty flash of the HISS LED). Also note the Pan European logo on the right being blue lit as well:
[video=youtube;afwIwp3Zl34]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=afwIwp3Zl34[/video]

Dash dimmer now has an actual purpose:
[video=youtube;LR71opRE8tY]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LR71opRE8tY[/video]

Sadly the chances you'll be riding in on one of these CCDs are slim: the great circle distance between Oakland CA and Almelo, the Netherlands where the surgery is performed is an odd 5470 miles or 8800 kilometers . . oPoST1:

I had no idea the needles need to be removed. Is that part of the dash removal process from the bike or in the disassembling for replacing the LEDs? That's an impressive operation. I'm sure your fellow riders appreciate the service. That's no small investment in gear either. That's a very cool thing being done.

That wouldn't be a ride. That would be an adventure!

​Thanks for all the details and video!

fnmag said:

The distance isn't so bad as the water between NA and Europe!

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I thought about that but ruled out pontoons and a paddle wheel.

ST Gui said:

I had no idea the needles need to be removed. Is that part of the dash removal process from the bike or in the disassembling for replacing the LEDs?

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Just for replacing the LCD's. Have to remove the face plate to get to the circuit board and brains of the dash where the LED's are mounted.
Normal dash removal has the instrument pod come off in one piece. You can even split the case to do work inside without removing the needles. But if you want to get to the LED's behind the gauges, have steady hands and clean fingers.