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Pelican light shield modification walkthrough
Disclaimer: I Will NOT be held responsible for people modifying their Gameboy Advances or accessories which may void the accessory warranty or the Gameboy Advance Warranty. If you wish to modify a light shield or similar accessory I will NOT be held responsible for any damage you may do. Use the information on these pages at your own risk!
Warning! If you use an LED other than the world's brightest" LED that I sell at this site, I recommend that you keep the dimmer switch on the lowest setting at all times, especially when playing a GB or GBC game.
Note: Please sign the guestbook if you have success with the mod, Thank You!
These instructions were written assuming that the reader has had some basic electronics and project experience. They are specifically written for the Pelican Accessories Light Shield.
If you have a version 3 light shield please click here. I used this shield since it seems to be the best shield accessory currently available quality-wise. The shield hinge is tight and stays in place once you've angled it to your preference.
you will need:
- a Pelican accessories light shield
- a 5mm world's brightest" LED or similar
- a soldering iron(preferrably low wattage, I used a 25watt) and solder
- a tri-wing security screwdriver bit (you can also use a small flathead screwdriver [5/64"] to remove the tri-wing screws, but be very gentle and do not force them)
- small sidecutters, scissors or similar to snip off original bulb
- clear scotch tape or black electrical tape (depending on insulating color preference)
- an exacto knife or something that you can make a pilot hole with
- a drill and a 3/16 drill bit
- #0000 steel wool
- wire strippers, or you may use the tip of the soldering iron to melt the insulation off of the leads, but if you do this be careful not to take off too much!
Step 1a
Remove the four screws that hold the light fixture/wire guide in place.
step 1a image
Step 1b
Use #0000 steel wool to sand the tip of the LED, and set it aside.
Note: This allows the LED's light to diffuse properly and cuts down considerably on the glare.
step 1b image
Step 2
You should now have the light fixture/wire guide off and there should be 2 wires coming out of the base of the unit connected to the bulb. You need to snip off the bulb, then slide the reflector off of the wires. With the added size of the LED the reflector would not fit back into the unit.
step 2 image
Step 3
Strip the ends of the 2 wires to prep them for soldering. Do not strip off more than 1/8 of an inch of the insulation(plastic).
Step 4
Mark the center of the "light panel" on the fixture/wire guide with an exacto knife or a small punch to create a pilot hole for the drilling process. Next, drill the hole that the LED will fit through. Caution: make sure you use the correct size bit or the LED will fall through, or it will fit too tightly.
step 4 image
Step 5
Bend the leads of the LED 90 degrees to the side so that they create a right angle with the LED, and insert it into the hole you just drilled(make sure that the leads are facing the wire guide like in the picture). You'll now need to trim the leads off of the LED; snip 1/2 inch off of each lead so that they extend just to the edge of the "light panel" see picture.
step 5 image
Step 6 -testing-
Attach the light shield to GBA, turn the light shield's power switch on and put in a gameboy advance game. Now, turn on GBA. Touch the 2 wires to the leads of the LED at the same time. If they are hooked up incorrectly the LED will not light, if they are connected correctly it will light. Once you have determined which wire goes to which lead, I suggest marking the wire and corresponding lead with a marker so you know which wire to solder to which lead.
Step 7
Solder the wires onto the LED's leads. I've found that the fixture acts as a great "handle" to hold the LED steady while you solder. You could also use something as a stand(as in the picture). When done soldering, insulate one or both of the leads with the clear scotch tape or black tape. I used scotch tape since my shield color is the transparent purple color and didn't want it to look like there was a black thing in it when the shield was viewed from behind :) If you do a neat job there is almost no need to insulate the wires since the LED's leads are naturally stiff enough to hold the wires apart. So as long as you didn't strip too much insulation off of the wires you will not need worry about it shorting out.
step 7 image
Step 8 -testing part 2-
Now, plug the shield into the GBA and make sure that you have the correct wire soldered to the correct lead. No need to put the fixture back on with the screws at this point, just steady it while you plug it into the GBA. If you did it right, the light will light up; if not, then you need to reverse your wires.
Step 9
Once you've made sure that the light is functioning it's time to put it back together.
the only tricky part is getting the wires to fit under the skinny guide piece (depending on how bent out of shape the wires have gotten by this point). I've found that if i place it together the way it should fit and then lightly guide the wires up under the edge with a small flathead screwdriver(or pen) they slip into place. Finally, screw the 4 screws back into place that hold the fixture onto the shield.
step 9 image
Conclusion and Top Issues
This mod isn't perfect and yes, you will still have to get the right angle to fight the glare, but all in all it works better than anything you can walk into the store and buy right now(in my humble opinion).
Battery life was tested with panasonic alkaline batteries and averaged around 10 hours of constantly lit operation. I believe rayovac batteries might last a while longer. While on the power subject, I have not tested the performance of this mod with an AC adapter.
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