I have been trying to find the correct paint to paint my gauge needles. The problem is the needles do not light up like they did stock. I have tried painting them with several different paints. They look great in the day time, but I am not happy with how they look at night. I have tried taking pictures but they dont show up right. so I am not going to post any.

I have even tried using fluorescent paints but the needle still do not "glow."
These are the paints I have tried so far:
http://www2.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin...?&I=LXVT59&P=0
http://www2.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin...?&I=LXVT44&P=M
http://www2.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin...?&I=LXCY02&P=0 (which is really pink)

I have even tried backing the transparent read with fluorescent white and light sanding the needles to increase reflectivity.
Anyone know the type of paint they paint them with originally?or maybe even somewhere that sells red gauge needles?

 

back when I had a Ford ZX2, I had gotten white faced gauges. The needles in the ZX2 are white stock so I had to do something. I used a transparency marker like the ones used for overhead projectors. The color worked well on the clear needle but I don't know how well it would work on an orange one. The color from the marker went on good enough you just had to be careful that you apply it smoothly and not too thick. One downside is that it did tend to fade over time. You'll probably have to reapply every 6 mos.

P.S. The only color that looked decent was red. All of the others were just too dark. Hope this helps you.

Some pics of the gauges. http://www.cardomain.com/ride/456101/2