6 replies to this topic

[TeddytheSpoon]

So I've had an idea to make some spotlight covers with a custom logo on them. Does anyone have any experience with how to go about this?

I'm thinking of soft rather than hard plastic covers, so I guess some sort of leather or vinyl would be the best choice, with a drawstring to keep them on. Does that sound sensible?

As far as getting the logo on there goes, what's the easiest/most durable option? I've seen embroidered ones, and I know screen printing is an option. But the design I've got has a fair few small features, so not sure how I can get those across.

And if anyone happened to have some templates kicking about, they're 5" Wipac spotlights!

[timmy850]

You could try a place like this that can custom make them (I’ve not used them but they have a lot of different products)

https://www.retro-racer.co.uk/

[DeadSquare]

The best thought out auxiliary lamp covers were made of a perspex front with a faux leather "glove"  covering the the body.

 

In the event of unexpectedly encountering fog. the lights could be turned on, enabling the car to be driven to a suitable area, where the covers covers could be safely removed.

[TfcIan]

Bit of a bump, but did you get anywhere with this?

 

I've got Lucas 20-20 lamps on my Mini and the plastic covers are a bit tatty so I've been considering making some soft ones as I'd be looking at over £100 for 3 if I bought ready-made ones.

[stuart bowes]

Id probably want to stay away from fabric based options in favour of something wipe-clean.  bearing in mind it's on the front getting sprayed by road muck all the time

[TfcIan]

Id probably want to stay away from fabric based options in favour of something wipe-clean.  bearing in mind it's on the front getting sprayed by road muck all the time

I've decided to order some waterproof PU faux leather fabric and just give it a go. Worst case scenario is I've wasted £6 and a bit of time (assuming I don't sew my fingers together with the sewing machine). 

 

A little bit of Googling suggests that heat-transfer vinyl can be applied to this fabric if you're careful, so that could be an option for getting a logo on the front. I'll look into that a bit more if/when I successfully make something resembling a spot lamp cover.

[TfcIan]

So I'm back with an update and can report that this was fairly easy with a sewing machine, although I'm a bit of a plonker when it comes to measuring and planning. Each of the 3 I made are slightly different but I don't think you'll be able to tell when they're on.

I'll run through the process I followed, apologies for the naff pictures.

 

Materials: 

Faux Leather PU fabric (100cm x 140cm was enough for 3 7" lamps)

Vilene Style-Vil Sew In Foam Interfacing (for the padding to protect the glass)

Eyelets and tool to fit them (mine were 6mm internal diameter)

Acrylic/polyester rope (needs to be same thickness or thinner than eyelets!)

Threading tool

Logos in heat-transfer vinyl (optional).

 

 

Step 1:

On the foam interfacing, mark out the circle front piece with a compass. My lamps are 7" (178mm) so I decided a 190mm diameter circle would make it snug without being tight, plus a seam allowance is required. So I drew a 200mm diameter circle and inside that, a 190mm diameter circle.

Cut out around the 200mm circle.

Mark around this circle on the reverse side of the PU fabric and cut out.

Step 2:

Calculate the circumference of the inner circle - 190mm diamter = 597mm circumference. Add on 10mm seam allowance for each end: 617mm. This will be the length of the rectangle piece.

The width will depend on the shape of your spotlights and whether you want the covers to completely cover the backs or not when the drawstring is tightened. If you're unsure, measure from the rim to the back center of one of your lights, which should be your absolute maximum but I'd still subtract a bit off that even if you want it fully closed at the back.

You then need to add 20mm onto whatever you decide the width should be - this will be folded over to create a channel for the drawstring. If you're using larger eyelets and rope than me (6mm), you need to add more on.

If you look at the thumbnail in step 3, it might make what I've said here a bit clearer.

Mark this rectangle out on the reverse of the PU fabric and cut out.

 

Step 3: 

Fold over 10mm at each end of the rectangle.

From the top of the long edge, draw lines along the length at 20mm and 40mm (or whatever you added on in step 2 if using larger eyelets/rope). 

Mark out the position for the eyelets at either end. You want them to be 30mm from the top (halfway between your 20mm and 40mm lines) and just inside the 10mm foldover.

Hopefully the image below makes this bit clear if I've explained it poorly. My eyelets are actually a bit further in that they were meant to be as I made a mistake with the 10mm foldover.

When you're happy with all your markings, cut a small hole for the eyelets and press them into place, making sure the nice side is on the front side of the leather..

 

Step 4:

Sew along the 10mm foldover at each end and fasten off.
Then, fold over on the 20mm line so that the top of the rectangle touches the 40mm line and pin/clip. 

Sew this fold over down, leaving a small seam allowance. Be careful of the eyelets if there isn't much of a gap.

 

Step 5:

Now comes the trickiest bit. Clip the foam circle and PU circle together, Make sure you're inner circle line on the foam is facing out on once side and the front of the PU is facing out on the other.

You then need to put together the circle and rectangle. You need the circle PU side down, rectangle PU side up, joined at the corner edge of the rectangle on the opposite side to the drawstring foldover.

Again, poorly explained so hopefully the picture below helps.

Start sewing slowly along the inner circle line. Your rectangle piece should be fed in straight whilst you rotate the circle piece to keep sewing along the line. See this Youtube video for a demonstration on how to do this: 

 

Try not to pull on the rectangle piece as you sew, the PU fabric does have a little bit of stretch to it.

If all your measurements are correct, in theory you should complete the circumference of the circle as you reach the end of the rectangle.

My measurements weren't correct due to the mistake I mentioned in step 3, so I still had about 20mm of rectangle left. I just carried on sewing around so that there was an overlap. If you have any more than 20mm over then it's probably too much to overlap, and something has clearly gone wrong somewhere.

Fasten off all your ends and maybe take the opportunity to reinforce the start/finish point as this will be the most likely point of failure for the stitching during use.

 

 

Step 6:

Your cover should now be spotlamp shaped but inside-out, so turn it outside-in and admire your work.

Use your threading tool to thread the drawstring through one eyelet and around the cover to come out the other eyelet.I tied a knot at one end next to the eyelet to stop it going through the hole, made sure the fabric it wasn't bunched up anywhere and then tied a knot at the other eyelet before cutting both ends near to the knots. This made sure the drawstring was as short as possible when 'open' so that it wasn't stupidly long well pulled tight around the spotlight.

Alternatively - I haven't tried this - you could use some elastic cord. If you do this, you'd want the elastic as short as possible so that the cover is cinched shut by default, although they have to be long enough that the cover can be fully opened. This would make them quicker to put on/take off but the cord might degrade quicker than the rope I used.

(I still need to fasten off my ends from step 5)

 

Step 7:

Test fit on your spotlight, hopefully it's a good fit!

The foam interfacing should give it a nice amount of cushioning to the glass to protect from stonechips. You can double up the foam circles if you want more cushioning, just see how it feels on a lamp before sewing.

 

 

I have ordered some custom Lucas logos in heat-transfer vinyl from an ebay store. They worked out at just under £5 each which was pretty reasonable, although if you know somebody with a cricut then they could undoubtedly do them cheaper.

I'm still waiting for those to arrive and then it remains to be seen whether I can apply them successfully without damaging the PU.

 

UPDATE:

I had the Lucas logos made into HTV, had to take my time with application to avoid damaging the PU leather. It probably would have been easier to apply these first as all the guides I found on applying these said a hard surface helps and to even avoid ironing board because of the padded cover. Downside of doing that would be you'd need to be extra careful with sewing to make sure the logo is straight once finished.

Here's a pic of one of the finished covers (now I just need to get the car finished so I can see how they survive out on the road!)

 

UPDATE 2:

Final update, but finally got around to fitting the spotlights to the car with all three covers on. Very happy with how they've turned out.

 

Edited by TfcIan, 05 January 2026 - 10:16 AM.