I've actually done this, so I know a little about it. First off it's not paint on the back of the needles, it's done by a process called "foaming" when the plastic is curing, as the needles are made. It is possible to use a thin layer of transparent paint over the back of the needle without scraping the white off, but that doesn't work that well IMO. If you want to remove the "white" on the back, it needs to be scraped off with an exacto knife, VERY carefully, as it's easy to break the needle in the process. After you remove the "white" you can paint the bottoms the color of your choice, but the lighter colors work better. To remove the needles the best thing to use is a dinner fork. You must be careful not to mix them up as well. Some are weighted, and some have small plastic pins. If it doesn't matter to you if they illuminate, then you can paint the tops, but remember the more paint you apply, the more your chances are that the calibration can be altered. You may find a better way to do it, but it might be better to just leave them alone!
Good luck!
-Jeff
:eek:
PS-There are no aftermarket needles that I know of, but it's a good idea to go to a salvage yard, and pich up an entire cluster, pull the needles out, and work on those, then just swap them into your cluster.