See, I don't think that's wut is happening in my case. I have my reverse indigs on BRIGHT, and only thing I adjust is the bulbs with the dimmer. the needles themselves are lit up by the bulbs behind the gauge cluster (trust me, i've experimented by pulling them out and putting them back in). it's this light that is actually seeping in around the gauge circles and making them look crappy (imagine a solar eclipse, that's what it looks like only to a lesser degree). When i pull out the bulbs, problem solved - only the needles are DARK.

that's why i want to tint the bulbs, so i can have my Dash bright but my gauge cluster dark. hope that makes sense.