hotbyte
Barnesville GA
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Joined: 08/31/2004
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I tried a kit on our '98 Durango. It helped some but not "like new."
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2006 Yellowstone SE, 1998 Dodge Durango SLT 5.2L and 2011 Tidewater 1900 Bay Max
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modmidget
Woodland, CA
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Joined: 05/09/2002
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I use a damp cloth and toothpaste. It works well and it's a lot cheaper than those "kits" that cost $10.00 to $20.00 or more.
I use Colgate, but I dont think the brand really matters. It took about 10 minutes to buff out both headlights.
To some it's a six pack, to me it's a support group.
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aslakson
Fulltiming in the Lower 48
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Joined: 12/16/2005
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Took our toad to WalMart - $40, they did the work, the headlights are beautiful! We didn't think they could be salvaged after 60,000 miles of towing and road crud.
Hardest part was killing the 2 hours in a WalMart. Those benches are NOT comfortable.
al
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Replant
Vero Beach, Florida
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Mike,
The lenses on both of my vans were covered with a cloudy haze. To clean them I used very little effort & a terry cloth to rub Mothers Mag & Aluminum Cleaner (which cost about $5 at an Auto Supply store). The result was amazing. I then sprayed on Aerospace 303 Protectorant and buffed them dry. They now look like new.
Once they are cleaned the trick is to use the 303 on a regular basis. My S/I/L has been using it on their 2002 Explorer since it was new and the headlights have never been restored but are perfectly clear and look like new thanks to 303.
Here's some before and after photos. In the top photo compare the left and right side of the upper portion of the pic.
* This post was
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Pandora's Box
1993 Four Winds 29' Class C
Finally on the road but still getting rehab.
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markandkim
Swansea, MA.
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Toothpaste is the way to go ,definately.
Retired Military Campers
2008 Dakota 4.7L 2012 Hemi 1500 (soon)
2010 Amer-Lite 255BH
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ron.dittmer
Northern Illinois
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Joined: 02/26/2007
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It is NOT what you put on the lens. True restoration is what you REMOVE FROM IT. Any automotive product that removes minor scratches from painted surfaces works great to remove yellowing, fading or fogging of headlight lenses. Walmart used to sell a product called Scratch Out made by Kit. Today they sell somethingvery similar made by Turtle Wax. Both are very cheap, maybe $3 a bottle, found next to the car waxes.
Most headlight lenses have those raised stems for beam adjustment which prevents using a buffer which would have provided fast and perfect results. Tail light lenses are more for buffers. Buffer or not, the polishing products I mentioned have very tiny abrasives in the liquid, enough to remove the pitted surface plastic, leaving behind a "Like New" lens, this assumed there is no inside contamination of the lens. Some lenses can leak over time which is another problem.
I have done this to many vehicle tail and head light lenses, both my own vehicles and also where I volunteer Here
* This post was
edited 01/28/12 12:51pm by ron.dittmer *
2007 Phoenix Cruiser model 2350, with 2006 Jeep Liberty in-tow
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Acampingwewillgo
USA
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Joined: 11/15/2002
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Plain old Rubbing Compound on a small buffing wheel will do the trick also!
96 Vogue Prima Vista 37' CAT 3176B
Our Babies: Mollie, Rubie, Cassie and Maggie, all rescued Cavalier King Charles Spaniels
Rally's and get togethers.....Lots
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campinginthewoods
Central ILL
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mikeleblanc413 wrote:Turbo Diesel Dude wrote:After three hours, gave up on my DWs cars lites. Bought new ones for $79.95 per pair with bulbs to my door. 15 mins to change. This was for a 1996 Chevt Lumina.
AWESOME!!! Where did you order them from?
Try here Rockauto.com
"Our family is a circle of love and strength.
With every birth and every union, the circle grows. Every joy shared adds more love.
Every crisis faced together makes the circle stronger. "
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Normk
Canada's Wet Coast
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The 2000 grit is a better approach although BuckBarker & The Texan seem to have omitted whether they used a coarser grit during preparation. This practice is common place in vehicle detailing and very effective although evaluating the condition of the lenses prior to beginning work is desirable. Some can and some cannot be polished out, depending on the nature of the plastic and the deterioration.
We used to do this work on boat and motorcycle windscreens, paint and many other materials. Not wanting to sound like a know-it-all but rather hoping to offer something to someone interested in the process, so please excuse the length and inclusion of the obvious....
If the plastic or other material is simply damaged into a surface layer, the layer can be removed by abrasion and the new surface polished to a sufficient degree. Experienced people will generally evaluate the condition and type or material in order to determine whether the process is likely to be successful. If, for example, the plastic has deteriorated to a significant depth, resurfacing will not be practical/possible.
The polish/refinish kits generally contain one grit of polish which is intended to provide a finish grade abrasive but this can make the attempt to use the kit ineffective. Consider a conglomerate stone found in running water and recall that the surface was not flat but rather was covered with smooth indentations. The headlight lewindscreenscreen needs be flat or it will diffuse light creating issues with vision or light transmission.
If one uses too fine an abrasive onto a damaged surface one will tend to polish the irregularities in place resulting in a poor quality but smooth surface. In order to avoid thisdesirablesireable to begin with a coarse abrasive which will remove irregularities, creating a flat surface. Succeeding polishing, each with finer materials, will result in a flat, smooth psurface sirface.
Choosing too coarse an abrasive will tear up the material below the surface resulting in, sometimes, deep damage to the material. This is more of an issue with plastics and paint than with wood but the furniture makers in the crowd will know this intimately.
The problem with any of these processes is that we are rank beginners who buy an off the shelf product intended to meet a cost limit with reasonable expectations of success. Obvious, but we often don't keep that in mind.
When polishing headlight lenses, tail light lenses, windscreens and such, I consider the type of damage. If the surface is simply frosted by fine essentiallyand essentialy flat, I start with 1,000 grit or 1500 grit wet & dry paper and water. Every once in a while I remember to add a bit of dish soap (forehead smack!) as BuckBarker recommended because this helps to keep the paper clear of build-up and reduces "pinning" by surabradedps of abraided material.
Cut the surface clean and flat, change water and paper and then continue with the next step up on grit. A really bad scratch requires 600 grit to cut the material down to below the lowest part of the scratch and then in steps to 2,000 grit. I follow that up with a professional grade polish (not wax) like Auto Glym 06B Glass polish.
Someone more knowledgeable (hoping someone will) may chime in with a better description and likely offer the observation that the 06B is not intended for plastics, but it seems to work well enough for my purposes.
This work can be done by hand but I prefer to use a power buffer or angle die grinder (slowed down), or mostly a cordless drill to drive a buff pad with the 06B. The sand paper isauto bodyd wet & dry autobody paper on a self sticking pad in a power tool. A big issue when polishing plastics is to avoid too much speed and heat as this will melt or change tdisastrousion with disasterous results.
What have I missed which might be useful....?....
Oh, yes. Glass windshields are typically sand blasted which causes pitting of the surface over time. The sand blasting occurs from tiny particles striking the windshield in the normal course of driving causing the screen to diffuse light to a greater degree as time goes on. At some point the effect becomes significant while driving at night in rain. The glass can often be polished in the same manner as with plastics although I have not gone beyond the use of fine sand paperprofessional polish. The pofessional detailers use glass polish (such as the 06B) to clean the surface of the glass from materials and tiny imperfections.
Hope this is useful to someone.....
Norm
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revump
Las Vegas
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I used rubbing compound and it helped. I am not sure how much improvement you should expect.
Bob
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