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Headlight cleaning


SS LeadFoot

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Well this was my first attempt at restoring headlights. These were in horrible shape as you can tell from the pics. I used 1000 grit then 1500 then 3000. After that I followed with a plastic polish and a buffer. Let me know what you guys think.

 

Before

 

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After

 

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post-9882-0-95511100-1398018887_thumb.jpg

 

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I would do a few more passes using a heavier polish if you have it with a drill and 4" pads. That should clear up the haze a lot more. Then apply the longest lasting sealant you have.

 

I just did mine for the first time last weekend and the entire process actually took me longer than I thought it would. It's important to sand completely and evenly before moving on to the next grit. Otherwise you'll have sanding marks that can't be removed at the polishing step without going back and resanding.

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You need to start with like a 600 grit on those,

 

And I was going to say the opposite!  From the way they looked to me I would have started with green Focus pad on a drill using a very aggressive polish, followed with a white Focus pad and finishing polish.

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I was just going off the finished pics, I don't think the 1000 grit got the haze removed deep enough in order for the 3000 grit to smooth it out and the plastic polish to bring out the luster of the lens.

 

With lenses that bad in my experience you usually need a heavier wetstanding job in the first and 2nd grits, then the subsequent lighter grits are just to smooth and remove the scratches from the previous step, until you get up to about 2k - 3k grit and then you can compound and polish the lens to finish up the restoration.

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I was just going off the finished pics, I don't think the 1000 grit got the haze removed deep enough in order for the 3000 grit to smooth it out and the plastic polish to bring out the luster of the lens.

 

With lenses that bad in my experience you usually need a heavier wetstanding job in the first and 2nd grits, then the subsequent lighter grits are just to smooth and remove the scratches from the previous step, until you get up to about 2k - 3k grit and then you can compound and polish the lens to finish up the restoration.

 

Agreed that is hard to tell just from pictures.  

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