Headlight Polish

['95EclipseGSX]

I got a new passenger headlight and now the two don't match. The driver's light is less focused because the plastic is not so clear anymore, just from old age. I have read in a post that you can use sand paper to polish off the crappy outside layer and make it look better but before I take sandpaper to my headlight I would like to be sure. Does anyone know exactly what grit and how to do this? Is there another better way of doing this? I am too poor to replace the driver's light, they are like $130. Thanks

 

[hhuricane]

Start wet sanding at 400 or 600 and work your way to 1500 or 2000. Then use some plastic polish for the final gloss. Wax them both regularly to help keep them from oxidizing again.

 

[Ppayer38]

-Well yes Sand paper will work just fine but it takes some time and elbow grease haha I went through i believe 4 different grits. 400/800/1000/2000 making sure it stays very wet during this process. Then Mag/Aluminum Polish and do a couple coats of that with a litle time inbetween. Then Plastic X polish and do a few coats of that with time inbetween and it should come out amazing!
-But if you would like to try something different you can use Laquer Thinner 1st, just put some on a rag and run it over the headlight and see how much it clears up with just that but do not scrub with it since it will burn the plastic haha After you wipe the headlight with Laquer about 5-6 swipes then if you have access to a High-Speed Buffer go at it with that using Plastic-X Polish just dont burn though the plastic with that haha
Hope this helps!
**I use both methods depending on how bad they look......**

 

[rock1t]

you all are scaring me. all you need is 2000 grit sandpaper, and use some powersteering fluid. wetsand them, and they will be perfect, just throw a coat of wax on them to protect them.

 

[talonalex92]

Goto advance, buy a thing of Plast-X and call it a day. F all this sanding.

 

[ian_maham]

Goto advance, buy a thing of Plast-X and call it a day. F all this sanding.

Plastic X sucks donkey nuts. I have tried it and it worked until the next day. I put in hours of work and they turned out a little better. Lots of the damage was due to the moisture inside the headlights from bad seals. My advice... Take them apart, due a thorough cleaning, reassemble (make sure they're air tight), and wet sand like crazy. Not fun and takes a days worth of work. I'd just search the ads for some real clean ones.

 

[97dsmtsi]

Plastic X sucks donkey nuts. I have tried it and it worked until the next day. I put in hours of work and they turned out a little better. Lots of the damage was due to the moisture inside the headlights from bad seals. My advice... Take them apart, due a thorough cleaning, reassemble (make sure they're air tight), and wet sand like crazy. Not fun and takes a days worth of work. I'd just search the ads for some real clean ones.

i did 1500 then 2000 then used blue magic hard work but looks good. note i will not do agen just bye them new $100

 

[viprez586]

DONT GO 400!

Start with maybe 1000, then work your way up to 2k and polish.

 

[ReYnd]

My lights were deeply pitted and a bit yellowed. Started with 400 and jumped straight to 1000. Keep the fine grit stuff wet. That took off the yellowing, but left visible swirls. Instead of wasting time with more sandpaper, I got out a buffer (non-orbital, those are crap for this job) and applied rubbing compound to the pad. Ten minutes later, the lights were looking great. The levels built into the top of them were impossible to see when I started, so I scraped as much of the crud as I could off of them with a pocketknife, and gave them the buffer treatment. Finished everything up with a clean pad with polishing compound on it. Pretty sure I spritzed the lights with water even while buffing, just to be sure. You can burn them if you stay in one spot too long; no biggie as long as you don't overdo it. The result should be two crystal clear headlights! The old one may outshine the new one afterward though.

I know this post is long, but figured the entire process may as well be documented for anyone willing to give it a shot. Don't see this opportunity popping up again any time soon.

 

[Ksone14]

i went to walmart and bought a turtle wax kit. sanded and polished for under $10. looks nice now

 

['95EclipseGSX]

Thanks for the responses, I will try the 1 or 2k grit sandpaper and make sure to keep it wet. Then probably put some plastic x on to protect them.