micky wrote:
3 weeks ago I polished my headlight lenses.
They came out great.
I had replaced a bulb and noticed again how cloudy they were, 2005 car.
It took about 2 hours but would have taken less if my back didn't hurt
and I had to sit down over and over, and if then I didn't start
listening to the radio on the day that the presidential election was
called. So maybe an hour.
Instructions said to wash the lenses.
Also to mask the painted part around the lenses. I had 3 rolls of
masking tape, the youngest 25 years old. I checked in advance and the
first roll worked fine, stuck fine, came off fine, but on the day I did
this, I couldn't tear off an 10" piece without it ripping at 4 inches.
I didn't test for that. But the 3rd roll worked.
For "dead" masking tape here is a trick, put it in a microwave for 10-20
seconds depending on roll size. It will make it like new again.
Use Surface Activator, from the second kit, near the bottom.
Then for this kit, 3M Headlight Lens Restoration System, 39008
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...?ie=UTF8&psc=1
it said: One kit may not be enough. Ugh, now they tell me.
I chose this kit because it didnt' expect me to do the sanding by hand.
For the first sanding, it came with 6 ~3" disks that stuck easily on the
arbor they included. I thought putting disks on and off was hard,
involved a screw. Has something changed in the last 35 years?????
I figured that meant 3 disks per headlight but after the left side, the
disk seemed fine so I did the right side. It didnt' seem bad after the
right side ei4ther. Finished the first step and had 5 disks left. Maybe
I'm not doing it right.
For the second sanding, it came with 2 ~3" disks. But it took only one,
so maybe I'm not doing it right. But even before the third step, the
plastic looked clear
The third step was a liquid rubbing compound that went on a foam rubber
thing that also went on the drill.
Then go on to the fourth step.**
Read all the instructions for any product you buy because some I've left
out, like not keeping the drill in the same place so long you melt the
lens. Especially if you're going to try to use two kits together.
The sanding instructions keep saying that if you do more in this step,
you won't have to do so much in the next, but I went over each area 2 or
3 times with a spinning drill and that was all. Maybe mine were not
that bad, even though they looked it.
**This one comes either with sand paper etc also; and also comes with
only this liquid that's supposed to protect for UV. The first kit and
some other had nothing that claimed to do that. This product actually
has a first step Surface Activator, that I did before using the other
product above, and then the instructions recognize that you may buy
another product for the sanding, and ends with a third step to apply the
anti-uv. It ssays iirc to apply more every 3 months but there is no way
I'm going to do that.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...?ie=UTF8&psc=1
Plenty of rubbing compound left over and plenty of anti-UV liquid also.
Finally took it out for a drive 4AM yesterday. I didn't see much
difference, couldn't say for sure there was any, but i"m sure the light
had been diffused before meaning less where it's supposed to be and some
in eyes of the oncoming driver. I'm sure it was worth it for the light
and it looks great.
$13.14 for the first thing and the second thing has become unavailable,
at least on Amazon, but I paid $9.99
You can still get https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00429NKWK/ref=dp_prsubs_1
for $20. It's the same as the one that's unavailable but the extra $10
pays for polish clothes, vinyl gloves (whoopdedo), and 3 kinds of
sandpaper but not stuff that will fit on a drill.
To get the $10 kit somewhere else, the Sylvania website only suggest
Amazon!
Advance has it but only for buying at the store. No shipping for some
reaon.
https://shop.advanceautoparts.com/p/...oat/10719345-P
But I'm sure this isn't the only anti-UV stuff and I have no reason to
think this one is better than the others. Maybe none of them work.
Maybe they only made the instruction complicated to make me think it
works? (I didn't look at reviews because one would need years to judge
this stuff.)
I have used the 3M kit but as you noted most of the kit's come with
nothing for UV. To really make them last the best solution is to sand
the old crud off in steps, then polish the light up, clean it very well
and spray it with an automotive clear top coat to seal it and keep the
UV from damaging it any more. You can buy that in spray cans now with an
activator in the bottom. You pop the bottom button and shake the crap
out of it, then let it set for however long they say, that lets the two
parts start to blend well and then you apply it in thin coats.
--
Steve W.