rpx13

iTrader: (3)

My headlight looks dull. And I want to sand/polish it. Which one gets better results? Do I really need to sand my headlight down before polishing it? or will polishing it with say, Zaino or Meguiars be enough?

Guitarman

It's always best to take the most benign approach first, because it saves you time and work, as well as prevents you from causing more problems than it helps.

I woud first try a plastic cleaner/polish like Plexus, Novus, Zaino's or the Meguiar's PlastiX product. They will remove light oxidation.

If they don't remove it all, then try a rubbing compound like the 3M Fine Cut Rubbing Compound(liquid). I'd say that *most* headlights will look great after either of those approaches.

If still not satisfied, and the yellowing /oxidation is hardcore, then you go to wetsanding. Start with 2000 grit and go to 1500 as a last resort. Those will allow you to rub out the sanding haze (micro scratches caused by the sandpaper) with rubbing compound. If you use anything harsher than 1500 it will be much more difficult to remove the wetsanding marks. It'll take some muscle if you're doing the compounding by hand anyway, but the rubbing compound will clear things up again, and you can then use (if you like) a finer polish like Kit Scratch Out or 3M Finesse-It as a final polish, for ultimate clarity.

When I wetsand headlights, I use a rotary buffer and those steps (in severe cases that is- sometimes wetsanding is NOT necessary-just compounding & polishing) and I get them looking close to new. Well, the outside ARE as new, not much I can do about the inside at that point though.

rpx13

iTrader: (3)

thanks for the info Guitarman...