tailwind4

So I have looked into this topic and have used some different products but need some advice. I had an extra set of headlights so my girl took them and baked and painted them for me for christmas. My job is to clean the lenses up and this is where I need some help...

I have bought the headlight restore kit that has the "powerball" and polish to clean the lens up. This has worked very well but currently on the inside I'm using a heavier grit polish to get the haze out. It is working but is a very slow process. On the 1st gen IS300 the corners are very tought to get into and polish. They are coming along nice but would really like to get these in good shape since my girl took the time and did an amazing job painting them.

My question is, is there a better process for this or any ideas for getting into the tight corners since the power ball can not it in there? Any other products or detailing tips for me? I have tried wet sanding, power ball Mcguires headlight polish (blue color) and toothpaste (detailer told me this might work). Any advice would help...

User 41924

I restored my sister's headlight lenses, and they were as badly oxidized and pitted as any I have ever seen. I used some 600 grit sandpaper, followed by some 1000 grit, then some 2000 grit. This removed the oxidation, as well as the pits that most of the restore products don't touch. I followed this with some rubbing compound and some polishing compound applied by hand. For good measure I used a mildly abrasive paint polish (Prima Swirl), before putting a sealer on them (Prima Epic). It took less than an hour to do both lenses, and they came out looking like new. The only scary part was how foggy they looked after sanding them! All told, i spent the same amount on supplies as I would have spent on some headlight restorer product, except now I have rubbing and polishing compounds if I ever need it for something else. This was pretty cool to do, especially considering how bad they were when I started. BTW - if you have a random orbit polisher, a 4 1/2 inch sponge pad works FAR better the the ball. I used mine with the Swirl.

Sanding, as well as applying the rubbing and polishing compound by hand allows you to get into the corners pretty well. Don't forget to mask off the headlights so you don't screw up your paint. Painters tape works pretty well.

IS2FIFTY

iTrader: (5)

trying polishing it, works well for me

tailwind4

thanks for the good info, i tried wet sanding them with a four step process and it seems to work but now I'm unable to get the "haziness" polished out like it usually does. I have wet sanded before so I'm no noob but I'm no professional.

embolism

I read that instead of wetsanding with progressively finer sandpaper, someone just used 800, maybe 1000 then put on a coat of 50% spar urethane and 50% mineral spirits using a balled up shop towel and that effectively filled the scratches in the plastic such that you couldn't even tell they were there.

May even provide more of an anchor for the urethane mixture to hold onto the surface.

eyezack87

iTrader: (4)

So you also sanded the inside of your headlights as well? Dunno why you'd do that as they are usually sealed enough to prevent everything cept some dust and water out. I've also heard of the suggestion embolism stated but personally wetsanding all the way to 3000grit then hand polishing with Meguiars Ultimate Compound (I used M105) had good results

tailwind4

yeah i did the inside, these were pretty shot lenses. off of a 2001 and i got them for free so i wanted to see what i could do with them. ill have to go purchase some more stuff so i can try these methods

eyezack87

iTrader: (4)

Well, as pitting never occurs on the inside and oxidation does, a light polish would have done better but its too late for that. Which method are you going with may I ask?

JDMUCF11

Have tried a compound on my old car. Cleaned up the outside but the inside was more of a mess. Cant say I want fuss around with taking them apart.

OTD

I do the following steps

1. Clean lens
2. wet-sand lens with 800-1000 grit sand paper
3. wet-sand 1500-2000 grit sand paper
4. wet-sand 2500-3000 sand paper
5. Compound
6. Polish
7. seal

tools you will need

• Rotary polisher
• 3 in backing plate
• 3 in wool pad and polishing foam pad
• Meguiars M105 + M205
• Opti-coating or just wax.

hope this helps

99rx

iTrader: (6)

Worthless without PICS!

eyezack87

iTrader: (4)

3in pads are a pain on the INSIDE of the headlight, in which that is the area the OP is having issues with. Would like to make a point for others in saying that this method you listed is excellent in removing pitting/scratches from the EXTERIOR