New to forum and had my first question with pics.

[Smoove7]

I know I will learn a lot from this site and the massive amount of information it has to share. I have looked over hundreds of forums the past few day learning information and had a question.

I am going to be restoring my headlights soon and wondered in looking at these pics, what grit should I start with? I am not experienced enough yet to know what grit to start with. Is there a topic which has pics that show if the light looks like this then start with this?

Also I have seen that some use 400, 800, 1000, 1500, 3000 and some use 2000, and 2500 as well. Does it make a difference if I go from 400 all the way up to 3000 using small increments in between because some people stop at 2000. Wondering if going all the way up to 3000 matters a good bit or not really? I will be using Optilens and have seen that 3000 might not give enough bite, but am still researching. I did use the 3m restoration kit on these about 5 years ago and here they are today. I have never touched the fog lights.

Lastly I included my fog lights as well because they are pretty bad, I want to say the fog lights are glass, but I am not 100% sure. Thank you for having me and I will be sure to search well before asking questions.

http://i.imgur.com/Uz92Rn6.jpg

http://i.imgur.com/paBZ4pp.jpg

http://i.imgur.com/QvH129w.jpg

http://i.imgur.com/x9AxW7g.jpg

http://i.imgur.com/hSG9cj3.jpg

[therapy1]

Are you doing this all by hand or machine? You could probably do 1500 then 3000 if you have it. Finishing with 3000 grit is much easier to buff out.

[Niblick]

welcome. id go up to 3000 grit. as Brad has said, it makes finishing them off easier. someone suggested only a couple of days ago that wiping them with diesel will actually remove a good deal of tarnishing. I've never tried it, so can't comment as to how well it works, but it might be worth a try first.

[haris300]

I usually don't work my way up in such small increments when wet sanding headlight lenses. For most of the jobs I do I use a 1000 or 1500 Meguiar's Unitgrit disc on a DA polisher then follow up with something finer like a 3000 disc before polishing. If I can't use the discs on the lens then I'll hand sand with a backing pad using light pressure and working in straight lines.

https://38.media.tumblr.com/15e0a547151699cbbb9abc230deb2a30/tumblr_n1l49unQqV1tnpziso4_r1_1280.jpg

Here's a 50/50 test spot I did with only a 3000 grit disc followed up by polishing with Wolfgang Uber Compound and a Meguiar's microfiber cutting disc.

Some jobs don't require very aggressive sanding. I like to try a lesser aggressive approach before using anything below 1000 grit.

[BobbyG]

Headlight Lens Restoration (http://www.autogeek.net/headlight-lens.html)


Meguiar's Headlight Restoration 1

[Smoove7]

Thank you for the information. I had planned on buying either a drill with rpm of 1200-1600, somewhere in that range like a variable speed one or a DA or orbital. I am reading that orbitals are not strong enough and people opt for the DA. I am experimenting right now, but would like to turn it into a business at some point. Then I have to wonder if I want to go the route of cordless or not. So I am contemplating right now, orbital, DA or drill like dewalt or Black and Decker. Using the 3m restoration kit.

I see that a lot of people do this by hand, but it seems easier by watching the videos if you use a machine instead.

It does seem like a lot of extra work to sand the lights 6 times using different grits of sand paper when I could just do 1500 and 3000. Of course it depends on how bad they are. I am still researching what a bad headlight looks like so I can be ready. Thoughts?

What about the fog lights? Should I look at a new pair, these look really nasty. I did more research and I believe the lenses on the foglights are plastic. If anyone can find out for sure, let me know. I know I would have to do the foglights by hand.

[blkSRT]

The fog lenses must be plastic or they wouldn't be faded. Like the SE-R.

[Smoove7]

I actually thought of purchasing this little baby. Would this do well for headlight restoration?

Griots Garage Professional Random Orbital 3 Inch Polisher Review (http://www.autogeek.net/griots-garage-3inch-polisher-review.html)

[fly07sti]

I would also check out the 3" thin wool pads by Lake Country. They cut and finish very well on headlights.

[Smoove7]

I am guessing that the Griots 3" orbital would have enough power due to being a corded device. Should I want to go cordless I am guessing a 50 or 60 dollar drill would work as well as long as it goes up to 1600 rpm? I have seen on the forums that going cordless is not a bad idea if wanting to do this as a business and not wanting to have an inverter. Would be weird asking if I can plug into a clients power source. I have heard of having a battery backup is a good thing to do. Is that kind of the consensus if you are going to have a mobile headlight restoration business, it is a good idea to go cordless?

[MrCleanit]

I say use what BobbyG recommended or the 3M Headlight Restoration kit.

You can buy a drill! Hell everyone can use a drill at least a few times in their life so why not right? You will always use it in the house some way or another in my opinion.

But, if you do not have a machine like the Griots and plan on maintaining your vehicles paint (or any other for that matter) I say you should buy it along with a nice assortment of pads.

[Smoove7]

Thank you for your help. This site is really cool.

[BobbyG]

I actually thought of purchasing this little baby. Would this do well for headlight restoration?

Griots Garage Professional Random Orbital 3 Inch Polisher Review (http://www.autogeek.net/griots-garage-3inch-polisher-review.html)

The Griot's 3 inch polisher is best suited for well, 3" pads only and headlight lenses and possibly a bit more is about it for this little guy. I'm not knocking this machine but it is a bit underpowered for anything more than lenses and tight corners. You might be better off opting for something like the Porter Cable 7424xp (http://www.autogeek.net/dual-action-polishers.html) and different sizes of backing plates (http://www.autogeek.net/dual-action-backing-plates.html) and corresponding pads (http://www.autogeek.net/bevel-edge-4-pack.html).