PR: 3M Headlight Lens Restoration System

[DLB]

3M Headlight Lens Restoration System

I purchased this for something other than a headlight restoration. See pic below:


That's right, this is on a rear 3rd marker light. It was in (as you can see) pretty poor condition. I knew that polish wasn't going to get it brought back, so I thought this kit should do it.

Upon opening the package, you can tell that this is a really nice little kit. Has plenty of everything you need for 1 restoration job. On top of that, you end up with a small foam pad and drill adapter that you can use for several jobs. And with Meguiar's releasing the sanding discs for purchase in 2010, you really can't go wrong.

For the sake of this write-up, I decided to follow the instructions provided as implicitly as possible. I have read a few things about it on the net, but went into this with a total "new to the product" mindset.

First things first, be sure and tape off the area you will be working very well. (I will have to come back and add pictures of this later. Having uploading issues). On a couple of the tight corners where I had to sand past the edge I watched the tape until I had sanded through the first layer then added a new layer as needed.

I found the instructions in the package to be quite sufficient, and left little to no room for error. This is of course using very basic common sense in the equation.

The premise of the kit is to start with heavy grit sandpaper (500 grit) and sand off the "crud." Then go to a lighter grit sandpaper (800 grit) and refine the scratches you just made. Then go to a fine grit pad (3000 grit) and while applying mists of water, finish the surface off smooth.
After sanding is complete, use the orange buffing pad and plastic cleaner/compound to polish to a high shine.

End result:


This little light took about 30 minutes to do correctly from laying down the first piece of tape, opening and reading the instructions, and putting up the tools when done. It is very effective at what it is meant to do, and the results as you can see, can be astonishing.

So if you have some lights that need some pretty serious attention, this is a great kit, and an excellent value IMO.

Pro's: Work efficiently with all supplied materials.
Very simple easy to follow instructions, with pictures.
High quality products - including foam pad, sanding discs, polish, and backing plate.

Con's: For large lights, you may need a little more polish that what comes with the kit, but, you can use the polish very sparingly, so it should be plenty to do most headlights.

I was very pleased with this product, and I am glad I purchased it. For the ease of use, it is definitely good for someone who has never done this type of thing.

Please note - this is an aggressive restoration style kit, not a polishing kit. The package itself states that this is for lights that are visibly "yellowed" or have problems like my original picture. I would not suggest you use this kit for a simple clean up of some swirled tail lights. You could however (and I did) use the pad with some plastic polish to correct such areas.

Hope you enjoyed.

DLB

[cnfowler]

Very nice, Dalton. I've often wondered about this kit. You just proved it has what it takes to do a jam up job.

Colin

[SouthernStyles]

I have used this kit alot i love it!! Everything works great i use m105 rather then the included compound

[VR8]

Nicely done Dalton. I have a similar kit and I've always been in the habit of misting water on the lense through all of the sanding applications. I noticed on the 3M video they only mist with water while using the foam sanding pad. Did you do the same? Was there excessive dust from sanding without water? Just curious.

[ICEMAN]

Con's: For large lights, you may need a little more polish that what comes with the kit, but, you can use the polish very sparingly, so it should be plenty to do most headlights.

nice one man!!

this is my fav kit!! i have went thru one of those orange pads, and i have done A LOT of buffing with it, in tight areas on cars and especially on motorcycle paint on plastic/metal!!!

the CON of large headlights not having enough polish, use Meg's PlastX. Its what i use... and you can use the sandpaper sparingly if your careful enough.

and i also am very anxious for the Meg's 3" sanding disks!!!!!!!!

[DLB]

VR8 - I did just what the instructions called for - no water except on the foam pad. The dusting was minimal, about what you would expect. I did wear a dust mask though.

I did experiment with M105 and PlastX with the supplied pad, and both provided good results on some swirls on the tail lights.

DLB

[Meghan]

Nice review, great before and after pictures.