Headlight Restoration-new UV sealant idea

[mtnbiker]

Hi guys, I'm a rookie at this. I tries the Megs PlastX with not great results. Then I read here ( I know, I should have read this forum before trying anything) about the wet sand. I used the 1500 & 2000 with better results but now I have cloudiness that I think is coming from the inside. Is this possible? I cant feel anything from the outside. I paid attention to this through the whole process. In the after pic you can see the cloudiness running horizontally about 10" long toward the bottom.Thanks for your advice.

[HotRod]

There could be damage done to the inside as well. It will be hard for me to tell unless I would see it in person. If there is damage on the inside of the lens, then as far as I know there is nothing to fix that. Maybe try to wet sand a little longer, or user coarser grit and gradually finish with fine grit, it may take several steps with different grit wet sand paper. Then machine polish with drill or buffer with wool pad and Megs 105 and foam pad last with megs 205. If that does not get the cloudiness out, then it might be on the inside. But, if you want more information on this method, reread this thread and definitely check out other headlight restoration threads on this forum to get a good idea of how its done.

[mtnbiker]

There could be damage done to the inside as well. It will be hard for me to tell unless I would see it in person. If there is damage on the inside of the lens, then as far as I know there is nothing to fix that. Maybe try to wet sand a little longer, or user coarser grit and gradually finish with fine grit, it may take several steps with different grit wet sand paper. Then machine polish with drill or buffer with wool pad and Megs 105 and foam pad last with megs 205. If that does not get the cloudiness out, then it might be on the inside. But, if you want more information on this method, reread this thread and definitely check out other headlight restoration threads on this forum to get a good idea of how its done.

Thank you, maybe I'll try a coarser grit before I settle for this.

[HotRod]

The coarsest wet sand paper I have started with is 400, then followed with 800, 1000, 2000 then buffed, and that normally has worked to reduce all cloudiness for me.

[mtnbiker]

Looks like I may need to start more aggressively than 1500.
Thanks

[feslope]

Looks like I may need to start more aggressively than 1500.
Thanks

You may actually be trying to polish the coating when it needs to be removed. More aggressive my be better for you. Just remember once you remove the coating and polish the plastic you will need to re-apply a uv resistant coating as previously discussed in this thread.

[mtnbiker]

I'm starting over using, 400, 600, 1000, 1500, 2000. So far, so good.
Thanks for all your advice. Will post a pic once finished.

[mtnbiker]

The results are in! I used 320, 400, 600, 1000, 1500, 2000 grit . Took me about 1/2hr per side once I had the technique. From up close still could use a little more sanding, but for my first time, the results are great. You guys are the best.

[HotRod]

Longevity Test-ongoing-9 months after restoration

Here are some more recent pictures of the headlights 9 months after restoration. They are still holding up, but the high gloss might have dimmed down a little since last update. Its not that noticeable, however they still look good. These lights see no maintenance whatsoever, besides the occasional wash job. I think they should last for at least 12 months total (from beginning to end) before another restoration is needed, but unsure how rough the summer will be on this sealant. There are a few bug splatters, that I did not get completely cleaned off before taking pictures.
I will probably continue to update this thread if there is interest, the next update will be the full year test of this sealant. I will then evaluate and decide if its worth re-updating every 3 months or 6 months, unless the sealant fails before next update.
But, to sum things up so far, for a sealant not intended for clear plastic, this stuff is still holding up. I am sure there is a better headlight sealant out there, I am just curious how long this stuff will last before needing another restoration. However, I don't believe there is any headlight sealant (including this one) that will last forever, the front of the car gets blasted with bugs, heat from light bulbs and engine, rain, snow, ice, road salt, rocks, car washes etc....... NOTHING will hold up to that abuse.. IMO

[termigator]

I had mine clearcoated ... seems to be working as had a couple small chips in top initially. I use Plexus weekly which also offers some additional UV protection too.

Did you have the clearcoat sprayed on at a bodyshop or did you do it yourself? I was thinking about spraying a clearcoat (from a can) on my headlights.