Head Lights Polished - Meguires

[mikews]

Yes Fin I'm just getting words wrong. Been a long day.



I've only ever found fleece mops good for removing products, I prefer fairly stiff sponge pads for any kind of correction.

And not a problem, was good fun and was actually surprised to see how well toothpaste actually worked

[Fin]

Excellent! Thank you. I've already ordered a set on the suspicion that you would say 'Yes'. So I'm glad you've confirmed it   s:D s:D
I don't have a polisher, I'm assuming I  should get a reasonably good result using a drill?

[mikews]

I'd certainly imagine so yeah, never personally tried with a drill. Just use the same method you would when using a rotary or DA and take your time  s:) s:)

[trickyD]

Great results, thanks  s:) s:)

[no1trancefan]

i tried the autosol without taking the lens off yesterday to try it out and came up really well no scratches

will get round to splitting them at some point though

[trickyD]

Pretty hard, Mikews describes it above in his post with pics...

[no1trancefan]

sealing the lenses back up is that easy enough? what kind of sealant? is silicone sealant strong enough?

[trickyD]

I haven't done it myself, but there might some info on these threads:

 l viewtopic.php?f=9&t=43185&p=507659&hilit=Headlight+oven#p507655 l

 l viewtopic.php?f=11&t=48911&p=564975&hilit=Headlight+oven#p564975 l

There should be a guide on here somewhere.
From memory the glue melts the second time to refit.
So you don't need a sealant

[mikews]

I found splitting the lens easy, as I said above quite hot oven (was on about 140 fan), just be careful as you pull it off sealant doesn't go everywhere. Ideally get a second pair of hands to help. I was lazy because this one was broken and ended up with stringy bits of melted sealant everywhere.

Quick step by step of what I did

Removed bulbs, rubbers, screw at the top
Chucked it in the oven at 140 fan for 10 minutes on a foil covered rack at the bottom
Removed and used a long thin flat head screw driver to pry the clips off working around the lens
Once the clips had been loosened then went around digging into the sealant under the lens and pry'd upwards
Work around slowly and eventually it'll become loose enough to pull off

You and your helper will need heat proof gloves obviously.



Any decent sealant will do the job, as tricky said you could reheat the backing and then push the lens back on or apply new or a bit of both. If I have nothing better to do on Saturday I'll put it back together and see how I get on.

[gaffer1986]

Thanks mikews, excellent info, I will be getting myself some paint renovator soon.

[no1trancefan]

just wondering if silicone sealant will be enough to reseal or if it needs something stronger?

might see if the autoglym resin polish will work on them

[trickyD]

Any decent sealant will do the job, as tricky said you could reheat the backing and then push the lens back on or apply new or a bit of both. If I have nothing better to do on Saturday I'll put it back together and see how I get on.

[hunterknox]

might see if the autoglym resin polish will work on them

Resin polish is more of a filler polish than an abrasive. Filler polishes fill in scratches in your paintwork (or lights) with oils/waxes and so cover up any imperfections. After a while the polish evaporates and so you have to start again - it's more of a cover-up than a true fix.  An abrasive polish would be a more permanent solution.

[no1trancefan]

ive since been told autosol works well going to give it a try the weekend

[Ardent]

On the autosol I would try a small test area first.
I found it a bit too abrasive and left light scratches. This was then in turn removed using xerprol (spelling) plastic polish.
Worked out ok on the test area but felt like doubling the work

[no1trancefan]

hi guys, i was looking at getting some autoglym paint renovator for the lenses was wondering if t cut would be any good or too abrasive only asking as i have a full bottle of that in garage as never use it for anything as devils stuff that

[cyclehead]

The key is getting some UV inhibitor to prevent the plastic re-oxidizing within 2 months after you get them all shined up.   I like this stuffhttp://www.ryderfleetproducts.com/search-automotive/s-sat .  Prep is easy, sand with 600 grit which leaves the plastic cloudy.  Then spray with the UV clear paint and let it cure in sunlight.  I've done my two spyders and Lexus, plus one of my kids Toyotas all with good results.

[no1trancefan]

cheers for that will check it out, does the Meguiars PlastX Polish 296ml have uv protection i couldnt tell from the link if it does


 m http://www.eurocarparts.com/ecp/p/car-a ... 9770981&0& m

[loadswine]

I have always used a UV reflective coating after using the Meguiars stuff. Diamondite liquid armour.
I have just looked at the product mentioned by cyclehead and watched vid on youtube and that looks very impressive indeed.

[no1trancefan]

will get that ryder product if can find a uk stockist

[ChrisGB]

Going to ask a dim question here, but is there any reason why you couldn't just wet & dry them with a very fine paper then spray them with lacquer?