Restoring Your Scratched, Pitted and Foggy Headlights
There are numerous techniques that could be utilized to restore old plastic headlights to near-factory condition.
The following technique has proven to be extremely effective.
The downside is that it requires lots of patience patience and a little muscle.
Be sure to read the article in its entirety before attempting this project.
Start off by washing your headlights thoroughly with soapy water.
Work on one headlight at a time and be very thorough.
If your headlight is severely scratched or pitted, use 600 grit wet/dry sand paper.
BE SURE to keep the headlight wet during the sanding process, using the spray bottle.
Sand the entire headlight, working on 2"x2" area at the time.
This may take some time, depending on the size of your headlight.
After completion of this step, the headlight should be VERY foggy.
After ensuring that the headlight is smooth and has no deep scratches, repeat the above process with a 1000 grit sand paper.
Once again, work on a small area at a time and keep the headlight wet, while sanding.
Upon completion, the headlight should look a little clearer, than before.
Now repeat the process with 2000 grit sand paper.
After you are finished, the headlight should look much clearer than before.
However, the surface will still be somewhat rough and have some tiny scratches from sanding.
Now use a terry cloth to dry the headlight completely.
Apply a small amount of rubbing compound to a cloth applicator.
Use this applicator pad to apply 3M rubbing compound to a small area at a time, using a circular motion.
Be very thorough and use a moderate amount of force.
This step is very labor intensive and is critical to a successful restoration.
When you are finished the headlight should look much clearer than before.
Minor scratches may still be visible.
If that's the case, repeat the above process, using 3M plastic polish, rather then rubbing compound.
Be sure to work on a small area at the time and turn the cloth often.
Enjoy the results! If you are not satisfied with results, you will need to start over with the 2000 grit sand paper > rubbing compound > plastic polish sequence.
A word of caution: DO NOT ATTEMPT TO APPLY THIS TECHNIQUE TO GLASS HEADLIGHTS
The following technique has proven to be extremely effective.
The downside is that it requires lots of patience patience and a little muscle.
Be sure to read the article in its entirety before attempting this project.
Start off by washing your headlights thoroughly with soapy water.
Work on one headlight at a time and be very thorough.
If your headlight is severely scratched or pitted, use 600 grit wet/dry sand paper.
BE SURE to keep the headlight wet during the sanding process, using the spray bottle.
Sand the entire headlight, working on 2"x2" area at the time.
This may take some time, depending on the size of your headlight.
After completion of this step, the headlight should be VERY foggy.
After ensuring that the headlight is smooth and has no deep scratches, repeat the above process with a 1000 grit sand paper.
Once again, work on a small area at a time and keep the headlight wet, while sanding.
Upon completion, the headlight should look a little clearer, than before.
Now repeat the process with 2000 grit sand paper.
After you are finished, the headlight should look much clearer than before.
However, the surface will still be somewhat rough and have some tiny scratches from sanding.
Now use a terry cloth to dry the headlight completely.
Apply a small amount of rubbing compound to a cloth applicator.
Use this applicator pad to apply 3M rubbing compound to a small area at a time, using a circular motion.
Be very thorough and use a moderate amount of force.
This step is very labor intensive and is critical to a successful restoration.
When you are finished the headlight should look much clearer than before.
Minor scratches may still be visible.
If that's the case, repeat the above process, using 3M plastic polish, rather then rubbing compound.
Be sure to work on a small area at the time and turn the cloth often.
Enjoy the results! If you are not satisfied with results, you will need to start over with the 2000 grit sand paper > rubbing compound > plastic polish sequence.
A word of caution: DO NOT ATTEMPT TO APPLY THIS TECHNIQUE TO GLASS HEADLIGHTS
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