View Full Version : Is it possible to make headlights look flawless?
A4 2000
03-01-2010, 02:23 PM
Ok, so I did the whole wet sanding process followed by polishing and then waxing and the lights look really clear. The only problem that I notice is that when I look at the lens from an angle, instead of head on, I see a little bit of yellowish tint to it. Is this the best that can be done or is there something that I can use to take this away? Or is this oxidation embedded through the whole plastic?? If I can`t make it look any better, then I`ll probably just but some new lights on ebay or something. Thanks in advance.
mborner
03-02-2010, 06:37 AM
The yellow tint goes through the polycarbonate lens. There is no way to get rid of that. The only thing you have control over is the yellowing (oxidation) on the outside. And no, it is not possible to make them flawless. Flawless would mean they look like brand new and nothing looks like a brand spanking new lens.
....the headlamps on my wife`s old Civic were like that. When we were dating I tried to help restore them for her and while they came out smooth and clear, they were still a little yellow from an angle. ....still, they were much better than they were and still looked decent when we traded it in a few years later.
A4 2000
03-02-2010, 10:57 AM
Oh, ok then. Thanks for letting me know that. I thought maybe I was missing something
Nismotek
03-02-2010, 07:22 PM
It`s possible, but it requires a lot of time and patience. How familiar are you with different stages of sanding?
LICamaro85
03-03-2010, 02:47 PM
Yea I have gotten rid of that slight yellowish hue by really going at it with some 600grit then slowly going up to 3000 then polishing etc etc...
If you feel comfortable doing this then you can get rid of 99.9% percent of that yellow hue you are seeing.
Remember the lens on headlights are pretty thick so you might have to take .025 thousands or more off to really break threw the yellowish "barrier" if you want to call that.
- LI 85
A4 2000
03-17-2010, 12:14 AM
To be honest, I`m scared to go below even 2000 grit lol. I think of it like a one size fits all kind of thing. It`s great at removing cloudiness/oxidation and can quickly be buffed away. I tried 600 grit one day on my fog lights and it took forever to work them out. I really don`t have the time or patience to do that anymore.
I thought that the slight yellowish tint that you see from an angle was embedded all the way through the plastic though. It sure looks that way.
LICamaro85
03-17-2010, 02:48 AM
Do you have an angle die grinder and a air compressor, or you can with a drill.
It takes me less than an hour per light to do really really bad ones. Start with 600 wet then go to 1200 then 2000 and that you can compound/polish out. Doing it by hand is like comparing to remove RIDS by hand VS machine.
I really like to use a die drinder since I have much more control over it. Just use a regulator to set the PSI on your compressor so the sanding disks can only spin so fast and keep it moving.
Sanding Discs - Sanding Belts - Wide Sanding Belts - Sand Belt - 16 x 48 Sanding Belt (http://www.2sand.com) look on that site for under 20 bucks you can get everything you need to do 20+ headlights besides the compound/polish and machine.
If you need a cheap die grinder check out Harbor Frieght you can get a cheap Angle Die Grinder for 10-15 bucks.
If you have any more questions or need anything PM me
- LI 85
A4 2000
03-17-2010, 08:52 AM
Do you have an angle die grinder and a air compressor, or you can with a drill.
It takes me less than an hour per light to do really really bad ones. Start with 600 wet then go to 1200 then 2000 and that you can compound/polish out. Doing it by hand is like comparing to remove RIDS by hand VS machine.
I really like to use a die drinder since I have much more control over it. Just use a regulator to set the PSI on your compressor so the sanding disks can only spin so fast and keep it moving.
Sanding Discs - Sanding Belts - Wide Sanding Belts - Sand Belt - 16 x 48 Sanding Belt (http://www.2sand.com) look on that site for under 20 bucks you can get everything you need to do 20+ headlights besides the compound/polish and machine.
If you need a cheap die grinder check out Harbor Frieght you can get a cheap Angle Die Grinder for 10-15 bucks.
If you have any more questions or need anything PM me
- LI 85
Hey, thanks for that info. I think I might try that out first on my fog lights for practice since they`re pretty messed up. I always thought that machine sanding plastic would be way too agressive. Serious situations call for serious measures I guess.
Applehugger
03-17-2010, 02:24 PM
Don`t be scared to go below 2000 grit. I just did the headlights on my truck, 15 years of oxidization built up so I started with 320 and just went 400, 600, 1000, 1200, 1500, 2000, then buffed them out. The plastic is quite thick, it`s not like automotive clear-coat where you have to be super-careful not to sand too much off.
It is worth mentioning that even after such aggressive sanding, there is still a SLIGHT yellowish tint to my lenses that I doubt is possible to get out 100%. Your car may be the same way. Why don`t you post some pictures of your headlamp lenses so we can take a look at the issue a bit better?