Sanding headlights gone wrong!!!

derekhay316

Registered User
I just bought 800, 1000, and 2000 grit sandpaper and I wet sanded my headlights to get the yellow off of them. Good news is the yellow is gone, bad news is they look totally scratched and cloudy. What the heck did I do wrong??? Should I spend more time with the 1000 grit paper or what? Thanks a lot for your help.
 
They will have to be cleaned up on a buffing wheel with a compound, as per what kind, i couldn't tell you. It's kinda like wet sanding a spot on your paint, it looks like **** after sanding till you polish it.

Andrew
 
Use a spiral sewn cotton buff wheel with white rouge and they will look good as new.

Yeah I agree with clown about burning them, just litely touch the lens to the wheel and move around not staying in one place.
The spiral sewn wheel is a stiff wheel and white rouge contains no solvents(which are bad for plastic) and is perfectly safe for plastic, its a very very fine grit.
I use mothers all the time on metal, but never on plastic.(has solvents)
To each and all there own.
 
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i think only a bench grinder with a large stiff buffing wheel works, I use metal polish from Eagle 1 or Mothers on the wheel, dont practice on the headlights first, try on something similar, if you apply too much pressure in one spot you will burn/melt the lights:D
 
get some Mothers rubbing compound and hit them with that by hand using terry cloth. Then get some Mcguires plastic cleaner and polish and follow directions. I did mine all by hand and they look brand new.

This is after you do the sanding. I also removed the little aimer nubbies with a dremel before sanding. What the heck I can aim them at night by eye....
 
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derekhay316 said:
What does the white rouge bottle look like and where can u buy it? What section?
Go to www.eastwoodco.com and look in the buffing section, click on compounds and I beleive it page 2.
Buffing rouge looks like a giant crayon you apply it to the buff wheel while its spinning. I just noticed that they have a new compound made just for plastics and thats the one I would use.
White rouge is what I've used for years and it works fine, but they have the new one for plastic and I will be getting some and using it now.
Eastwood has everything you would need to restore old parts to new condition. I've used there stuff for years, its top notch and they have very good prices.
 
USE THE PLASTIC COMPOND FROM EASTWOOD CO. I HAVE AND IT WORKS LIKE A CHARM. THEY SELL A TAIL LIGHT RESTO KIT, BUT YOU DON'T NEED TO BUY THE WHOLE KIT. YOU ONLY NEED THE PLASTIC COMPOUND AND A BUFFING WHEEL THEY CAN RECOMEND TO YOU. IT ALSO SO REQUIRES A DRILL OR DIE GRINDER OPERATING AT 2500 RPM.
 
you can get the buffing compound at Lowes or Home Depot and the buffing wheels. The red rouge is the finest and provides the best shine on a prepped surface, but the red might stain the lights. So try the white first. And there are a few different grades of buffing wheels, super soft for high polish, medium for things a little rougher, and firm for the roughest. On metal you start with teh firm wheel and abrasive polish and then work your way up through the polish compound and buffing wheels. But I am not sure what steps to take with the lights.

Go to home depot or lowes for the stuff though.
 
Looks like everyone did something different but they obviously all worked. I bought a buffer attachment from Wallyworld for my drill and used Meguiars swirl remover.

I did my foglights the same way only started with heavier paper. They were REALLY chewed up from rocks and road crap.
 
I just used some cut wax on them and they're pretty much back to normal. I will try some actual plastic stuff later. Thanks for all your help guys.
 
I used the Mothers Mag And Aluminum polish... I didn't even need to sand the headlights the yellow came right off by hand... guess mine weren't too bad... I'll post pics later
 
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