BEST WAY TO SAND HEADLIGHTS? Hand or Machine

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ClearandSafe

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I'm New to this Forum and also now to the headlight restoration business. I was wondering if anyone could give me some advice on the sanding process? Is it better to do it by hand or rotary or DA?
 
I prefer to do it by machine. I feel I get much better results and less time. I use 3M's mini rotary and orbital air tools for the job.
 
ClearandSafe said:
What grit steps do you use?
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I used 3M's Headlight Lens Restoration System which uses a 500 grit, 800 grit, then a 3000 foam disc. Followed by their rubbing compound. However, after the 800 grit, I used a 2000 grit for extra measure. The lens came out great. The discs that come with the 3M are used on your 1200-1600 rpm household drill. My 2000 grit sandpaper, was used by hand.

Like I mentioned in another post, ya don't see any progress after each step. Not till ya wipe the compound off do ya see the bulb in the rear of the housing. Then ya pat yourself on the back. lol :xyxthumbs:
 
DaHen said:
I used 3M's Headlight Lens Restoration System which uses a 500 grit, 800 grit, then a 3000 foam disc. Followed by their rubbing compound. However, after the 800 grit, I used a 2000 grit for extra measure. The lens came out great. The discs that come with the 3M are used on your 1200-1600 rpm household drill. My 2000 grit sandpaper, was used by hand.

Like I mentioned in another post, ya don't see any progress after each step. Not till ya wipe the compound off do ya see the bulb in the rear of the housing. Then ya pat yourself on the back. lol :xyxthumbs:
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:iagree: The 3M kit produces great results!
 
ClearandSafe said:
How long are the 3M disc's lasting you guys?
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On the two headlights, I only used three of the six 500 grit, just one 800 grit and looks like the 3000 can be used again. So with the rubbing compound left over, I could do another pair of headlights.
 
I think you can get great results either way, although wet-sanding by hand will get into tighter corners. If you have any misaligned fenders/bumpers from accidents or poor bodywork, the machine will only cover so much. You'll likely be finishing the rest by hand. I polish with a drill and can see spots the foam (which contours quite a bit) pad missed. A much rigid sanding disc would likely do some paint damage trying to get in those areas. I personally like wet-sanding by hand.

I noticed this weekend that VW's have very soft plastics which render phenomenal results with less effort than other makes. I did two Jetta's this weekend and they look virtually new. Here's one...

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That looks great. The problem i'm having is that the guy i sub-contract for is telling me that he wants me to get out the scratches 100%. Is that even possible? I've been thinking that it's not because polycarbonate is very susceptible to scratching, and with out the hard coat on there its just a poly surface. any feed back on this would be great.
 
Also how long will it take you to do a pair from start to finish taping and all, with hand sanding? and how long with a DA?
 
ClearandSafe said:
That looks great. The problem i'm having is that the guy i sub-contract for is telling me that he wants me to get out the scratches 100%. Is that even possible? I've been thinking that it's not because polycarbonate is very susceptible to scratching, and with out the hard coat on there its just a poly surface. any feed back on this would be great.
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You can get virtually all of the scratches out with the correct abrasives and polishes. The urethane sealant I put on makes it glossy again and fills any any fine marks left behind. Like I previously said, some manufacturers have harder clear plastics so they may take more time. It takes me about 2 hours from start to finish and includes sanding by hand, polishing by drill, urethane sealant, and taking B&A pictures. The light I did on my Infiniti had no significant scratches with the headlight on. Is this subcontract gentleman out there with a jewler's glass?
 
ClearandSafe said:
I'm New to this Forum and also now to the headlight restoration business. I was wondering if anyone could give me some advice on the sanding process? Is it better to do it by hand or rotary or DA?
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If you have some idea about compounds and pads, try a machine first.
It won't be as aggressive.

Only if that doesn't work would I tackle it with Paper, then followed by machine.

Cheers
Pete
 
Hey g35, It sounds like you use the same process I use for headlights. I do the initial tape off, before pics, depending on ho wbad the light is I will start with 400, if they are really bad, then 600, 800, 1000 then 2000. Follow up with Meg's PlastX on a Mothers Powerball Mini on a Hitachi High speed drill. Lastlt seal coat of 50/50 mix spar urethane and mineral spirits. I've gotton perfect results every time except one. These particular lights had dust and condensation on the inside and couldn't get it to look brand new, but the inside is out of our control.
 
I used the 3M kit on my acura tl and the results were great, they look clear with the headlights off as many people have posted pictures of. But when I turn my headlights on, I can see lots of little scratch marks left over from the sanding pads, and I followed the instructions that came with the kit. So I'm wondering if I should use M105 and M205 to remove those fine scratch marks, use the wetsanding pad from the 3M kit again, or use a urethane sealant instead of fk1000p.
 
FinraExam said:
I used the 3M kit on my acura tl and the results were great, they look clear with the headlights off as many people have posted pictures of. But when I turn my headlights on, I can see lots of little scratch marks left over from the sanding pads, and I followed the instructions that came with the kit. So I'm wondering if I should use M105 and M205 to remove those fine scratch marks, use the wetsanding pad from the 3M kit again, or use a urethane sealant instead of fk1000p.
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i think u get better result from a sander but on the other hand wet sanding good to do some time depends on the light and tight corner 3m kit good but do not come with a uv sealant it a good kit to recomend from the start
 
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