Headlight restoration critique

[mfrickman]

I plan on offering Headlight Restorations in the spring and decided to buy the unigrit pads from Meguiars and try that as opposed to the Diamonite setup I have that I have not been very happy with.

Products used:
-Meguiar's Unigrit 800 and 1500 sanding discs
-PC7424XP w/ Meg's BP and foam interface
-Menzerna PG1500
-Poorboy's Professional Polish
-3.5" Light Cutting and Polishing pads
-Painter's Tape

Here's the lights at the beginning:

Here are the fog lights that weren't a huge issue to the owner but I figured I'd try it out:

Here is where it stood after doing the pass. side light:

Finished product:

I'm not sure if they didn't turn out perfect because I wasn't aggressive enough with sanding or didn't compound long enough. The Menzerna says it'll handle 1500 grit sanding so I figured it would be sufficient but maybe I need something better? Do I need 500 grit and 3000 to finish properly?

Thanks guys!





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[VP Mark]

I'm not a super pro on headlights but it looks like you did a pretty good job. 1500 is usually sufficient to repair all but the most damaged lights.

I think your issue is the pad/product after sanding. I get really good results from M100/microfiber on a 3 inch pad on headlights with no sanding. Take your time and if you need multiple passes do it. Looks like the fog lights could have used a little more compound but other than that you did a good job.

 

[mfrickman]

Thanks, Mark! I probably could have worked the Menzerna down a little more on all of the lights before I polished. With the fogs, all I had was 3.5 foam polishing pads and with the contours, I really couldn't get in there well enough to make as much as an impact as I would have liked. The customer was ecstatic so that's always a plus.

 

[mfrickman]

It was Menzerna PG1000 not 1500. Won't let me edit original post for some reason.

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[miniSguy]

1500 is usually sufficient to repair all but the most damaged lights.

In my experience, I tend to agree. I haven't needed to use anything lower than 1500.

From a Tacoma I did recently:
View attachment 24643

I've begun to use the Diamondite system, and it's ok. But I still need to get a tad bit more aggressive sometimes. The 1500 then 2000 works great then I finish with the Diamondite.

 

[ycdriveclean]

I get really good results from M100/microfiber on a 3 inch pad on headlights with no sanding.

how bad are the headlights when you use m100/mf pad?

i can get decent results with just compound/rotary but i a lot of times i end up sanding and redoing it

 

[mfrickman]

In my experience, I tend to agree. I haven't needed to use anything lower than 1500.

From a Tacoma I did recently:

I've begun to use the Diamondite system, and it's ok. But I still need to get a tad bit more aggressive sometimes. The 1500 then 2000 works great then I finish with the Diamondite.

That's exactly what I wanted to achieve! I'm not sure if the issue was inside the light or if I didn't sand enough. I did 3 section passes each with about 8lbs of pressure for each level of sanding.

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[kirkatizer]

I've always have superb results with 3M Sanding discs 600, 800 and 1500 on a DA. Then use a rotary with wool pad and any ultra-cut compound. If still hazy go back over it with some fine polish.

 

[MarkD51]

Down here in southern New Mexico, Headlight Damage (as well as premature clearcoat failure) seems so common. I would say 50% or better vehicles on the road here have almost useless headlights.

Now, one personal wonderment is, why is it that the Headlights go caput, but the tail lights are usually in much better shape? Heat from the lamps?
Does that compound the failure of lens clarity?

Or possibly the color of the lens itself is more prone to UV degradation? That could be too?

I know this is pretty basic "sanding sense", that the more one would refine the plastic with finer, and finer grade papers as they go, then I'd assume the less work it will be for a compound and polish to come behind, and achieve high clarity to the lenses without buffing for a fortnight.

That something like even 3000 grit might be of good benefit to lessen the work-time in the polishing stages.
Mark

 

[mfrickman]

Yeah, it looks like I'll either pick up some 3000 grit discs or break down and buy more microfiber cutting pads

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[VP Mark]

how bad are the headlights when you use m100/mf pad?

i can get decent results with just compound/rotary but i a lot of times i end up sanding and redoing it

On mild/moderate damage, 100%. On severe, 70% -+

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[mfrickman]

How long is too long when it comes to sanding and compounding? Is there a tell tale sign that you've done too much?

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[VP Mark]

How long is too long when it comes to sanding and compounding? Is there a tell tale sign that you've done too much?

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Not really. Just check your work after compounding to make sure the oxidation has been removed. Just like with paint Dont overwork the products. I always hit the lights with eraser between steps just to make sure the progress is real.

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[mfrickman]

Mark,

I kind of wish I took in between pictures and close up afters but I did IPA wipedowns after each process to make sure nothing was being transferred between pads.

I did notice light swirls on the lens and the light seemed to refract off of the inside of the lens. Not sure if there is internal oxidation or I didn't work on the outside long enough. I have another set I'm going to do when it warms up a bit and I'll set up my dlsr for that.

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