Headlight Restoration-new UV sealant idea

After we polish the headlights with 3M full program we offer the customer headlight protection film. This is another alternative to sealing. The headlight films we use are warranted for 7 years.
 
shineknee said:
After we polish the headlights with 3M full program we offer the customer headlight protection film. This is another alternative to sealing. The headlight films we use are warranted for 7 years.
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And it's made by 3M ?
 
3M does not make nor market clear headlight films. That being said we use 3M and Nano for 8 mil protection - sand pecking and abrasion, UV protection etc. and use XPEL 30 mil for more expensive headlights, fogs, driving lights etc. for the same reasons however this material would help to prevent lens breakage. ( Xpel material also incorporates a scratch coating similar to your eye glasses) It is ultimately up to the customer the choose.

When you look closely at your lens they start to get sand pecks similar to your front bumper.

98% of the vehicle we install PPF also install HPF's very few op out. Hope this helps.:Picture:
 
i wonder with new ceramic coatings how they would hold up on headlights. i put it on my headlight and seems holding up good, doesnt haze up like it used to after each polishing
used CQuartz. its probably more expensive solution but im sure it works
 
I havent had luck finding spar urethane where i live... but i have found the mineral spirits called (aguaraz mineral)...

would something like marine varnish work instead of the spar urethane?? or would i be better off using some other polyurethane sealant? please halp!
 
Well finally did my daughters car using the spar and spirits mix and they looked great and she really liked them also. Remembered to take some pic.
 
Have done a couple more headlights for friends and family and now will start charging for my services. Using the mineral spirits to clean the lens does help in makeing it go on smoothly. Will post more pic later. Thanks all for the information
 
oschavez4 said:
Have done a couple more headlights for friends and family and now will start charging for my services. Using the mineral spirits to clean the lens does help in makeing it go on smoothly. Will post more pic later. Thanks all for the information
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nice pixs i never started cleaning the lens with minerals spirts i use a solution to clean lens from dvelup.com another headlight restoration company there good but ok you learn other ways lolo
 
uvresitclear.png


Has anyone tried the UV clear paint by Krylon?
Krylon: Products: UV-Resistant Clear

Clear finish protects surfaces from damaging UV light rays.

Permanent finish guards against fading
Non-yellowing
Moisture-resistant
DRY TO TOUCH: 10 minutes
DRY TO HANDLE: 2 hours
FOR USE WITH: Wood, Metal, Wicker, Plastic, Glass, Plaster, Ceramic, Paper, Paper Mache, Dried/Silk Flowers.
 
have never tired the Krylon before but the problem is the overspray that comes with it. You really need to cover everything in sight
 
oschavez4 said:
have never tired the Krylon before but the problem is the overspray that comes with it. You really need to cover everything in sight
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I mask with "Road Wrap" 18" wide and just trim out the headlight. Try it, you'll like it.
 
here are the pics of the other headlights I have done. I did notice that on one there are these spider web cracks on the inside of the lens does anyone know what causes these.
 
oschavez4 said:
here are the pics of the other headlights I have done. I did notice that on one there are these spider web cracks on the inside of the lens does anyone know what causes these.
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UV damage usually makes the plastic brittle. Add heat from the sun and the light bulbs and the plastic eventually gives to small cracks called crazing.
 
Any Aussies in this thread?
Where can you get this stuff, or is there an equivalent that's available here?

Cheers,
Paul.
 
MAD said:
Any Aussies in this thread?
Where can you get this stuff, or is there an equivalent that's available here?

Cheers,
Paul.
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Is there a Home Depot there? If so, that's where you get the stuff. You really can get it at probably any hardware store though. You might not get these particular brands, but I'm sure there's something very similar.:xyxthumbs:
 
Thanks for the feedback g35 I kind of thought it was something like that. Thanks again for the input.
 
Has anyone seen that new infomercial selling a wipe on wipe off headlight cleaning kit? I had 3 or 4 people tell me about seeing it on tv and then I saw it myself. It shows the guy wipe off the yellow and then comes with a "sealant" bottle to wipe on when you are done. They say it only takes a few seconds to do your headlights.

Anyone know anything about it or if it works or whether they have lost business due to people using that in place of a headlight restoration service?

Also, does anyone on here have a suggestion about how to bring in business that is most effective? Is it a good idea to make up flyers or cards and put them on cars with yellow headlights? I can do the restorations but I need to figure out how to get the word out locally about my business.

Thanks in advance for any help.
 
normster said:
Has anyone seen that new infomercial selling a wipe on wipe off headlight cleaning kit? I had 3 or 4 people tell me about seeing it on tv and then I saw it myself. It shows the guy wipe off the yellow and then comes with a "sealant" bottle to wipe on when you are done. They say it only takes a few seconds to do your headlights.

Anyone know anything about it or if it works or whether they have lost business due to people using that in place of a headlight restoration service?

Also, does anyone on here have a suggestion about how to bring in business that is most effective? Is it a good idea to make up flyers or cards and put them on cars with yellow headlights? I can do the restorations but I need to figure out how to get the word out locally about my business.

Thanks in advance for any help.
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i post flyers on people cars/ lve some at business i go to laundrymat/stores/ gas satations if u go to dvelup.com andorder product they hve flyers made up u can use. they hve a before/after pix of a mustang headlight on their flyers
 
Kristopher1129 said:
Is there a Home Depot there? If so, that's where you get the stuff. You really can get it at probably any hardware store though. You might not get these particular brands, but I'm sure there's something very similar.:xyxthumbs:
Click to expand...
I've looked around and the only Minwax product I've been able to find is 'Wipe-on Poly' but I'm not sure if its the same as what is created by using a 50/50 mix of spar urethane and mineral spirits.
Are polyurethane and urethane one and the same? All I can find in Aus is polyurethane.

I think the closest I've come across are these two products...
Feast Watson - Exterior Clear Finishes - Weatherproof
and
Feast Watson - Exterior Clear Finishes - Spar Marine Varnish

They both have UV resistant qualities, but the spar varnish states it is more flexible.
It also doesnt mention being a polyurethane whereas the Weatherproof finish does.

I might just have to lash out and try one of them.
 
Well, I decided to have a crack at it. I bought the spar varnish linked above and a bottle of white spirits.
I grabbed an old lens I had lying around from another job and started clearing off the yellow. I went 180, 400, 800, 1200 then coated it with the varnish.
It's only been about 2 hours since I coated it so it is still well and truly wet, but wow! this method is fantastic.
I didn't do the sanding as thoroughly as I would have if I was going to use the Wolfgang headlight restorer kit that I have, but wiping this stuff on has filled all the tiny scratches left over and has left it with a gloss better than the day it rolled out of the factory.

Cant wait to see how it looks after its fully cured.

I tried to take some photos but I cant get them to come out. I'll try again tomorrow if there is some sun when I get home.
 
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