Headlight Restoration-new UV sealant idea

mitsuman95 said:
Did a G35 today. Wasn't horrible but you can definitely see the yellow. This pair took me about an hour and 15 minutes from taping to clean up.
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Geeze...........I'm slow!!! It usually takes me about 2 hrs or better. But I'm just starting out too........hopefully I'll get faster.
 
reggie1967 said:
what the price on that job if u care to share
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For that particular job i charged $25. I was running a promo because that was literally my first job and i had no before and after shots to promote myself. But my regular rate is now $40. I have a motorcycle and I can fit everything i need in my backpack so overhead is less which gives me that advantage. In this area mobile services are going for $50+

reggie1967 said:
if u mix it and put it up it will get hard of a period of time so dont store it
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I mixed my batch up last week and it seems to be fine. I put it in a small 3oz and only pull it out of the sandwich bag when i need to use it. So its somewhat double sealed. Guess ill be the test mule on this one since i havent read of anyone pre mixing. I attached a picture of how i store it.

Rewind97 said:
Geeze...........I'm slow!!! It usually takes me about 2 hrs or better. But I'm just starting out too........hopefully I'll get faster.
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well, not necessarily! It also depends on the light. The G35's headlights I did are pretty easy to sand down. So, maybe your headlight was a little more difficult...:buffing:
 
Greetings everyone, i'm new to this forum. HotRod, i was just wondering if i could use just the 800, 1000 and 3000 grit instead of all those other grits and get same results before i seal it.
 
mitsuman95 said:
For that particular job i charged $25. I was running a promo because that was literally my first job and i had no before and after shots to promote myself. But my regular rate is now $40. I have a motorcycle and I can fit everything i need in my backpack so overhead is less which gives me that advantage. In this area mobile services are going for $50+



I mixed my batch up last week and it seems to be fine. I put it in a small 3oz and only pull it out of the sandwich bag when i need to use it. So its somewhat double sealed. Guess ill be the test mule on this one since i havent read of anyone pre mixing. I attached a picture of how i store it.



well, not necessarily! It also depends on the light. The G35's headlights I did are pretty easy to sand down. So, maybe your headlight was a little more difficult...:buffing:
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thxs for the info
 
reggie1967 said:
thxs for the info
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No problem!

I had a couple clients today. I used the 1 week old mixture and its still looking good. Like i said before its just a 3oz bottle i bought at Walmart for $0.97. Thanks to the bottle i just hit a specific spot on my shop towel and apply directly to the car instead of having left overs after dipping into a cup. So far the 3oz has lasted me 7 cars and i still have about half bottle left.

Picked up this bad boy today. I absolutely hate using a sanding block because i no longer have a "feel" of what i'm sanding, but this feels really nice in my hand, is flexible(not too flexible), and has nice pointed edges. Also it used the hook n loop system which i thought was really cool. I am going to test it out tomorrow and will report back.

Has anyone used some hard cutting compound? I saw this 3m ultimate? compound at pepboys today that claimed it removed 1000g scratches. It was $24 for a 32oz bottle.
 
headlightmaster said:
Greetings everyone, i'm new to this forum. HotRod, i was just wondering if i could use just the 800, 1000 and 3000 grit instead of all those other grits and get same results before i seal it.
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Depending on how bad the surface is, id go with 400 or 600 then 800-1000-1500 then compound prime and seal. I found that with a good compound 1500 is high enough. 3000 is not necessary unless you don't want to use compound, but then you'd have more sanding step.
 
You can also use a product called UPoll. It is a UV clear coat that works great. Have used it my truck 4 years ago with no yellowing.
 
mitsuman95 said:
For that particular job i charged $25. I was running a promo because that was literally my first job and i had no before and after shots to promote myself. But my regular rate is now $40. I have a motorcycle and I can fit everything i need in my backpack so overhead is less which gives me that advantage. In this area mobile services are going for $50+



I mixed my batch up last week and it seems to be fine. I put it in a small 3oz and only pull it out of the sandwich bag when i need to use it. So its somewhat double sealed. Guess ill be the test mule on this one since i havent read of anyone pre mixing. I attached a picture of how i store it.



well, not necessarily! It also depends on the light. The G35's headlights I did are pretty easy to sand down. So, maybe your headlight was a little more difficult...:buffing:
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What section of wally world do you find those in. Ive looked before but could never find them lol
 
mitsuman95 said:
Depending on how bad the surface is, id go with 400 or 600 then 800-1000-1500 then compound prime and seal. I found that with a good compound 1500 is high enough. 3000 is not necessary unless you don't want to use compound, but then you'd have more sanding step.
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just a little tip... the higher the grit you finish with the LESS compounding you have to do. even if you finish off your sanding with 1500 you have to take an extra step compounding again. so just keep in mind that the higher grit you finish the less compounding steps you need to do. :dblthumb2:
 
mitsuman95 said:
Has anyone used some hard cutting compound? I saw this 3m ultimate? compound at pepboys today that claimed it removed 1000g scratches. It was $24 for a 32oz bottle.
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Yes ive used it before. That compound is like rocks. and it sure as hell does cut, trust me. i like it, it dosent leave any pretty finish but you always have to follow it up with something else. i use it only with a wool pad, and it cuts like crazy. then i follow it up with m105 and an orange cutting pad. good stuff! :dblthumb2:
 
93fox said:
just a little tip... the higher the grit you finish with the LESS compounding you have to do. even if you finish off your sanding with 1500 you have to take an extra step compounding again. so just keep in mind that the higher grit you finish the less compounding steps you need to do. :dblthumb2:
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Very true!

93fox said:
Yes ive used it before. That compound is like rocks. and it sure as hell does cut, trust me. i like it, it dosent leave any pretty finish but you always have to follow it up with something else. i use it only with a wool pad, and it cuts like crazy. then i follow it up with m105 and an orange cutting pad. good stuff! :dblthumb2:
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So would you advise against using this for headlight restorations? How does SSR3 compare to something like that? Would a yellow pad be good or orange for such a abrasive compound?

i did a restoration today and used orange 3m pad with turtle wax pro grade? rubbing compound. I wasn't too impressed. not sure if i need to up my pad to yellow and keep compound or switch compounds and keep orange pad, or switch compounds and pads. aahhh! im going crazy.
 
mitsuman95 said:
Very true!



So would you advise against using this for headlight restorations? How does SSR3 compare to something like that? Would a yellow pad be good or orange for such a abrasive compound?

i did a restoration today and used orange 3m pad with turtle wax pro grade? rubbing compound. I wasn't too impressed. not sure if i need to up my pad to yellow and keep compound or switch compounds and keep orange pad, or switch compounds and pads. aahhh! im going crazy.
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You might want to look at LC 4 inch pads. Its what i use and they work great. My suggestion is, finish all the way up with 3000 and then use a 4inch orange pad with m105 and you will be amazed. I know AG sells the 4 inch CCS pads. Great pads. But i will no longer be compounding headlights. Finishing off at 3000 and then wiping it with the UV sealant is a whole lot better.
 
mitsuman95 said:
Very true!



So would you advise against using this for headlight restorations? How does SSR3 compare to something like that? Would a yellow pad be good or orange for such a abrasive compound?

i did a restoration today and used orange 3m pad with turtle wax pro grade? rubbing compound. I wasn't too impressed. not sure if i need to up my pad to yellow and keep compound or switch compounds and keep orange pad, or switch compounds and pads. aahhh! im going crazy.
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If you're looking for something you can buy at the store go with Meguiars Ultimate Compound. Its like $8 from wally world if i remember correctly. Its basically the same as 105 but with a longer buffing cycle. Thats what i used on my last set with the 3m 3" orange pad...worked great. I think you'll like it. You may still want to change your pad to 4"...thats really up to you...but the 3" is nice on smaller lights...its what i prefer to use.:dblthumb2:
 
93fox said:
You might want to look at LC 4 inch pads. Its what i use and they work great. My suggestion is, finish all the way up with 3000 and then use a 4inch orange pad with m105 and you will be amazed. I know AG sells the 4 inch CCS pads. Great pads. But i will no longer be compounding headlights. Finishing off at 3000 and then wiping it with the UV sealant is a whole lot better.
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nice. i have to try this method out. i read that it works well but i have no hands on experience. i saw hotrods pictures and they do look great. Are you also using 600? or 400-800 etc. you dont see any noticable differences between compounding and not compounding? thanks for the info!


Wills.WindowsAndWheels said:
If you're looking for something you can buy at the store go with Meguiars Ultimate Compound. Its like $8 from wally world if i remember correctly. Its basically the same as 105 but with a longer buffing cycle. Thats what i used on my last set with the 3m 3" orange pad...worked great. I think you'll like it. You may still want to change your pad to 4"...thats really up to you...but the 3" is nice on smaller lights...its what i prefer to use.:dblthumb2:
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great tip. i will try this out. i really wish there was a local store that carried replacement pads. haha. how long has your 3m orange pad lasted you?
 
mitsuman95 said:
nice. i have to try this method out. i read that it works well but i have no hands on experience. i saw hotrods pictures and they do look great. Are you also using 600? or 400-800 etc. you dont see any noticable differences between compounding and not compounding? thanks for the info!
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It all depends on the headlight, i do believe some of these guys have overkilled it by going all the way down to 600 when its not necesseray. Always start with the least aggresive method and work from there. If the light is just yellowish, starting at 800 is good. If its just barely yellow, starting at 1000 is good. If its bad to the point where you can barey see the bulb inside, then you should start with 400.
 
93fox said:
It all depends on the headlight, i do believe some of these guys have overkilled it by going all the way down to 600 when its not necesseray. Always start with the least aggresive method and work from there. If the light is just yellowish, starting at 800 is good. If its just barely yellow, starting at 1000 is good. If its bad to the point where you can barey see the bulb inside, then you should start with 400.
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Well it seems that when part of the clear coat has failed, that part comes off pretty easily and then the rest of the good coat is pretty tough. the 400 wasnt cutting it yesterday. Are you just hitting the affected area? or are you taking all the coating off? i know some guys are going down to 220. That seemed like the only option honestly. I eventually got it off but it took a lot longer then i would have wanted to take. i am hand sanding.
 
mitsuman95 said:
Well it seems that when part of the clear coat has failed, that part comes off pretty easily and then the rest of the good coat is pretty tough. the 400 wasnt cutting it yesterday. Are you just hitting the affected area? or are you taking all the coating off? i know some guys are going down to 220. That seemed like the only option honestly. I eventually got it off but it took a lot longer then i would have wanted to take. i am hand sanding.
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Lowest i've gone is 320 and that was on a really bad pair...wasn't super yellow..just super thick coating and the 500 wasn't cutting in. On the norm i'll do 500/800/1500 compound or 3000, whichever floats your boat. Everyone is talking about 3000 being the cats meow now so...i might do a set and finish with 3000 and go to seal and see how it looks. I think i only have sheet paper at 3000, no discs...but hell i had hands way before i had machines lol. So no biggie.

I'd say 320 though is the lowest you should have to go..just keep your sandpaper clean and wipe the dust off the light so that way you're not just spreading the dust around and THINKING your getting a cut (been there done that). Also if you do the harshest cut wet...i'd think it would help some because the water would rise away most of what you've sanded off..and then if you have a bucket of clean water you can just clean your sandpaper in it and keep it movin!
 
Wills.WindowsAndWheels said:
Lowest i've gone is 320 and that was on a really bad pair...wasn't super yellow..just super thick coating and the 500 wasn't cutting in. On the norm i'll do 500/800/1500 compound or 3000, whichever floats your boat. Everyone is talking about 3000 being the cats meow now so...i might do a set and finish with 3000 and go to seal and see how it looks. I think i only have sheet paper at 3000, no discs...but hell i had hands way before i had machines lol. So no biggie.

I'd say 320 though is the lowest you should have to go..just keep your sandpaper clean and wipe the dust off the light so that way you're not just spreading the dust around and THINKING your getting a cut (been there done that). Also if you do the harshest cut wet...i'd think it would help some because the water would rise away most of what you've sanded off..and then if you have a bucket of clean water you can just clean your sandpaper in it and keep it movin!
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i have went as far 220 on most cars
 
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