Headlights, wet sand then polish, or cutting compound?

M

Mikesdak

New member
Joined
Apr 11, 2022
Messages
18
Reaction score
0
More basic questions:

I'm looking to do headlight restoration on several of my vehicles. Some of them are foggy enough that I might need to start wet sanding with 600 or 800 grit. I plan to carry the wet sanding up through 3000 grit .

After wet sanding, I plan to polish with a drill pad or my DA polisher. I have a bottle of plastx polish and Meguairs ultimate Polish, but no compound. I was thinking of picking up a bottle of ultimate compound, is that necessary to do as an intermediate step before polishing?

I will then fully clean the headlight with alcohol, and coat either with Meguairs spray coating or 3M headlight coating wipes.
 
Likely no need to go to 600 or 800. I know many do but honestly, it's not necessary. I do a lot of them and all you need is 1000 at the most. Then 2000 and 3000 then spray.

I use a drill kit. If they aren't too bad and sanding isn't necessary, then use any good compound and polish but understand that unless you spray or PPF them the work won't likely last more than 1yr.
 
Just like with paint....do a test spot.

I teamed up recently with another detailer on a job. I noticed the headlights were foggy, as did he. he asked if we were going to do them. I said, "if we have time" - thinking sanding was needed.

He's a young and eager guy. He is also VERY happy with the M105 bottles I gave him. He felt it might be enough to do the job.

Sure enough, i was blown away with the results from the simple method he used, and it only took minutes. M105 on an older Griot's MF 3" pad.
 
That's very helpful info, guys. I was mostly curious as to whether I needed to use compound (Meguairs UC) in between sanding and polish... But it sounds like I may be able to use UC compound instead of sanding, depending on condition of plastic...which would save a lot of time.

I guess then it probably makes sense to pickup some UC, and try that first on a spot, and go from there, if looks good, finish with UC and then UP. If not, I can always go back and wet sand.
 
I would normally say 800 or 1000 grit is needed to remove the surface of plastic. Compounding doesn’t really remove much plastic, which is really what needs to happen, remove the compromised outer plastic layer…sort of like removing dead skin. If you go to 2000 grit, you can then compound from there. If you go to 3000 grit, you just need a quick polish.

For me, I use 1000,2000, and 3000 grit Mirka Abralon sanding pads and then polish with a Rupes yellow wool pad and Griots Fast Correcting Cream.
 
Post up some before pics. That will also help with feedback.
 
So I did the headlights on my wife's pilot tonight. Wet sanded with 1000-2000-3000, then polished with Ultimate Polish.

Edit... I don't coat them yet, it started raining a bit, so I figured I'd do it tomorrow, I've got some 3m coating wipes that should work ok, I hope.

Here's the before and after shots Pilot headlights - Google Photos

Sorry for the Google album, couldn't upload pics from my phone.

Thanks for all the help!
 
Depending on the condition, you might not need to go all the way to 1000 grit either.

I just restored the headlights on my daughter's car using the Griots severe headlight kit. While they were pretty foggy, I think using the 1000 grit disk in the kit might have been a bit too aggressive for their condition. I probably would have done just fine starting with the 2000 grit and following up with the 3000 grit.

One thing you might want to consider as well is following up the sandpaper with a plastic polish. I was really happy with the results from the Griots kit, but I could help but wonder if I could have made them a touch more clear by using some of the polish from my Wolfgang headlight kit before applying the protectant from the Griots kit.
 
Mikesdak said:
I've got some 3m coating wipes that should work ok, I hope.
Click to expand...

When coating lights you want to have them scuffed up a bit. Hit them with 3000 or 5000 to give the coating something to bite onto. Otherwise it will run and likely begin to flake over time.
 
TTQ B4U said:
When coating lights you want to have them scuffed up a bit. Hit them with 3000 or 5000 to give the coating something to bite onto. Otherwise it will run and likely begin to flake over time.
Click to expand...

ahh. I wondered that. I'm assuming wet sand with either of those grits? In that same vein, I called the body shop a few weeks ago about clear coating headlights when done. They said not to polish, only wet sand prior to clear coat. Is this the case for clearcoating paint jobs too? Is the polishing done to the finished clear? And, do I need to polish the coated headlight? Sorry lots of newb questions. This is like a whole new world to me, I was blown away by the transformation.
 
Mikesdak said:
ahh. I wondered that. I'm assuming wet sand with either of those grits? In that same vein, I called the body shop a few weeks ago about clear coating headlights when done. They said not to polish, only wet sand prior to clear coat. This is like a whole new world to me, I was blown away by the transformation.
Click to expand...

Yep. When restoring lights, do not polish to a gloss, go straight to the Clear Spray after your 3000 grit. You can polish them out as you have done and put a sealant or Ceramic on them, but neither will last long. Go PPF if you're going to do that. THat's what I tend to do.
 
I don't think anyone has mentioned the Cerakote headlight coating following the correction steps

There was a lot of buzz about that for a while

I haven't used it, just curious why nobody has mentioned it

:confused:
 
chilly said:
I don't think anyone has mentioned the Cerakote headlight coating following the correction steps

There was a lot of buzz about that for a while

I haven't used it, just curious why nobody has mentioned it

:confused:
Click to expand...

Interesting enough, the coating in the Griots kit I just used is the Cerakote headlight coating. I don't think they mention it on the box, but they clearly mention it in the "how to" video.

Other products I've used, like the Wolfgang product, only lasted about six months before the lenses started yellowing and getting hazy again. I'm really hoping the Cerakote product lives up to the 2-year claim. I'll find out soon enough because the car I just applied it to will sit out 24/7 in all weather conditions.
 
The 3M wipes I'm planning to use claim up to 2 years UV protection... Item no 32516. They came in a kit with a 3 inch disc of trizact 3000 grit for about $7. Maybe these will last?
 
Mikesdak said:
The 3M wipes I'm planning to use claim up to 2 years UV protection... Item no 32516. They came in a kit with a 3 inch disc of trizact 3000 grit for about $7. Maybe these will last?
Click to expand...

yep. they will be fine. Trizact is what I use. paper does matter.
 
JustJesus said:
Just like with paint....do a test spot.

I teamed up recently with another detailer on a job. I noticed the headlights were foggy, as did he. he asked if we were going to do them. I said, "if we have time" - thinking sanding was needed.

He's a young and eager guy. He is also VERY happy with the M105 bottles I gave him. He felt it might be enough to do the job.

Sure enough, i was blown away with the results from the simple method he used, and it only took minutes. M105 on an older Griot's MF 3" pad.
Click to expand...

BOOM, that's exactly what I do. M105 or the coarsest compound I have using the heaviest cut pad I have on hand and let'er rip. So far i have gotten away with just that and following up with a coat or two of M20 or equivalent. It seems to hold up for a decent while.


I've not done it yet, but if they ever get soo bad that I need to sand them, they will get a polyurethane clear coat. The agents in that will bond with the plastic/lexan and will be second only to the factory OE coating .... according to the painters I have talked to. Some even suggest it is better than.
They only sand out to 800 or so and then shoot the clear. If you sand out too fine the CC won't won't adhere as well as it could've.
 
I tried the Cerakote headlight coating TODAY ..

Did everything by the book: oxidation removal - 2000 - 3000 - UV coating.

I did it nicely and thoroughly, but the end result .. hmmm

I was left with some scratches.

I did 2000 and especially 3000 carefully,, making sure that the whole light was sanded properly.

Any idea why I still ended up with these scratches ?!??

View attachment 76770
 
When I used the Griots kit, I found I didn't spend enough time with the 2000 and the 3000. Somewhere in the instructions, either with the kit or the video, there is mention of the heavy (1000?) grit stage is the one you should spend the most time on to remove the hazing and discoloration. After going through the process, I'd respectfully agree. Spending a lot more time with the 2000 and 3000 grit stages are really where you find perfection.

I have a couple areas, just like what you picture. Fortunately, they are on a car that's old and spends it's whole life outdoors. Perfection was not the goal, clarity of the lenses and improved headlight performance was, and I got that...though it does have some sanding marks visible.
 
Desertnate said:
When I used the Griots kit, I found I didn't spend enough time with the 2000 and the 3000. Somewhere in the instructions, either with the kit or the video, there is mention of the heavy (1000?) grit stage is the one you should spend the most time on to remove the hazing and discoloration. After going through the process, I'd respectfully agree. Spending a lot more time with the 2000 and 3000 grit stages are really where you find perfection.

I have a couple areas, just like what you picture. Fortunately, they are on a car that's old and spends it's whole life outdoors. Perfection was not the goal, clarity of the lenses and improved headlight performance was, and I got that...though it does have some sanding marks visible.
Click to expand...
\

In the Cerakote instructional video, they mentioned doing 2000 and 3000 for 2-3 minutes only.

It looks like I didn't do the 3000 long enough to get rid of the scratches caused by 2000 although I spent at least 15 minutes doing the 3000 in an intensive (car detailer) manner.

I'll try doing more of the 3000 on the second light.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top