ApokC

I wanna smoke my tail lights but don't wanna pay that much for Aerotect overlays.

VHT is cheap and I've seen quite a few videos on how to do it.

Anyone tried it yet?

heyarms

iTrader: (5)

Yes. And done properly, it looks fantastic (for those who like the smoke/blacked out tails).

That's what i used. If you need me to write a cliff-note version of how to do it, lemme know!

ApokC

Here's my thing, I have the red outs on it, can I still do the VHT and have it look good or do I need to take the red outs off?

And ya lemme know what your notes are! Thanks!

Deegee

iTrader: (1)

A write up would be very nice! I've seen somebody on these forums have a very faint smoked look on there tails and it looks superb. I'm not a big fan of the blacked out look but I think it can work on some cars.

heyarms

iTrader: (5)

Here is what i PM'ed you about painting over the red-outs (it's just an opinion, please do it at your own risk everyone )

Hmmm i dont have any experience with painting over stickers/vinyl. Initially, i would think yes if you apply enough layers of VHT and clear coat to essentially bury the vinyl underneath enough paint so that it will never peel from moisture/heat. (2 Coats of VHT is fairly dark, so probably focus on more coats of clear. I personally did 3 coats of clear, the more the better!)

I would try googling "painting over vinyl" or "painting over stickers" for some other answers/opinions. If the red-outs are relatively thin (hard to even catch with your fingernail if you brush against it), and the corners seem to be stuck on very well, I would think it would work out okay.

Here is my long (and cliff note) version of spray tinting tail lights. Enjoy the read!!


As for instructions, here is a lengthy version below, with cliff notes right here: Remove tails, sand with medium grit sand paper (maybe 600 grit), followed by light grit (1000 grit or so i believe), rinse or with a wet rag wipe off all the sandings and let dry. Paint with VHT Nitesahdes one coat for light smoke, two for dark, wet sand, clear coat at least 3 coats.


Supplies:
1 can VHT Niteshades
2 Cans of clear coat (I believe i used a laquer based, Dupli-color perhaps... If you need me to check, i can find them when i get home after work)
Medium grit sand paper (200-400 i believe)
Fine grit sand paper (600-1000 i believe)


Instructions:
With tail lights removed, begin sanding them with the medium grit sand paper. Sand evenly, applying the same pressure throughout, until the whole tail light is hazy. Then repeat the process with the finer grit sand paper. The final product should be a semi-smooth hazy version of stock tail lights. Obviously, if you dug in hard with the courser sand paper, be sure to sand out and make it smooth again. Sanding the tail lights gives the paint a better surface to stick to.

Next, rinse off the tail lights to remove all the debris from sanding. Dry them off thoroughly with a micro fiber towel so no dust is left behind.

Shake VHT Niteshades can for about a minute to get the paint mixed inside. Apply ONE even coat to the tail lights, with the can about 8 inches or so from surface, making sweeping passes, slightly overlapping each pass. Do not overspray, this will cause runs in the paint that need to be sanded out, and will also make the tint darker in the area oversprayed.

Let this dry for about 15 minutes, and apply a second coat if desired (my tail lights have 2 coats).

After your second (or first, if only doing one coat) is completely dry, take your fine grit sand paper and lightly sand the tail lights. This is an important step to ensure the clear coat is very shiny and reflective without imperfections. Rinse and wipe with a microfiber towel.

Once they are dry and free of any dust, its now time to clear coat them. Proceed the same way, making even sweeping passes across the lights, without overly spraying any areas. There will be multiple clear coats, so just be sure to evenly spray and avoid paint runs.

Wet sand the tail lights now once dry (wet your tail lights and/or fine grit sand paper. You shouldnt notice much happening during the wet sands. But it does even out the paint and remove the slightest imperfections.

Repeat the clear coat/wet sanding one more time. This brings it to 2 layers of clear coat. If you're satisfied, apply one final layer of clear coat and let dry and you are finished! The more clear, the better the shine. The wet sanding allows for a flawless, glass like clear coat finish that looks "wet" almost when clean.


This should pretty thoroughly explain. I dumbed some things down, just to be clear, not to make it sound like you dont know anything haha. Let me know if you need me to find the clear coat i used, it may be important (i read somewhere that the wrong type could damage the VHT paint, and pretty much eat it away, but I'm no paint expert, so maybe google something?)

simple

iTrader: (2)

I didn't sand mine and it came out perfect, just do it in a place where there's no dust or u'll regret it. Mine is also shiny, not dull like most that I'd seen, also I didn't use any clear over it.

chi123

iTrader: (12)

I've had my VHT Nite Shades can sit in my room for almost a year. I'm too scared to attempt to spray it since one may come out darker than the other. I'm going to do vinyls instead if I decide to darken, not smoke out my tails.