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We all have headlights. We all have hazing. A couple years back I used the Sylvania restore kit and they looked good and it lasted about 2 years. This year I bought the Mothers Plastic Polish / Headlight restore kit at Oreilys. I also had a 2 oz bottle of clearcoat I got off Amazon.
Process:
Clean headlights with rubbing alcohol
Mask around headlights
wet sand lenses w 600
wet sand lenses w 1000
wet sand lenses w 2500
Applied clearcoat w a foam brush, let dry overnight - passenger side
Polished the clearcoated (passenger) lens with the mothers kit to brighten
Polish driverside with just the Mothers kit using my drill
The Clearcoat side is MUCH brighter and crisper! The Mothers polished side certainly looks fine- nothing to complain about. You wouldn't give it a second glance to be honest. But the brushstrokes do leave a sort of striping on the lens, you con only see if you get very close. I assume the clearcoat would last a time
If we polished these and had a body shop shoot the lenses with clear, no striping correct? Does using clearcoat on the lens set off any red flags with you guys?
Clear coat is a pretty common fix for headlights as a last step, don't see anything wrong with it, and I would think it would take a competent shop about 30 seconds to shoot them.
Clearcoating is the only way to go for a long lasting crisper finish. I had mine done a few years ago by a mobile outfit and they still look good sitting out in the Fl sun.
Is there an aresol or sprayable clear-coat of some sort folks have used?
Ideally we dont have to deal with body shops. They usually ask for $300 to touch anything.
And like we mentioned- 30 seconds to shoot and we can wetsand at home.
Is there an aresol or sprayable clear-coat of some sort folks have used?
Ideally we dont have to deal with body shops. They usually ask for $300 to touch anything.
And like we mentioned- 30 seconds to shoot and we can wetsand at home.
I've done a number of headlight lens restorations using a variety of commercial kits including the one from Sylvania that have you wipe on the clear coat with a microfiber towel but I think I'm going to try the Chris Fix method next time using a Rustoleum clear coat product. Here is a link to the YouTube video and an image of the Rustoleum product he used:
I've gotten the best results from the Sylvania kit but its clear coat usually starts to visibly degrade by the two year mark. Maybe the Rustoleum clear coat will last longer. I'm going to get Xpel headlight film installed on the next new vehicle I purchase to see how well it works. We have 3M paint projection film on the front ends of two current vehicles and it has worked great.
I've done a number of headlight lens restorations using a variety of commercial kits including the one from Sylvania that have you wipe on the clear coat with a microfiber towel but I think I'm going to try the Chris Fix method next time using a Rustoleum clear coat product. Here is a link to the YouTube video and an image of the Rustoleum product he used: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UEJbKLZ7RmM
I've gotten the best results from the Sylvania kit but its clear coat usually starts to visibly degrade by the two year mark. Maybe the Rustoleum clear coat will last longer. I'm going to get Xpel headlight film installed on the next new vehicle I purchase to see how well it works. We have 3M paint projection film on the front ends of two current vehicles and it has worked great.
It is not the Chris Fix method, don’t give him credit for something he didn’t create. All he does is take methods from other people and doesn’t give credit where it’s due.
This method was on Autogeek and other places long before he thought of stealing it.
It is not the Chris Fix method, don’t give him credit for something he didn’t create. All he does is take methods from other people and doesn’t give credit where it’s due.
This method was on Autogeek and other places long before he thought of stealing it.
Of course it isn't "his method" but his video is a nice, clear, readily available and even fun tutorial that identifies all the products required to be successful.
There's nothing wrong with borrowing ideas and repackaging them.
I'm in the process of restoring an older bass guitar, and just finished shooting the clear on the color finish. The paint used is Nitrocellulose, which is extremely durable.
I wonder how that would bond on a clear plastic lens? Just a thought...
I'm in the process of restoring an older bass guitar, and just finished shooting the clear on the color finish. The paint used is Nitrocellulose, which is extremely durable.
I wonder how that would bond on a clear plastic lens? Just a thought...
U.V. resistant properties are critical to durability and function of clearcoat applied to headlamp lenses...
I used the Rustoleum clear UV on my LS and GS. You have to be very careful to not get fish eyes. Actually, I think there wasn't a single headlight I did with the rattle can spray that didn't have at least one or two small fish eyes but some were very minimal and not a big deal. I personally felt that the clear slightly changed color fairly quick. I ultimately threw in the towel and had them done professionally where they used a chemical to prep the lens and then they wiped on what is probably just a clear coat and they turned out really well. It's been well over a year for both my LS and GS and they are still looking good.
Headlight Restore Comparison- Polish vs Clearcoat
