Moose spiffied up lenses

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LeoC2

New member
While my computer was down the last couple of days I was going a bit stir crazy not being able to work so I decided to finally polish out Moose's headlight lenses. Took a lot of sanding and polishing then I clearcoated them. Pictures don't do it justice, they are crystal clear now.

Moose just tuned 100k so this is his present!

Moose-lenses.jpg
 
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LeoC2

New member
I masked off the lenses and wet sanded with 1000 grit paper then gradually wet sanded down to 2000, 2500, and finally 3000 grit. Finished it off with a polishing compound and a foam pad on my buffer. I then had the local body shop clear coat the lenses. It wasn't a difficult job but it does take time and patience. I would say that if you can find someone who does this and charges around $50 it would be worth it.
 
tixer

tixer

Lincoln Evangelist
A note for base model owners attempting this.

Don't apply masking tape to the chrome trim below the headlights. The chrome can come off when the tape is removed, as I discovered the hard way. My revised approach is to remove the assemblies from the car, and remove the trim, before beginning work.
 
SCTBIRD1173

SCTBIRD1173

Mark my Bird!
Nice job Leo! Sounds similar to how the 3M kit is, I used that with the same results but I started with worse headlights. :)

Mike, I would think if painters tape was used it wouldn't peel off the chrome. That being said I took my lights out making it easier to get the edges of the lights.
 
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markup97

Lost in Translation
I do my lenses the same way, but I usually have to start with 400-grit and work down to 8000-grit polishing cloths. I then finish out with Finesse-it III paint polish and have them cleared with a quality Acrylic clear. The acrylic clear will keep the outside oxidation from returning.
 
tixer

tixer

Lincoln Evangelist
SCTBIRD1173 said:
Mike, I would think if painters tape was used it wouldn't peel off the chrome. That being said I took my lights out making it easier to get the edges of the lights.
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In my case, it was the blue 3M painter's tape. I've seen people swearing by the "green" kind now, but it wasn't common when I attempted this the first time.. There may have been an underlying flaw that caused it to happen, but still, I'd be cautious.
 
Stangman

Stangman

New member
markup97 said:
I do my lenses the same way, but I usually have to start with 400-grit and work down to 8000-grit polishing cloths. I then finish out with Finesse-it III paint polish and have them cleared with a quality Acrylic clear. The acrylic clear will keep the outside oxidation from returning.
Click to expand...
Thats pretty much exactly what I do! Great minds think alike!
 
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