Polishing headlight lenses

Old Poop

Active LVC Member
Joined
Oct 20, 2007
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Location
Goffstown, NH
I was showing my hazy, pitted, foggy headlights to a friend of mine and he recommended a kit from 3M that he said just hit the commercial market a couple of months ago. They have sold it as a pro kit for a while to body shops and dealerships and the kit contains the same parts, just not in bulk. He personally guaranteed me that it would remove the pits, the haze, the pitted clear-coat and cure... you get the picture or he would refund my money 100%!
I asked how much for this modern day miracle that would make my headlights look like new? $49.99? $69.99? More?
He looked me straight in the eye and without flinching said... $15.99.
:eek: I quickly pushed the moths aside in my wallet and laid down my money and told him to get the refund ready, I would be back in a few hours.
The kit contained a disk for my drill, a foam pad to attach the disks to, sanding disks: 500 grit, 800 grit, 1600 grit, and foam pad impregnated with a compound for wet sanding, a thick foam applicator for applying the 3M lens polish. There were plenty of disks to complete this project, about 10 of each of the sanding disks.
I started with the dry sanders, 500 then 800 then the 1600 followed by the wet sanding and finally the polishing compound. I stood back and thought.. I hope he enjoys that $15.99!
I know that you can find comparable products and sandpaper to do this job but, the kit was so easy to use with all the parts you need and terrific instructions. I haven't had to do any wet-sanding in 35 years and I was a little hesitant to do this but, it is a great kit for a novice or pro.
Make sure you tape off the area around your lights and don't be afraid to double the tape to protect your chrome and paint. I also plan on getting some 16mil lens protectors to keep the headlights in this condition.
Below are some before and after pic's of my 98 Mark VIII.
Hope this helps.
Photo's 1 and 2 Before
Photo 3 cutting with the 500 grit looks scary
Photo 4 Notice the little "islands of white, they are clear-coat residue, keep sanding until that do not appear.
Photo's 5 and 6 The results were better than I could imagine :D
Photo 7 The 3M card from the packaging Part Number 39008

Before.JPG


Before-side.JPG


FirstCut500Grit.JPG


ClearcoatResidue.JPG


After.JPG


AfterDS.JPG


3M39008.JPG
 
Looks pretty good. I love a good headlight restoration, even though I've only done it using polish and compound.
 
looks good poop, i like the vid, its another ford product with head light issues. hell i might do one of my spare housings out of the car no i wont need to tape anything
 
Give it a try, I can guarantee that you will be pleased with the results. A couple of hours, a couple of beers and you will never be looking at that pair of "like new" headlights for $300+ each on e-bay again :D .

looks good poop, i like the vid, its another ford product with head light issues. hell i might do one of my spare housings out of the car no i wont need to tape anything
 
I may have to do this, this weekend. My Gen 2 headlights were sprayed with clear by the previous owner and now all the clear is pealing and flaking. Looks worse than a yellowed headlight lense. I was thinking about having them re-cleared but this seems like a better option. Then I will be trying it on my Gen 1 halogen housings as well.
 
Give it a try, I can guarantee that you will be pleased with the results. A couple of hours, a couple of beers and you will never be looking at that pair of "like new" headlights for $300+ each on e-bay again :D .


Now you just need to update your signature pic, that way it shows the new pretty lenses!
 
I was showing my hazy, pitted, foggy headlights to a friend of mine and he recommended a kit from 3M that he said just hit the commercial market a couple of months ago. They have sold it as a pro kit for a while to body shops and dealerships and the kit contains the same parts, just not in bulk. He personally guaranteed me that it would remove the pits, the haze, the pitted clear-coat and cure... you get the picture or he would refund my money 100%!
I asked how much for this modern day miracle that would make my headlights look like new? $49.99? $69.99? More?
He looked me straight in the eye and without flinching said... $15.99.
:eek: I quickly pushed the moths aside in my wallet and laid down my money and told him to get the refund ready, I would be back in a few hours.
The kit contained a disk for my drill, a foam pad to attach the disks to, sanding disks: 500 grit, 800 grit, 1600 grit, and foam pad impregnated with a compound for wet sanding, a thick foam applicator for applying the 3M lens polish. There were plenty of disks to complete this project, about 10 of each of the sanding disks.
I started with the dry sanders, 500 then 800 then the 1600 followed by the wet sanding and finally the polishing compound. I stood back and thought.. I hope he enjoys that $15.99!
I know that you can find comparable products and sandpaper to do this job but, the kit was so easy to use with all the parts you need and terrific instructions. I haven't had to do any wet-sanding in 35 years and I was a little hesitant to do this but, it is a great kit for a novice or pro.
Make sure you tape off the area around your lights and don't be afraid to double the tape to protect your chrome and paint. I also plan on getting some 16mil lens protectors to keep the headlights in this condition.
Below are some before and after pic's of my 98 Mark VIII.
Hope this helps.
Photo's 1 and 2 Before
Photo 3 cutting with the 500 grit looks scary
Photo 4 Notice the little "islands of white, they are clear-coat residue, keep sanding until that do not appear.
Photo's 5 and 6 The results were better than I could imagine :D
Photo 7 The 3M card from the packaging Part Number 39008

From the looks of the carboard insert, it comes with a new Mark VIII steering wheel in the package!! What a great deal!!
 
see my issue is my pass side got hit at work 4 years ago, so that lamp assy is new and no matter how good a used one looks it will never match
 
Just curious if you had a chance to clear up your headlights last weekend and if you got the complimentary steering wheel with the 3M product?:D

I may have to do this, this weekend. My Gen 2 headlights were sprayed with clear by the previous owner and now all the clear is pealing and flaking. Looks worse than a yellowed headlight lense. I was thinking about having them re-cleared but this seems like a better option. Then I will be trying it on my Gen 1 halogen housings as well.
 
That is true, it won't look like new but it will look alot better, not to mention the improvement in seeing the fog lines on the road, I never knew that there were lines on the side of the road until I polished them up.:eek:

see my issue is my pass side got hit at work 4 years ago, so that lamp assy is new and no matter how good a used one looks it will never match
 
I am not familiar with O'Reily's. Call them and ask if they have that part number (39008).
Most auto-body shop suppliers will have it or a 3m distributor.
If all else fails let me know and I will send you the contact info for the place in Manchester NH where I bought mine.
Depending on how bad your lights are, 1 kit could do both.

Will autozone or orilleys have this???? My headlight look really BAD!!!
 
Oreillys can order it if it's not in stock, I picked mine up from Autozone the other day. I haven't gotten the chance to use it yet but am quite excited about finding the time, I just hope I don't mess the lenses up.

Unfortunately, mine did not come with the complimentary steering wheel.
 
No just one car. I think they look bad but they look about as bad as yours did. Ill have to go see if they have it.
 
ive been bringing headlights back from the dead for years now, i have my own method but it does the same thing, chicken, i guarantee i could make your other assembly look as good as the new one. take it out and send it to me i'll work my magic on it.
 
No just one car. I think they look bad but they look about as bad as yours did. Ill have to go see if they have it.

ok Just wondering because I did it to My continental, and Both of the Mark VIIIs and they look new for about $21 for all the supplies
 

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