Did I mess up my headlights ?? Hairline scratches on Acura TSX

[chiggah]

I have a similar problem to this guy here with my CL9. I just hope the problem is external, not internal :S

Friend told me it's a common problem with CL9 with HIDs






I bought the wetsand 1200 grit and ready to sand it down.. but what products can I use to polish/buff it to remove the scratches from wetsand??

Would scratchx be fine on plastic material ? Plastx ?

Some guy on aanother forum recommended wetsand > polish/buff to permanently fix it.. And plastx is just a "temporary" fix

Any help would be grateful so I won't do any permanent damage to my headlights! lol


Update after work progress.....

i just sanded down with 1200 grit paper... wiped down clean... then polished/buffed with plastx... did the whole process for about 45mins

it's better... removed the imperfection residue or whatever

but now i have a 2nd problem..

my right headlight is slightly cloudier than my left headlight and the fine scratches are visible.. not too bad if looked from far..

What can I do to fix it now ? 2000 grit paper ? should i use scratchx to remove the fine scratches ?

Or should I be really using an electrical buffer at low speed?

[Michael Stoops]

Re: Did I mess up my headlights ?? Hairline scratches on Acura TSX

Our apologies for missing this post the first time around - the lead up to SEMA was a killer!!

OK, here's the deal - the 1200 grit sandpaper you used first is basically fine, but trying to buff out the 1200 grit sanding marks can be a challenge, especially by hand. We highly recommend you pick up some 2500 or 3000 grit and refine the scratches you have now. If you used side to side strokes with the 1200 grit, then use up and down strokes with the finer grade. Do the opposite if need be. Go get one of our Headlight Restoration Kits and use the PlastX with the wool pad supplied in the kit - attach the pad to a good quality drill and use that to remove the finer sanding marks. It will pull those marks very easily and leave the headlights looking good as new.

In fact, our new Heavy Duty Headlight Restoration Kit that we just introduced at SEMA last week uses 1000 grit, 3000 grit and PlastX with this wool pad. It won't be available in stores for a couple of months still, but you can gather the essential parts on your own and accomplish the same task.

[Chris Thompson]

Re: Did I mess up my headlights ?? Hairline scratches on Acura TSX


When polishing headlights (especially by hand) I would never stop sanding with anything less than 2500.

And no, Plastix is not a temporary quick fix. It is an actual polish that can remove the 2500 marks.

[Innovative Detailing]

Re: Did I mess up my headlights ?? Hairline scratches on Acura TSX

To bring the Headlight up to it's highest clarity, as Mike Stoops mentioned, you need to take it up 1000>2000>3000, I recommend wet sanding creating a light slurry as you sand. Once you have finished off with the highest grit, wipe clean with a soft MF towel and prepare to polish the lens. If you do have access to a rotary polisher ( 1800 rpm is ideal ) if not a drill can work, be sure to use a 3" of 4" wool pad with the appropriate backing plate, then follow up with M205 and a 3" or 4" foam pad, wax or seal for LSP. Be sure to properly mask and prep the entire area prior to starting to avoid damaging paintwork.

This should allow you to regain the clarity and bring back the sparkle to your scratched headlight lens...