Headlight repair tips and results.

[pommy]

TIP - I personally pull off the masking tape before the UV coat is applied.

Why? Dust can come off when you peel it off to leave the job and stick to the lens.

Plus, once the coat is on, you can dry it off quickly and leave.

Keep the tips coming!

[Big E]

I had mentioned this a while back on another thread. I mask with blue tape first and then put a layer of green tape on top of it or vice versa. I find that if you do have an oops moment the bottom layer of tape will show through and not the paint. It also shows if the top layer of tape is getting thin because the lower layer starts to bleed through. Just put another layer basck on top for complete protection again. Tape is a lot cheaper than paint.

[glassdoctor]

My tip is learn how to be a pro at sanding. Some of the concerns and comments I've seen here and on other forums scare me. In 15 years of doing headlights, at least off and on... I've never needed touch up paint and I don't even tape off many of the cars I do. Accidents can happen of course, but if you hit the paint.... it should just be a sanding scuff to the clearcoat and can easily be wet sanded and buffed out with the same steps we use on the lights. I can't imaging going through the paint, or through layers of tape and still into the paint? Don't like being harsh, but this is rookie stuff that should be quickly learned after a few goofs. Also, I use a 5" Bosch DA. The 3" sanders like Delta uses... are much easier and "safer" than a 5", so I don't see how anyone is hitting paint with it.

In a related "tip"... learn how much you actually need to sand, and why. Rather than continuing to follow a script like a robot, "read" the specific damage and what it will take to fix it. No way in hell all these jobs need 180 or 320 grit. Impala? Silverado? Grand Prix? Sure.... bust out the heavy grits. Most jobs don't need it, and all you are doing is a bunch of extra work versus starting at like 800 or 1000 grit. My baseline starting point is 500 on heavy damage, and 1000 by hand on easy stuff. Sure, some jobs do need the whole enchilada and maybe take you 30-60 minutes, but there are some that don't, and should only take half the time. I mean like 5-10 minutes sanding, then prep to apply your coating of choice, done.

BTW, I have got to play with the Infinity a bit. Initial impression... I like it much better than the spar urethanes, no question. It has better working time, so it's easier to get a nice uniform coating without leaving streaks, runs, etc. But I can't really get a true feel for it by doing just a couple cars.

[jimmymaguire]

i read the long discussions and this entire thread has been verry verry informative for me. It is good to have forums where people discuss in depth and we benefit from each others knowledge. Headlights is not my area of expertise, so thank you for sharing.

[ray6]

Just finished my 5th restore using Infinity 4.1. Fantastic product. On 3 of the 5, no sanding was required after strip. Just polished with 3000 grit to give it some tooth. It looks like the average headlight only nees 2 to 3 ml. to coat (30 ml. equals 1 oz) so the coating cost is about 40 cents per headlight. On one, I put on a second coat after allowing 10 min. for first coat.

4.1 doesn't fill in sanding marks like their other coating does, but the benefits far outweigh this.

Regards,
ray6

[candyman]

You may be using too thin of a coat. I can see 3 ml per normal size headlight but not a set. I would recheck that price you quoted of .40 cents. At that rate you would get 200 restorations from a normal purchase . With luck, I may get 45 HLRs. I use this stuff sparingly at 8 mils of milky & 2 mils of clear of the solution of 4.1: This gives me enough solution for a small to medium headlight set and markers . We get about 4oz of the clear per bottle and 2, 8 oz bottles of milk solution. Bruce at Delta knows the exact amount we are suppose to recieve. The last time I purchased a bottle, it was almost $86 not including a $11 plus shipping fee. The last time i had a chemistry class 30 ml equals 1 ounce. If we get 4oz of clear and use 2 ml per headlight set, that means we can do about 60 small to average headlight set. At that rate we are looking at about $1.62 per vehicle. However, I dont see 60 vehicles even with my math. Some take more, while others take less and you normally have a small amount of waste. Regardless of the cost. A set of headlights can normally be completed for about $8 including the recomended pads (disc). With the C2P, I normally used about 1/4 oz per vehicle or about 36 vehicles per bottle. Have a good day.

[ray6]

You may be using too thin of a coat. I can see 3 ml per normal size headlight but not a set. I would recheck that price you quoted of .40 cents. At that rate you would get 200 restorations from a normal purchase . With luck, I may get 45 HLRs. I use this stuff sparingly at 8 mils of milky & 2 mils of clear of the solution of 4.1: This gives me enough solution for a small to medium headlight set and markers . We get about 4oz of the clear per bottle and 2, 8 oz bottles of milk solution. Bruce at Delta knows the exact amount we are suppose to recieve. The last time I purchased a bottle, it was almost $86 not including a $11 plus shipping fee. The last time i had a chemistry class 30 ml equals 1 ounce. If we get 4oz of clear and use 2 ml per headlight set, that means we can do about 60 small to average headlight set. At that rate we are looking at about $1.62 per vehicle. However, I dont see 60 vehicles even with my math. Some take more, while others take less and you normally have a small amount of waste. Regardless of the cost. A set of headlights can normally be completed for about $8 including the recomended pads (disc). With the C2P, I normally used about 1/4 oz per vehicle or about 36 vehicles per bottle. Have a good day.

You're right. It's per headlight and based on our "standard" test light, 90-95 ford/mercury. We also apply with a foam applicator and measure out with pipettes. This probably uses less than using a scott towel to apply.

ray6

[pommy]

@ Ray...

Do you have a pic you could post here of the foam applicator you use? How do you find the results? Consistent or varied?

Also, back up the thread a bit you said:

"On 3 of the 5, no sanding was required after strip"

What do you use to "strip" if you don't sand?

Cheers,

Pommy

[ray6]

Can't figure out how to imbed image.
Stripper is a compound developed by a chemist for us. It removes "broken" protective coat and leaves undamaged stuff. Most of the time it removes it all. Only sanding required is if scratches or pits are to be removed.

Applicators are made for us using closed cell foam (no air bubbles) and no latex (melts with coating.)

If you want to see a photo, send me a PM and I'll try to send image that way.

ray6

[pommy]

Sent - thanks