Sealer or no sealer

[Brent Deines]

Mr Chip, I stand corrected, thanks for that, I wish they gone this year, I would love to see their demo up close.

Actually the guy doing the scratch removal demos in the LR booth works for IPS, and was using an IPS polisher. Since he was working in the LR booth he was wearing a LR name tag and I'm sure being careful not to talk too much about any IPS products that LR is not selling.

[gt_repair]

Brent
Here is there site http://www.dvelup.com/

Can I post there web page to try to promote there name? Hold on, I will check with the Administrator of the site. Oh wait, that will be you... It should be ok then....

Oh, this is going to hurt. I can take it. Give it to me.......... JUST MESSING AROUND

Don D.

[Brent Deines]

Don,

Posting the URL "is" a borderline infraction. I will leave it for now as I don't think you are self promoting, but if someone complains I will remove the link. I was removing them all for awhile, but now I just try to keep out the obvious self-promoting URLs.

A lot of what gets edited on this forum is a judgment call on my part, and whenever I do edit a post someone gets mad at me. That used to really bother me, but I'm getting better about letting it go.

I didn't write the rules for this forum, and I have not gotten around to modifying them, but hope to do so one of these days to clear up some of these gray areas.

[Chips-B-Gone]

I agree with everything you said, but like you I am still confused about the sealers, mainly because the reps from 3M and Micro-Mesh both said that a solvent based sealer should not be used, but that seems to be what most of the others do use.

I do not know why they would say to stay away from solvent based sealers but I have heard from many people to stay away from petroleum based products such as sealers or waxes because they to not interact well with plastics.

[mhughe29]

Brent,

Clear Again out of Lutz, Fl is another company that does not to the best of my knowledge use any type of sealer on the lenses. I have seen many lenses that one of their Licensees has completed and I have to say they look great.

I also have a friend of mine who is currently testing the 3M system in his market area and I will post the results as they become available as to how it works in the real world.

As for me I am currently using the Dvelup sealer but always testing new products for ease of use, durability, and results.

[GlassStarz]

Here is my take on the situation I have used a system that buffs of the damage in the past and it did an ok job but after awhile the Headlights started to fog back up I have a good friend who is an engineer working in plastics and acrylics his answer was that plastics etc are a petrol based product once the surface is broken with chemical of abrasives they will ten to dry out and also let other chemicals in through pores If you put a sealer on it will eliminate this
I now use a system where the damage is sanded off using a petrol based lube then wiped with a prep with a final sealer coat applied with a foam brush I get a long term good looking fix with little effort (20 minutes tops)
Works for me

[Brent Deines]

I finally got the opportunity to see the Dvelup system in action, and I must say I was impressed. I was also impressed with the company representatives who gave the demonstration and answered questions without pushing for the sale. The quality of the product is the number one priority of course, but the company that produces the product is also very important in my book.

The restored lights made the car look 10 years newer, and the process was very simple. I am now convinced that investing in good power tools and using a good sealer are the way to go when restoring headlights.

[chips1144]

Brent, I'm glad you got to see a Dvelup demo in person, I have to agree with your views, when I saw Ben's demo he took the worst possible Intrepid headlights and made them look like new, I was impressed.
I saw many good results at the MTE and it did make it difficult after listening to every vendors opinion.

Not to knock Bens tools but I'm a believer in buying the best if you can afford them, His tools do the job but they don't have brand names and looked like harbor freight, that bothered me, I want to buy tools that will last, Ben seemed pretty honest and decent, I didn't see any reason not to buy from him, I also liked his product for bringing back the new look of black plastic.

[chips1144]

Actually the guy doing the scratch removal demos in the LR booth works for IPS, and was using an IPS polisher. Since he was working in the LR booth he was wearing a LR name tag and I'm sure being careful not to talk too much about any IPS products that LR is not selling.

I went to the LR booth because I saw the Jepson polisher sitting on their bench, I just wanted to pick it up and feel it in my hands.
I wished I had known the guy was from IPS I really would have loved an in depth chat about headlights and glass polishing, IPS has interested me for a long time, I thought they were all Liquid Resin guys and so I didnt want to waste their valuable time.

[chips1144]

It was a pleasure to meet you as well. Did you see any ghosts at the hotel?

I agree with everything you said, but like you I am still confused about the sealers, mainly because the reps from 3M and Micro-Mesh both said that a solvent based sealer should not be used, but that seems to be what most of the others do use.

After talking to a number of body shops and seeing the results at the MTE, a good DA sander makes the most sense to me for fast high quality sanding. I sold air tools in a previous life so I am fond of Chicago Pneumatic (CP) and Ingiersall Rand (IR) products, but I'm sure many brands work just fine.

I didn't see the demo on the Jag, but some of the headlights in the Headlight Doctor's booth were pretty bad before he started, and I did watch him do one in his booth. It took about 15 minutes and looked pretty good, especially for a hand sanding job. I would love to see a good sealer on the light that 3M sanded.

Wow Brent I cant believe I missed these two posts of yours, I thought I kept my eyes on this Forum... Sorry...

Ghosts at the Hotel?
No Brent we didn't see any Ghost's I'm happy to say, My wife was spooked by this place as soon as we got out of the elevator on the 2nd floor, If felt strange to me too, it was like The Shining, the hallways are so big you could drive a large car down them, That Hotel took over our weekend, we couldn't stop thinking about it for weeks, I know we told you that it was soon to be remodeled, truth is we got home and found out that wont happen till April of 2009 at the earliest, it will take two years.
We also read some interesting reviews about the place, people spooked leaving at 3am, termites in the bed etc.
Saturday night we returned to the hotel and saw a red light burning in the end room on the fifth floor, the only trouble with that is we had been told NOBODY was on the fifth floor as it was unfit for use since a hurricane in 2004.
The Hotel will be featured again on The Ghost hunters TV show around June July, the place really is Haunted.
In 28 years of marriage we've never slept with the lights on, but we had the lights and TV on the whole time, My Wife wouldn't have slept otherwise, Some people seem to be fascinated by Ghosts, not us, I must admit we've had lots of laughs since returning...

Power tools... The 3M kit included 2 Chicago Pneumatic tools, they are great, I used to have a CP air buffer, the only problem for me being mobile is air consumption and noise, I don't have room for a large compressor and I don't think my dealers would appreciate the loud noise of air tools, I like air tools because of the light weight and controllability in tight spaces.

The Headlight doctor results were good on what I saw him do, he was fast by hand but the Jags lights were not that bad to begin with...

I'm sure 3M's sealed would look just as good as Dvelup's, My problem with 3M was it was finished off with plastic polish and I doubt it would hold up over the long run...
Chips1144