coating failed after car wash!?

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J.glass
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coating failed after car wash!?

Post by J.glass »

I did a 2003 range rover and the results were perfect, a week later the customer had bugs on his headlights and pressure washed them off and it took the coat2protect off with it.
Not sure why and what to do about it this in the future
before
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after
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pressure washed
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Re: coating failed after car wash!?

Post by t4k »

Pressure washing will remove the coating if it's hit hard enough with the pressure. I've seen plastic car bumpers where the paint was removed with high pressure washers trying to remove bugs.
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Re: coating failed after car wash!?

Post by candyman »

I write on the invoice. DO Not use Pressure wand on Headlights.
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Brent Deines
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Re: coating failed after car wash!?

Post by Brent Deines »

I hate to admit it but I got in a hurry and pressure washed my motorcycle windshield this summer. It was in perfect condition before pressure washing but after it looks very much like that headlight, only worse. I'll try to get a photo of it one of these days because it was the factory coating that failed and I didn't think I was using that much pressure.

I agree with the others. Any headlight coating can be damaged by a pressure washer so instructing the customer and providing a disclaimer is wise.
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Re: coating failed after car wash!?

Post by Old Blue 66 »

Brent Deines wrote:I hate to admit it but I got in a hurry and pressure washed my motorcycle windshield this summer. It was in perfect condition before pressure washing but after it looks very much like that headlight, only worse. I'll try to get a photo of it one of these days because it was the factory coating that failed and I didn't think I was using that much pressure.

I agree with the others. Any headlight coating can be damaged by a pressure washer so instructing the customer and providing a disclaimer is wise.
Brent, what did you do to make the windshield clear again? I as this because Ive been approached by a few with motorcycles to refinish their windshields and a few helmets. I turned them down simply barbecue I haven't experimented with those yet.
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Re: coating failed after car wash!?

Post by Brent Deines »

I haven't tried to restore it yet. I think it will be challenging at best as I'm kind of picky about my bike so I will have to remove the windshield and build some sort of stand to hold it steady while I sand and buff it. Another challenge is that I plan to use Infinity 4.1 to coat it when I'm finished but I'm reasonably sure wiping it on will not produce the results necessary for a windshield and I'm not very good at spraying coatings.

I've had a number of guys tell me they can get a motorcycle crystal clear but I have yet to see it done. Every time I try to get someone to show me they find an excuse to get out of it. I'm not the most patient guy in the world so I'm not sure I can do it either but I do hope to give it a go one of these days. We restored a MC windshield for a guy last year. It looked much better than when he brought it to us and he was happy with it when we were done but it did not "look like new", which we warned him would likely be the case. It was a smaller shield, wind deflector really, that you don't really look through anyway so it was not a safety concern or we wouldn't have done it at all. I don't doubt that it can be done, just not sure it can be done in a time efficient manner. You might be willing to spend a day on a project like that if it is for your own bike but when you can buy a new one for $150-$400 you can't make any money at it unless you can get it done in an hour or two at the most.
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Re: coating failed after car wash!?

Post by Old Blue 66 »

Thanks for the reply Brent. I went out on a limb a couple of months ago when I went to a customers house to restore headlights on his Honda. He opened the garage to reveal a half dozen REALLY nice HD's. He had a vintage helmet with a shield on it that he was using after 30 years. It was severely scuffed and I have no idea how he was able to see outta that thing. I really went out of my comfort zone and tried a compound on it (thins thing was 30 years old!). It helped but not that much. I went to 3000 and again, a little improvement. Finally I said wheat the hell and went to a 1500 Indasa finishing disc (white disc) and it made a big difference. I think I may have invested 30 minutes in it.

Next time I get the opportunity, Im gonna go all the way and see what I can do.
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Re: coating failed after car wash!?

Post by Brent Deines »

Keep me posted. I think there is a market for it, especially on vintage bikes and helmets. I've always wanted to try an old boat windshield too. The old full width wrap around style that you can't buy anymore and cost a fortune to have custom made. People usually just end up replacing them with something else but a purist wants everything original.
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J.glass
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Re: coating failed after car wash!?

Post by J.glass »

So i seriously have to tell a customer not to pressure wash the headlights?
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Re: coating failed after car wash!?

Post by Brent Deines »

Like I mentioned in a previous post, even though I have considerable experience with pressure washers, I took the factory coating off a relatively expensive motorcycle windshield, so I think it is prudent to offer that advice to your customers regardless of what type of coating you use.

I liken this advice to that which comes as standard language in nearly every motorcycle owner's manual. There is always something in there about not using a pressure washer to wash your bike because it can force water into your engine. The advice is not given because everyone who uses a pressure washer will ruin the engine, peel paint or peel the coating off polycarbonate headlights and windshields, but because care must be taken to avoid such damage. I believe it's called the CYA clause.

I still use a pressure washer to wash my bikes and cars from time to time and I know some of my customers will as well but hopefully if I instruct them to stay away from the headlights I have restored they will do so carefully. I'd prefer to say "just use common sense" but I used to own a pressure wash business and should have known better, yet still didn't practice "common sense" myself, so I have to believe there are others like me who from time to time need to be reminded just how much damage can be done with water pressure.

Just my opinion though. Far be it for me to tell someone else how to run their business.
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