legacycentral bbs

JDM lights are a non-solution to the problem.

I just finally got around to using a little rubbing compound on Subarinas headlights and it was like pouring extra strength Visine in Cheeches eyes. An amazing transformation. One round and they're sooo much clearer. I'm going to go at them again to see if I can get them just a little bit better though.

Oh and I used the search function to find and then post in this thread! Take that search Nazis!

The wet sand thing worked the best for my headlights. Then I buffed the hell out of them, and now they're shiny as all hell .

Add to that they have the "piss off other drivers" headlights.

I JUST USED MOTHERS MAG ABND ALUMINUM POLISH, WORKED GREAT, JUST SO YOU GUYS NO

holy caps batman!

*know

lol sorry im at work, always on caps

I modified Josh's system and now I chearge people $50.00 to do their headlights.

I included plastic polish and 00 steel wool.

here's a little tip for keeping your headlights nice and shiny. every time you change your oil, buff the lights with the oily rag. wipe clean, damn! looks like glass. sure the lights yellow a bit every couple months but it is so easy to do this keeping them nice.

I used some Meguiar's PlastX (clear plastic cleaner & polish) and rubbed each light for about 5 mins. It cleared them up a bit, but not to my liking. So when the weather gets a little nicer, Im going to do the sanding method to my BJ and the girlfriend's Neon. Her lights are aweful. when it happens, Ill get pics.

-Matt

I hand polished my lenses about a year ago and got some improvement, but they are yellowing again. I have noticed a few companies on ebay and the web offering chemical solutions that supposedly offer non-abrasive miracle cures and I wonder if anyone has tried any of them, and if so, what the results were. Walmart also offers a drill-powered buffing kit for lenses for $10. Your drill, of course. Any reviews on that one or any of the others?

Unless you clear coat the lenses, which seals them, they will always yellow again.

Thanks, Josh. I guess I will buff them out again w/the Walmart kit and then clear coat them. From reading the feedback on ebay for the "miracle cures" it doesn't look like there is one. These guys offer money-back warrantees, but charge a ton for shipping, which is where they make the money, I'm guessing, since the shipping is twice the price of the product. I will report on how well the kit works, and will include photos of before and after.

I bought the WM kit and I will rate it as an 8 out of 10. 10 to 12 minutes per lens for polishing, and a few minutes between clear coats on each made it a 2 hour job. My lenses are almost 17 yrs. old, but weren't in terrible shape. I was lazy and buffed them on the car with some thin cardboard masking to protect the paint, and got pretty good results. I will wait 48 hrs. and do a little buffing to remove the bit of orange peel I got.

For before and after photos:

http://donpettigrew.com/web200.html

If you are using Netscape you may have to click on the "go" button to see the pics..

shoot i did it way easyer took 20 min 600 -2000 grit and buffed no clear coat bs and looks brand new

Well, if you don't clear-coat the lenses after you sand and polish them, you will have to do it all over again in about a yr. Been there, done that.. I don't think this bbs is meant to be an advertising spot for window tinters, either. Good luck with your career, and I hope you will be careful on that scooter.

Yukon drivers tend to ignore scooters at intersections, and most of them are chatting on cel phones, so watch out.

Phat? Easyer? No caps or punctuation? Can't you spell in English? Dictionaries are really cheap, and Laurel the Queen, the Spelling Nazi, will be on your ass in a heartbeat if you don't show some class on this bbs.

Wow, I got mine looking like yours with #0000 steel wool (I couldn't find the type of sand paper I wanted). Although, they're going to yellowing again. I'll clear coat them in the spring.

I actually got a set of headlamps at the salvage yard for $25 apiece and was going to replace mine but, alas, they were the wrong parts although I had a 1992 Subie and took the headlamps off another 92 Subie (whose fender was also shorter than mine by 3/4-inch so same-year model had different parts). I figured I'd have to wait until another junker showed up with salvagable headlamps but I happened to be in an Advance Auto store and mentioned my plight about the yellowed headlamps. The salesman recommended a kit which I took home and it worked perfectly. The kit has a web site at http://www.myheadlights.com. They even have a lifetime warranty for their product (but you'll have to ask them just what they are warrantying). Be ready for LOTS of sanding as the grits are very fine, like around 1200, and I wanted to make damn sure all the yellow was out before applying the sealant coating. Headlamps look new.

At $20 it isn't cheap but then you have to figure in the costs of getting several grits of sandpaper, liquid polishing compound, non-corrosive plastic cleaner, and a coating solvent for the lexan headlamp lens. You could do it cheaper, maybe, but you might not have the right stuff and end up botching the job. Turns it the cost was $10 per headlamp since the kit does both of them. Plus I used the kit on the sidelamps, too, so it was $5 per lens assembly. I did several times have to splatter on some more water to the polishing compound because I probably sanded 5 times more than necessary but wanted to be very sure before sealing.

I found the kit at Advance Auto but there aren't many of those around and sometimes they are damn far apart. Walmart also supposed to carry the kit. I thought $20 seemed high but after seeing the results and figuring what the cost would be if I bought the supplies myself, I probably ended up paying less and used something proven rather than me destroying my headlamps with experimentation. I almost suspect that if I had got the supplies myself that I would've been using marine polish (although Mother's might work), 1200 grit wet-dry sandpaper, and a clear coat used for private airplanes (for their plastic windows).

Luckily the salvage yard let me take back the headlamps that I yanked from a 92 Subie on their lot (well, okay, they gave me store credit but I've used it since then). My old headlamps look new. I just wish all the other body repairs were as easy.

I scammed the lights off my '93 because they were in way better shape. Parts donor FTW!

I took them and wet sanded them with 800, 1200, and 1800 sandpaper. Then i hit them a couple times with Meguiar's Plast-X. Then I decided to use a 3 part kit my buddy bought to do his acrylic fish tanks. Holy shit those things looked great! I can see the blue bulbs I stuck in them from my '93. I didn't clearcoat, but I'll see how they do as time rolls along and fix them later if needed.

I just did my Legacy with Mothers mag & alum polish. They are almost good as new. 5 min job so I'm not bothering to sand and clearcoat, I'll just do it again if they turn yellowish again. Maybe next time I'll hook up the cotton buff wheel and do it in 2 minutes.

But I've done the sand'n'clear method on several other vehicles with similar results. And a few buddies have had good success with Flitz (might be the Walmart stuff talked about in several other threads).

A cheap way to "tint" vehicle exterior lights also is to use Testers model spray paint, they make one for painting model car windows to tint them. Its a really light tint but multiple coats make it darker. Anyways, just a tidbit of info for those who care...

i have followed your steps for sanding and clearcoat.I have to admit it was very simple .Although i was scared how dull they looked before i cleared them,but they look brand new after i cleared them.thanks!!!

Glad it worked for you!

Yeah, they look dull before you clear coat them, but turn out real nice afterwards.

+2 on the headlight kit from myheadlights.com

It was worth the coin, tried the wet sanding method and then used plastic polish and they still looked terrible.

The light output still sucks but at least now there is more of it;)

i found on my 94 i have tried several different polishes and the best i have found is meguiers plastix polish for plastic headlights it also works awsome on tail lights it will make taillights look brand new you can get it at oreilly auto parts for about 5 bucks

after reading that last comment, i was picking up some new bulbs and grabbed a bottle Meguiars PlastX for $10.

check it out, left compared to right side head light!