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Anybody used a headlight restoration kit?

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Old 12-18-2011, 10:23 PM
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Default Anybody used a headlight restoration kit?

The lights on my GC are so opaque that they make it hard to see at night. Wondering if anyone's used the restoration kits available at parts stores and had any luck.

New lights are available from RockAuto for around $18 each. At that price, I'll probably go that route, unless the kits work better than I think they will.
Old 12-19-2011, 12:02 AM
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I used the 3m one when it first came out a few years ago. worked perfect. Take your time and you will be amazed. you can also wet sand them. If you google it there is a ton of info about wet sanding and any other way you would like to do it depending on how you want to tackle it.
Old 12-19-2011, 12:03 AM
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I did one.. I didn't buy a kit, but I looked at one. I buffed it til I got really low on elbow grease and it looked better, but nowhere close to the shiny brand new ones I ended up buying. Get the ones you found, you won't regret it!
Old 12-19-2011, 12:17 AM
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X2 on the 3m one. It's great. Even if you done buy the kit get the 3m bottle. Well worth the $. And you can use it on at least 10 vehicles.
Old 12-19-2011, 03:03 AM
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Mothers mag and alum polish will get them clean too.
Old 12-19-2011, 03:32 AM
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If you have a buffer, just buff 'em out with compound.
Old 01-08-2012, 06:02 PM
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ive restored headlights on 3 cherokees and they look "like new" when done. I wetsand them with 800, 1000, 1500, and 2000 grit then use rubbing compound then wax them and they come out great... heres pics of the last ones I did
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Old 01-09-2012, 11:01 AM
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Mine actually look a lot worse than those. I've just decided to buy new headlights next week.

Any brands of replacement lights to avoid?
Old 01-09-2012, 03:23 PM
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I use the 3M kit here at work (I detail cars) and it's definitely the best out of the ones I've tried.

Don't bother with the one that advertises "wipe on, wipe off"... there's no possible way that really works.

For best results, a thin clear coat and final wet sanding/polish will keep your lenses like new for a very, very long time.
Old 01-09-2012, 03:55 PM
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i always use the 3M kit it works amazing! ive used other kits that just dont cut it. the pros do the same thing as the 3M kit which is wet sanding like shown above. whats sad is the number of people that go out and spend hundreds on new ones instead of a $20 3M kit.
Old 01-09-2012, 04:08 PM
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Sometimes they're too far gone to save even with the 3M kit, but if you catch it before the real pitting and crap starts, you're good.
Old 01-09-2012, 04:18 PM
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I got new lamp assemblies from www.rockauto.com and they look great after a year of abuse. Just be careful not to break the adjusters when installing them if you have the plastic Allen head adjusters, they are pretty brittle and finding replacements is next to impossible.
Old 01-09-2012, 10:41 PM
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Originally Posted by 77olds
Sometimes they're too far gone to save even with the 3M kit, but if you catch it before the real pitting and crap starts, you're good.
I've done some that are extremely bad and have had great results. All you need to do is take your time and be patient. If they're so bad, I'd start the wetsanding with a 600 grit ant work my way up.
Obviously compared to new ones they will not look the same but very close. And for the price it's very worth it.
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