Painted my stock headlight housings black! let me know what u think!
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Joined: Mar 2004
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From: Bay Area, CA, USA
Re: Painted my stock headlight housings black! let me know what u think! (Drewdc5)
hard to tell the quality when its so far away but from the looks of it, it looks good. As long as you are proud of it and happy with the results that is all that matters.
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Joined: Apr 2006
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From: where all da haters is, MD
Re: Painted my stock headlight housings black! let me know what u think! (25Type-s)
<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by 25Type-s »</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">hey how hard was it to do that i wanted to do mine for the longest time!!</TD></TR></TABLE>
pretty easy. I have directions if u want em
pretty easy. I have directions if u want em
Joined: Mar 2006
Posts: 348
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From: Long Island, NY
Re: Painted my stock headlight housings black! let me know what u think! (Drewdc5)
<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Drewdc5 »</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">pretty easy. I have directions if u want em</TD></TR></TABLE>
yea of coures i want them
that would be great thanx
yea of coures i want them
that would be great thanx
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Joined: Apr 2006
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From: where all da haters is, MD
Re: (xxsteve803xx)
DIY Blackout Headlights walkthrough:
I figured I'd post the step-by-step process we did and post pics of the entire process.
This can probably be done by yourself, but I would get at least one other person to help, especially when taking the headlights apart and putting them back together. It makes it so much easier.
(Note: I pretty much followed other peoples directions, but just changed a few steps that we found made things a little easier, so I gotta give props to all those who have posted about this already)
1) Remove front bumper. I've heard you can do it without taking the bumper completely off, but it's so easy to remove, you might as well to get it out of the way and not have to worry about scratching it.
2) Remove headlight housing with the metal housing support frame.
3) Remove all light bulbs from housing, and metal support frame. Be sure to keep up with which bulbs go in which place! (This pic was taken for a different reason, but you get the idea)
4) PRE-HEAT oven to 200 degrees (NO MORE THAN 200 DEGREES)
5) Apply damp towel over cookie sheet to protect headlights.
6) Place headlights upside down or the clear lens facing downward. If lights were on, they would be shining into the towel.
10. AFTER the oven has been PRE-heated, place one housing in oven for about 20 minutes. No more than 22 minutes.
11) Immediately begin trying to remove the clear lens from housing. Starting from the pointed end of the housing moving back. You will have to pull pretty hard! And be careful not to break the clips that hold the clear housing in. Repeat this process for the other headlight.
12) Remove one screw from the clear lens to detach the part you want to paint.
13) After removing paintable section, remove ALL reflectors and signal lenses from internal paintable housing.
14) Place paper towel inside the hazards light reflection surface of the internal housing. Tape the reflector and reinstall it. This will prevent painting the reflective surface inside the hazard light.
15) Begin sanding lightly with the 600 grit sandpaper for texture so the primer can grab hold of the smooth surface. After sanding, clean surface with rubbing alcohol, and let dry for a few minutes.
16) Begin spraying primer evenly over the internal housing. May take a few coats to get it all. Wait 10 minutes between each coat. And be sure to get ALL viewable areas! Top, bottom, underneath, on the side etc. Leave no shiny stuff to be seen!
17) After final coat of primer, wait 30 minutes before spraying black paint.
18) Start spraying with Satin Black spray paint. Spray evenly from many directions. Apply as many coats as needed to cover all viewable areas. Satin black is a semi-gloss black paint. Leave no primer viewable. Wait 10-15 minutes before each light coat.
19) After final coat, let dry for at least an hour. This gives the paint some time to cure, but it will still be soft! So be careful!
20) Remove hazard lens and paper towel from Hazard light area.
21) Reattach reflectors and lenses.
22) Be sure NOT to touch the inside of the clear housing! You don’t want fingerprints in there. Make sure no particles get trapped in the clear lens either.
23) Reattach painted black internal housing with screw. Be careful NOT to scratch paint. You will have to put the wider end in first. You'll see, it's kinda tricky but not too bad...Just be careful
24) Bake the main housing for about 15 minutes to soften the glue. Make sure the oven is PRE-HEATED to 200 degrees again.
25) Line up the clear lens with the main housing and apply a lot pressure.
26) Once lined up, put housing back in and bake for another good 10 –12 minutes.
27) Immediately remove the housing from oven and begin pushing the clear lens back onto the main housing.
28) After clear lens is attached, let cool for awhile. We applied some sealent around the entire headlight to prevent leaks and fogging. Begin reattaching metal support frame.
29) Insert lamps.
30) Reattach headlamps.
31) Reattach plugs.
32) Reattach bumper.
Finished product: (Note: it came out perfect, the silver you see are only reflections). Also, we did two cars at the same time...Entire process took about 10 hours.
So there you go, I hope this helps anyone trying to do this. The hardest part I though is putting the headlight back together. But just make sure you give yourself plenty of time and don't rush it. It's easier than I thought it would be, but it takes a lot of time
I figured I'd post the step-by-step process we did and post pics of the entire process.
This can probably be done by yourself, but I would get at least one other person to help, especially when taking the headlights apart and putting them back together. It makes it so much easier.
(Note: I pretty much followed other peoples directions, but just changed a few steps that we found made things a little easier, so I gotta give props to all those who have posted about this already)
1) Remove front bumper. I've heard you can do it without taking the bumper completely off, but it's so easy to remove, you might as well to get it out of the way and not have to worry about scratching it.
2) Remove headlight housing with the metal housing support frame.
3) Remove all light bulbs from housing, and metal support frame. Be sure to keep up with which bulbs go in which place! (This pic was taken for a different reason, but you get the idea)
4) PRE-HEAT oven to 200 degrees (NO MORE THAN 200 DEGREES)
5) Apply damp towel over cookie sheet to protect headlights.
6) Place headlights upside down or the clear lens facing downward. If lights were on, they would be shining into the towel.
10. AFTER the oven has been PRE-heated, place one housing in oven for about 20 minutes. No more than 22 minutes.
11) Immediately begin trying to remove the clear lens from housing. Starting from the pointed end of the housing moving back. You will have to pull pretty hard! And be careful not to break the clips that hold the clear housing in. Repeat this process for the other headlight.
12) Remove one screw from the clear lens to detach the part you want to paint.
13) After removing paintable section, remove ALL reflectors and signal lenses from internal paintable housing.
14) Place paper towel inside the hazards light reflection surface of the internal housing. Tape the reflector and reinstall it. This will prevent painting the reflective surface inside the hazard light.
15) Begin sanding lightly with the 600 grit sandpaper for texture so the primer can grab hold of the smooth surface. After sanding, clean surface with rubbing alcohol, and let dry for a few minutes.
16) Begin spraying primer evenly over the internal housing. May take a few coats to get it all. Wait 10 minutes between each coat. And be sure to get ALL viewable areas! Top, bottom, underneath, on the side etc. Leave no shiny stuff to be seen!
17) After final coat of primer, wait 30 minutes before spraying black paint.
18) Start spraying with Satin Black spray paint. Spray evenly from many directions. Apply as many coats as needed to cover all viewable areas. Satin black is a semi-gloss black paint. Leave no primer viewable. Wait 10-15 minutes before each light coat.
19) After final coat, let dry for at least an hour. This gives the paint some time to cure, but it will still be soft! So be careful!
20) Remove hazard lens and paper towel from Hazard light area.
21) Reattach reflectors and lenses.
22) Be sure NOT to touch the inside of the clear housing! You don’t want fingerprints in there. Make sure no particles get trapped in the clear lens either.
23) Reattach painted black internal housing with screw. Be careful NOT to scratch paint. You will have to put the wider end in first. You'll see, it's kinda tricky but not too bad...Just be careful
24) Bake the main housing for about 15 minutes to soften the glue. Make sure the oven is PRE-HEATED to 200 degrees again.
25) Line up the clear lens with the main housing and apply a lot pressure.
26) Once lined up, put housing back in and bake for another good 10 –12 minutes.
27) Immediately remove the housing from oven and begin pushing the clear lens back onto the main housing.
28) After clear lens is attached, let cool for awhile. We applied some sealent around the entire headlight to prevent leaks and fogging. Begin reattaching metal support frame.
29) Insert lamps.
30) Reattach headlamps.
31) Reattach plugs.
32) Reattach bumper.
Finished product: (Note: it came out perfect, the silver you see are only reflections). Also, we did two cars at the same time...Entire process took about 10 hours.
So there you go, I hope this helps anyone trying to do this. The hardest part I though is putting the headlight back together. But just make sure you give yourself plenty of time and don't rush it. It's easier than I thought it would be, but it takes a lot of time
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