i just got these headlights yesterday and for some reason they have spraypaint on them. its not on the lense but u can still see it.

sand it off? paint thiner? any other ideas?

 

dont sand it or your gonna f the plastic. i would say buy some paint thinner.

 

there is a thing called "goof off", get a can of that and it will come off before you know it. its safe on paint too, i use it for everything

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by SloGizzer &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">there is a thing called "goof off", get a can of that and it will come off before you know it. its safe on paint too, i use it for everything </TD></TR></TABLE>

if its safe on paint how will it take the paint off?

 

any paint thinner would work,
you can also consider the different stages of water sanding it and then polishing.
they have spray paint on them, since most likely the car was repainted and the lights werent taken of.

 

Use paint thinnner, but dilute it with a little bit of water.

 

i was thinking about trying 1000, 1500, 2000, 2500, 3000 grit in that order then a polishing compond. think that would work? the lenses also have some small scraches so ide like to clear them up also

 

wet sand them down with 3000 grit

 

paint thinner.

 

Is regular paint thinner safe on plastic surfaces such as our headlights?

Mine looks almost like the above...
I chose to use Meguiars plastic cleaner and polish to rid of the haze accumulation. I will post before and after pics soon

As for the overspray...its still there

Thanks.

 

i sanded my headlights and finished it with some compound, looks good.

 

goof off is the only way. laquer thinner, paint thinner will destroy the plastic.

 

paint thinner wont destroy the plastic.
use the light duty paint thinner.
if you want to water sand them, go to http://www.g2ic.com to teg tips and search for the renew the 1 pieces, its the same technic and it works perfect:
Things you'll need:
1. Bowl of water
2. 2 Sheets 400 Grit Wet/Dry Sandpaper
3. 2 Sheets 600 Grit Wet/Dry Sandpaper
4. 2 Sheets 1000 Grit Wet/Dry Sandpaper
5. 2 Sheets 1500 Grit Wet/Dry Sandpaper
6. Turtle Wax No. 5 (heavy duty/red) rubbing compound
7. Turtle Wax No. 7 (light/white) polishing compound
8. Meguir's Clear Plastic Cleaner
9. Meguir's Clear Plastic Polish
10. Soft terry cloth towels

Steps:
1. Remove lights from car.
2. Use the 400 grit sandpaper and start sanding the surface of the lights lengthwise in only a side to side motion. DON'T CHANGE DIRECTIONS (up/down or circles). At first don't use any water, but add water as the clear coat starts to come off. You'll be able to tell where it is and isn't coming off.
3. Repeat above procedure with the 600 grit sandpaper after all of the clearcoat is removed (use water).
4. Repeat using 1000 grit sandpaper with water.
5. Repeat using 1500 grit sandpaper with water.
6. Now use a soft terry cloth towel to work in the Turtle Wax heavy duty rubbing compound using same side to side motion. Work that in for about 5 minutes and rub clean and dry.
7. Get a new terry cloth towel and work in the Turtle Wax Light Polishing Compound. Work it in for about 5 minutes and wipe clean and dry.
8. Examine the lights and see that all of the clearcoat is gone and that most of the hairline scratches from the sandpaper are gone.
9. If it looks pretty good, apply the Meguir's Clear Plastic Cleaner with a clean terry cloth towel. Work that in until it's clean and dry.
10. Now apply the Meguir's Clear Plastic Polish with the same towel. After being rubbed in thoroughly, use a clean towel and wipe it dry. The light should look close to brand new.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Groove_D &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">paint thinner wont destroy the plastic.
use the light duty paint thinner.
if you want to water sand them, go to http://www.g2ic.com to teg tips and search for the renew the 1 pieces, its the same technic and it works perfect:
Things you'll need:
1. Bowl of water
2. 2 Sheets 400 Grit Wet/Dry Sandpaper
3. 2 Sheets 600 Grit Wet/Dry Sandpaper
4. 2 Sheets 1000 Grit Wet/Dry Sandpaper
5. 2 Sheets 1500 Grit Wet/Dry Sandpaper
6. Turtle Wax No. 5 (heavy duty/red) rubbing compound
7. Turtle Wax No. 7 (light/white) polishing compound
8. Meguir's Clear Plastic Cleaner
9. Meguir's Clear Plastic Polish
10. Soft terry cloth towels

Steps:
1. Remove lights from car.
2. Use the 400 grit sandpaper and start sanding the surface of the lights lengthwise in only a side to side motion. DON'T CHANGE DIRECTIONS (up/down or circles). At first don't use any water, but add water as the clear coat starts to come off. You'll be able to tell where it is and isn't coming off.
3. Repeat above procedure with the 600 grit sandpaper after all of the clearcoat is removed (use water).
4. Repeat using 1000 grit sandpaper with water.
5. Repeat using 1500 grit sandpaper with water.
6. Now use a soft terry cloth towel to work in the Turtle Wax heavy duty rubbing compound using same side to side motion. Work that in for about 5 minutes and rub clean and dry.
7. Get a new terry cloth towel and work in the Turtle Wax Light Polishing Compound. Work it in for about 5 minutes and wipe clean and dry.
8. Examine the lights and see that all of the clearcoat is gone and that most of the hairline scratches from the sandpaper are gone.
9. If it looks pretty good, apply the Meguir's Clear Plastic Cleaner with a clean terry cloth towel. Work that in until it's clean and dry.
10. Now apply the Meguir's Clear Plastic Polish with the same towel. After being rubbed in thoroughly, use a clean towel and wipe it dry. The light should look close to brand new.

</TD></TR></TABLE>




wet sand and buff!!