Home Forums Gear Hunting Trucks and Four-Wheel Drives headlights - polish 'em

The March Popular Mechanics has an article about restoring headlights to get the max light out of them. It works - photos attached.
The suggest a kit but I don't recommend it. The article has all the info you need and you can buy the stuff cheaper. 1st, call around to the local auto body and paint stores to see who sells sandpaper by the sheet. Some only sell it in packs. You need 1 sheet each of 1000, 1500, 2000, 2500, and 3000 grit. Then you need a small bottle of polishing compound. That's it.
I bought a kit by Permatex that was supposed to include sandpaper up to 2500 grit. However, it had 2 sheets of 1000 and no 2500 so I had to go hunting for the 2500. I found a paint store that had both 2500 and 3000 by the sheet for $1/sheet.

I have a grand total of 15 min. into this 1 headlight. You can see how much more light will get through this than the old, frosted one.

Let me know if you want more details on how to do it. It's very easy.

Dick

before: lights off and on



after, lights off and on:

Looks good!

That's the downside of not changing the whole light just the bulbs..

Mike

I have both sides done now. What a difference! I used to overdrive my headlights. Now I can see way out there.
The downside to 1 piece lights is glass breakage. They don't survive rocks very well. These plastic ones will take a lot harder hit without breaking.

Dick

good job my neighbor bought new lights when his was dull

I read the same article and am in the process of polishing the lights on the 99 Cherokee that my son drives. I bought the supplies last weekend but have not had time to really get started. I spent about 10 minutes using the coarsest sandpaper and can already see improvement. I am encouraged to see how well it will turn out when I am finished. Thanks for posting.

I'm very happy with the results I got. Most useful article I've read in a long time. I was getting ready to spend the money for new lenses when they printed it. I can use the money elsewhere.

Dick

Too much expense and trouble. Just go to your bathroom and squeeze out a little toothpaste on a rag and go to polishing. It works virtually just as well.