I did a thing today...

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Old Jan 14, 2016 | 04:30 PM
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I did a thing today...

Headlight restore!!

They been bugging the hell out of me. Snagged the Turtle Wax restore kit. Normally buy the Rain X kit but they didn't have it and this kit was pretty much identical.

Results came out great really took my time on them.

How it looked prior to restoration..
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First stage of sanding...
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Second stage...
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Results..
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Old Jan 14, 2016 | 05:08 PM
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Looks great

What grit did you use?
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Old Jan 14, 2016 | 05:18 PM
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Originally Posted by teh CL
Looks great

What grit did you use?
Which ever came with the kit lol there were 4 different types I'd have to look
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Old Jan 14, 2016 | 10:00 PM
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Nice work!
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Old Jan 15, 2016 | 09:57 AM
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Good work!! Now remove that unnecessary front plate bracket!!!
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Old Jan 15, 2016 | 10:03 AM
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Lol idk if I'm gonna keep it or not. Haven't got my permanent plates yet and Texas requires a plate on front and back. Granted I've never ran with a plate up front but those were in my DGAF days.
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Old Jan 15, 2016 | 10:06 AM
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Originally Posted by JJones91
Lol idk if I'm gonna keep it or not. Haven't got my permanent plates yet and Texas requires a plate on front and back. Granted I've never ran with a plate up front but those were in my DGAF days.
You could always go with a Hide A Plate style system.
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Old Jan 15, 2016 | 10:12 AM
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More of a hassle, back when I use to attend car meets and show off my cars I put work into I'd never run a front plate. Now days I could just care less, just less of a reason for an officer to pull me over. I've been pulled over so many times in the past not from the plate but just in general that it's grown old lol.
Running a front plate really doesn't bother me anymore
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Old Jan 15, 2016 | 10:50 AM
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^ Car looks WAY better without it though.

Took mine off months ago & haven't thought twice about it
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Old Jan 15, 2016 | 10:51 AM
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Again, I could care less. If state law requires a front plate then I'm running a front plate. I'm tired of being pulled over.
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Old Jan 15, 2016 | 11:57 AM
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Old Jan 15, 2016 | 03:00 PM
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What year is it? When does the headlight starts to fade in RL usually? Side question. Is there any kind of foil we can put on top to protect it from fading?
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Old Jan 15, 2016 | 03:02 PM
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Originally Posted by thomask
What year is it? When does the headlight starts to fade in RL usually? Side question. Is there any kind of foil we can put on top to protect it from fading?
05 with 153k miles.

Not really it's bound to fade at some point
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Old Jan 15, 2016 | 03:31 PM
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Originally Posted by thomask
What year is it? When does the headlight starts to fade in RL usually? Side question. Is there any kind of foil we can put on top to protect it from fading?
I put xpel headlight film on mine. So far, so good. No fading. I also remember a member spraying his headlights with a clear acrylic (?) film that returned them to a stock look.
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Old Jan 15, 2016 | 08:42 PM
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The fade happens from UV damage to the plastic. Keep you queens in a garage at work and at home, and you won't have to worry about it.

Run the front plate if you're in Texas. What city?
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Old Jan 15, 2016 | 10:58 PM
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I'm in DFW now, was living in Austin few years back. Cops up here are real a holes about front plates up here.
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Old Jan 16, 2016 | 01:23 AM
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How long will this restoration last before it hazes again?
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Old Jan 16, 2016 | 09:21 AM
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It depends on how much UV exposure it gets.
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Old Jan 16, 2016 | 11:45 AM
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You really should put a UV protectant film (xPel, 3M) on the lenses as others have mentioned. You may get 6 months or so before it starts to return.

Chris
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Old Jan 16, 2016 | 12:10 PM
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My buddy at a body shop charges $100 to fix them. They sand the headlights down and then he uses clear coat (same thing that goes over paint) and clears the whole lens. Then you just take care of it like you would your paints clear coat and you'll never have issues. The thing is, you must use an automotive grade clear with UV protectant like others have mentioned or it will just keep coming back.

When I bought my RL a year ago he did mine and to this day look flawless
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Old Jan 18, 2016 | 11:53 AM
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Results came out very good. As far as UV protectant, I went with Opti-Lens headlight coating. It is pricey but it was recommended to me and the reviews are great. This spring will make a full year that I applied it to my headlights and they still look good. I plan on applying a small amount again in the spring just for piece of mind.
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Old Jan 18, 2016 | 09:57 PM
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Guys sorry for offtopic but I'm trying to search for UV protectant film (xpel) and we don't have anything across the pond I think :/. Would there be someone nice who could help me out with buying/shipping to Europe, please?
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Old Jan 20, 2016 | 07:00 PM
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Originally Posted by JJones91
Again, I could care less. If state law requires a front plate then I'm running a front plate. I'm tired of being pulled over.
Here they don't require them .. I should get a plate with a big "FU" on it and drive to Austin so the cops can stare at it.

If I get pulled over and they say anything I'll just tell 'em I went to Franklin University

Headlight look really nice, good job!
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Old Jan 27, 2016 | 12:14 AM
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Beautiful! I need to do this on mine!
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