Rear Light Refurb

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eye of ra
Can tell where the 480 was built
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Rear Light Refurb

Post by eye of ra » Tue May 15, 2018 6:32 pm

After a question from the meeting I thought I would do this how-to.

Before

Image

First you will need some or all of the following.

Image

The sanding discs I used are P120, P240 and P400
The wet & dry are P400, P800 and P1200
Other brands of compound are available.

As you saw above mine appears to have been “cleaned” with a brillo pad so has deep scratches, if yours is less damaged or even just faded you may be able to skip step 2 or maybe even 3.

1. Unless you are unlucky the reflector will be in good condition so will need masking off.

2. Use the P120 disc and the drill on a slow speed or you could damage the lens. It is quite scary at first as it looks like you are making it worse.

Image

Just keep your movements gentle and evenly spread over the whole lens and keep going till all the scratches are even and you have no outstanding deep/large scratches.

3. Repeat with P240. Again it won’t look great at this point but keep at it.

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4. Repeat again with P400.

5. At this point I switched to Wet & Dry P400 by hand. Take your time till again all scratches are even in size (when looked at dry it will just look shiny when wet).

6. Repeat with P800 and then P1200. The scratches should be getting smaller and smaller to the point the light just looks dull rather than scratched at first glance.

7. Now switch to the sponge and apply some G3 neat at first then sprinkle a small amount of water and continue. Add more water as it dries out and more G3 as it runs out.

This is what you should end up with. Notice I have only done the indicator.

Image

8. Then do the same with a finer compound and polishing disc.

I have not done step 8 yet, I’ll do it when I do the whole light.

Don’t go too mad in the early stages (you need to remove the old scratches with an even amount of the new but not leave the plastic thin or melted) but the more time you spent on the later stages the better the result.

Also the first time I did it I did it all by hand (bar the G3 and final polish) as I felt I was less likely to do any damage but it does take longer.
Last edited by eye of ra on Wed May 16, 2018 10:24 am, edited 3 times in total.
Current:
480 ES Auto 1989
480 Celebration 187
480 ES Auto 1991
CLK430 Conv 2001
Hyundai i10 2015

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jamescarruthers
480 Is my middle name
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Joined: Mon Jul 07, 2003 3:19 pm
Location: Cambridge

Re: Rear Light Referb

Post by jamescarruthers » Tue May 15, 2018 7:24 pm

Impressive! Must have a go with my spare set
1987 Volvo 480 ES, 507274, 217 - Red (Ness)
2006 Citroen C6 Exclusive 3.0 petrol/LPG
2008 Mini Cooper convertible (Mau)

Previous 480's:
J123 CFU -- ES
J449 MNL -- ES auto
D864 CPV -- ES
L691 JFC -- Turbo
F70 MNR -- ES
H858 FGV -- Turbo auto
E981 KHM -- ES (509849)

jifflemon
480 Is my middle name
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Joined: Sat Dec 17, 2016 11:03 am

Re: Rear Light Refurb

Post by jifflemon » Sun May 20, 2018 9:47 pm

So just to add my thoughts to this:

What your looking to achieve is an even, flat surface - Flat smooth surfaces reflect light. This is why the classic trick over cover the lights in a thin oil (veg oil, wd40 etc) works temporarily; The oil covers the surface, "filling" the imperfections and giving a flat, even surface.

I tend use much finer grades - Wet'n'dry grits 1000,2000 and 3000.
I probably means It takes a lot longer, but time is something I've got.

Just to repeat what Eye of Ra says...
eye of ra wrote:
Tue May 15, 2018 6:32 pm
Don’t go too mad in the early stages (you need to remove the old scratches with an even amount of the new but not leave the plastic thin or melted) but the more time you spent on the later stages the better the result.

eye of ra
Can tell where the 480 was built
Posts: 355
Joined: Tue Dec 04, 2012 7:33 pm
Location: Derbyshire

Re: Rear Light Refurb

Post by eye of ra » Mon May 21, 2018 3:11 pm

jifflemon wrote:
Sun May 20, 2018 9:47 pm
I tend use much finer grades - Wet'n'dry grits 1000,2000 and 3000.
I probably means It takes a lot longer, but time is something I've got.
As you say I'm sure Wet & Dry 2000 and 3000 will do the same job but I didn't have any above 1200 and using the two grades of compound with an electric drill is easier and quicker.
Current:
480 ES Auto 1989
480 Celebration 187
480 ES Auto 1991
CLK430 Conv 2001
Hyundai i10 2015

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dragonflyjewels
480 Is my middle name
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Re: Rear Light Refurb

Post by dragonflyjewels » Mon May 21, 2018 3:32 pm

Al does ours on my jewellers' polishing mop which is in an old electric drill clamped to the workbench - he uses my crocus wax which is much finer. It doesn't take very long on the drill, wouldn't like to try it by hand :(
Bit tricky if you can't get the clusters out though ! Lily's are firmly stuck to the seals and unbroken so they will stay in situ. Might have a go at them with my Dremel when I get time.
Sylvia

Snazzy - 1993 Paris Blue ES red dipstick 2.0i bought 2001
Lethal Lily - 1991 White Turbo
Paris the Unicorn - 1991 Paris Edition
hubby has
Sven - 1994 Racing Green GT
Evil Eva - 1992 Paris Blue Turbo

no previous 480s - can't bear to sell any

jifflemon
480 Is my middle name
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Re: Rear Light Refurb

Post by jifflemon » Mon May 21, 2018 5:59 pm

eye of ra wrote:
Mon May 21, 2018 3:11 pm
jifflemon wrote:
Sun May 20, 2018 9:47 pm
I tend use much finer grades - Wet'n'dry grits 1000,2000 and 3000.
I probably means It takes a lot longer, but time is something I've got.
As you say I'm sure Wet & Dry 2000 and 3000 will do the same job but I didn't have any above 1200 and using the two grades of compound with an electric drill is easier and quicker.
Please don't see it as criticism; Like I said, there are many many ways to achieve the same results, I try to limit myself as I've been known to get "over enthusiastic" (or as my bodyshop mate says, "heavy bloody handed") :rofl:

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