Headlight restoration by hand?

[stomper]

One of the first jobs on my GTI will be to fresh up the headlights

Seen plenty of threads on here about doing them with a machine polisher

Would i be wasting my time trying to do it all by hand?

Was thinking of working through the wet and dry grades (upto 3 or 5000) then using something like meguiars ultimate compound on a microfibre cloth to bring back the shine

I understand that it will take longer but i don't really want to get one of the drilled kits or a machine polisher just yet

Thoughts would be appreciated

[lukemk5gti]

I commented on your other post saying to use a DAS-6.

Sandpaper from 2000, 3000 and 4000 grit should do the hard work.

Hand polishing will be fine, not as effective but fine.

Don't forget to seal using UV protection afterwards.

[stomper]

Cheers bud, i think i'll give it a go by hand first, longer term plans will be to get a machine polisher so can always give them a going over then. 

[Lewo]

Have you seen this thread? http://www.mk5golfgti.co.uk/forum/index.php/topic,111917.msg1078741.html#msg1078741
He's done a good job.

[Kezma]

Halfords do sell a Meguairs headlight restoration kit which comes with a mop head drill accessory thing which is a bit better than by hand.

[dansmith180]

Hand polishing won't be fine, you aren't getting paper marks out with a foam pad and some elbow grease, you will probably end up with matte headlights that don't work properly until you machine them.

[Joeymc]

2500 grit sandpaper then 3500 wer sand by hand. Small microfibre polishing pad for your drill/screwgun with medium to soft compound until the lights are clear then whatever protector you choose. Take your time and you should be ok.

[titchy]

I used baking soda and lemon juice by hand with really good reults

[bobby_fodge]

I did it by hand and then used two different polishing compounds to bring the shine back.

[probedb]

Honestly depends how bad they are. Mine were awful so went really low on the grit number and slowly went up to 2000. Then finished off with a headlight polishing kit. I used a drill with polishing attachment and it's worked really well. Just make sure you finish them off with the UV sealant. It's likely to keep happening over time and I've once had to do a quick once over with the polishing kit again but never had to sandpaper again.

[HannahClark]

One of the first jobs on my GTI will be to fresh up the headlights

Seen plenty of threads on here about doing them with a machine polisher

Would i be wasting my time trying to do it all by hand?

Was thinking of working through the wet and dry grades (upto 3 or 5000) then using something like meguiars ultimate compound on a microfibre cloth to bring back the shine

I understand that it will take longer but i don't really want to get one of the drilled kits or a machine polisher just yet

Thoughts would be appreciated

Not a bad idea. I have spent a lot of time finding good original headlights for my GTI. It was very difficult to find something really worthy, and ordering was very expensive for me. I decided to try redesigning and improving my old headlights myself. I have a powerful bike flashlight that shines great in the dark and is comfortable to use I decided to disassemble it in order to understand what kind of bulbs are used there and according to this technology to improve car headlights. I've been looking for advice on the forums for several days now. Maybe some of you can give me some advice?

[joel]

I tried so many ways to restore headlights. Using DIY methods such as WD-40, lemon + soda, toothpaste, these usually last couple days max weeks. Then I tried the Turtle Wax headlight restoration kit, which lasted around 1 year, and then I could see headlight to become yellowing.

I did some research and found a headlamp restoration service, based in Streatham; they did pure magic, headlight look even better than using all the methods above. It's been over a year, and they look like after restoration. I keep them clean; I don't use washer pressure when washing them.