Polishing the Dash Cluster Lense

[LDO]

Was participating in a dash lights thread here that ended up getting into cleaning the cluster lense. Mine was pretty rough and it looked like something had splattered on it and it wouldn't come off with glass cleaner or royal purple stuff so after getting a $5 off card from Oreilys, I went and bought this :

It comes with a bottle of polish, liquid lubricant, 2 dbl sided polishing pads and a final wipe and seal wipe.

I followed the directions exactly as they're written on the box and was starting to get a little disappointed because after polishing pad #4 was done, I figured my lense should be clear right? nope, you have to use the final wipe, that baby is like magic. Then the sealing wipe and you are done.

This is before:


This is after:



And once installed.


I know I need a new dash panel but I gotta take baby steps with the budget!

Overall, i'm super pleased with the results as mine was really hazy and a new one is 50+ and I have a little over 4 dollars invested and about an hour of time.

[TKCR]

That turned out great
Posted via Mobile Device

[Billy81]

Looks brand new.

[lime1982]

Nice job man looks great. I'm glad you posted this I always been skeptical about trying that stuff ,but see proof now.

[LDO]

I had my doubts as well. I had a 5 dollar off card and went with the cheapest kit they had. After using all the abrasive 'polishing pads' in the kit, it was still hazy but once I went over it with one of the wipes and then sealed it, the thing looked crystal clear. Even the pictures don't really do it justice.

[Pyro]

Wow that came out looking great! Nice job!

[gmachinz]

I've got the same results too using a plastic lense cleaner, then a 3M micro finishing glaze and a small wool cutting pad on a variable speed buffer. After that I switch to a foam polishing pad and I use a gloss polish to bring out the crystal clear shine. You can hear the plastic "squeak" as I do a final lint free cloth buff as a last step that I do by hand.

[logbuilder69]

Here is a youtube video on 1988 instrument cluster renewal. It is pretty good.

When he came to the bezel, he used, IIRC, 4 different polishing compounds. It turned out great.

I saved the video since I will someday redo the cluster on my 1986 C20 Custom. I am seriously thinking of replacing the big fuel gauge with a tach/fuel combo.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NW6vC88RW9A

[TKCR]

Originally Posted by logbuilder69

Here is a youtube video on 1988 instrument cluster renewal. It is pretty good.

When he came to the bezel, he used, IIRC, 4 different polishing compounds. It turned out great.

I saved the video since I will someday redo the cluster on my 1986 C20 Custom. I am seriously thinking of replacing the big fuel gauge with a tach/fuel combo.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NW6vC88RW9A

Thanks for posting the video. Wished I would have seen that back when I restored my cluster. He had a lot of good tips.

[vht]

I had a guy show me how to clean the head lights on later model cars, the plastic type. We had a customers car in there and the plastic lenses were pretty bad. He took OFF, the mosquito repellent in the green can and a terry cloth towel, and made them new again in about 3 minutes. Don't really know how it does it, but it works. May try that on any plastic lens. Mom's were bad on her car and I told her about it, 2 days later she called and said they looked brand new.

[andrewmp6]

VHT the problem with the bug spray it melts the plastic and stays sticky forever.Yeah it will clear them up but at a cost of messing up the lens forever tho.Its best to do a lot of sanding and reclear coat them or just replace them.

[vht]

Didn't know that. He used the deep woods off I think. I run my hand over the lens after he was done, and it was smooth and not sticky. First time I'd ever seen it done.

[TKCR]

Originally Posted by vht

Didn't know that. He used the deep woods off I think. I run my hand over the lens after he was done, and it was smooth and not sticky. First time I'd ever seen it done.

It does work temporarily. But over time it will start to eat away at the plastic. I used it on my 2001 CRV, and like I said it does work for a short time. But then after awhile, I noticed the plastic lens actually started to peel away. I ended up buying some new headlights off EBay and replaced them. So I quess it was a temporary fix. But there are better & safer ways to clean and polish your headlights. I speak from experience.