View Full Version : Rock Chips in Headlight Housings?
ItsDubC
06-08-2010, 04:23 PM
I have a few of these little nicks from rock or other road debris in my headlight housings and I want to get these imperfections out before I put on the Laminix protective film. Has anyone done this or have any tips on doing so? I have a 7424XP and was wondering if they can be polished/smoothed out. Most DIYs recommend a rotary; has anyone done it w/ a DA?
TIA
AZUltra
06-09-2010, 11:51 AM
I did this last weekend, I went over both headlights twice with menzerna compound and my 7424XP, took out the majority of the little chips but some of the larger chips remain. For the final polish with the compound i went with light pressure and finished with wax. It made a huge difference, wish i took before and after shots.
ItsDubC
06-12-2010, 08:13 PM
Thx for the info! From what I gather, it seems that deeper chips will for sure have to be wetsanded prior to polishing. Something I was hoping to avoid , but great to hear that the 7424xp is fully-capable of handling the polishing job. Just curious, what size pads did you use and on what kind of car?
hoppy6698
06-13-2010, 05:18 PM
Based on the size of our lights, I would stick with 3.5/4" pads. Try a midgrade like M205 before going to something deeper - remember they are only plastic and not nearly as durable as the clear coats. I plan to do the same to the wife's SUV this weekend, clean up some minor fogging.
ItsDubC
06-13-2010, 07:17 PM
Based on the size of our lights, I would stick with 3.5/4" pads. Try a midgrade like M205 before going to something deeper - remember they are only plastic and not nearly as durable as the clear coats. I plan to do the same to the wife's SUV this weekend, clean up some minor fogging.
Ya I figured a smaller pad would be better, but I wasn't sure if I could use 4" pads on my 7424xp since it came w/ a counterweight for 5.5" pads. If I get a backing plate for 4" pads, will my current counterweight still suffice? IIRC, there is a 7424xp counterweight available for use w/ 6.5" pads, but I'm not aware of one available for use w/ 4" pads.
hoppy6698
06-14-2010, 05:18 AM
I got my 3.5" backing plate at Autogeek.net: http://www.autogeek.net/lc-43085da.html
Works fine with the current counterweight, imo, and goes right on/off. Just make sure you dont lose that thin tool to change the plates, AG is the only site I could find that sells it separately. Might be a good idea to pick one up with the order.
Others may know better, but I think the counterweight is weighted against the machine, not the pad/backing plate - so it should never change... I think.