- Hey there, Donnie Smith here and in this video
I'm gonna show you how to restore your headlights
permanently using 2k clear.
Now this method can be used on headlights, taillights
and it will last for years and if you're a DIY at home,
don't worry I got you covered, 'cause I'm gonna show
ya how you can use this same process using 2k clear
even if you don't have a spray gun.
So, there's a screw right here and a screw right here
and this will take the liner off or enough to lower
it where you can get access to the backside of that.
If you're just changing the bulb,
you can do that from right here.
You can take the bulb out, put it back in
and put the liner back on.
But, we're taking the whole assembly off
and we'll need this liner down for that as well.
You can also take the bulb out from the front,
from the top, if ya got the grill out.
There's a bolt right here for taking the headlight
assembly out and right here, you take those two out
and then we got to get back behind this wheel liner,
and there is a bolt right there
and one right to the front of that.
You take those four bolts out
and the headlight will come out.
Now, I didn't show on this video how to take the grill out,
there is a video I have down in the description
that will show you how to do that.
But ya take those four bolts out and then unplug
the harness that plugs into the light
and then you should be able to get this light out.
Now, when you get this light out,
it is gonna come with this filler on it
and you can take this off and I'm gonna take it off
so I can clear this so I don't worry about scuffing
it up when I'm sanding.
I'm gonna go ahead and put these lights back in,
because you want it to be sealed 'cause I'm going to be
washing this with soap and water
and I don't water to get inside of there.
And here are the locations where the bolts are,
there's four locations to get it out.
To get this filler off, you can push down on the little tab
that's here and then pull on that filler.
But you want to take your time to get this off
'cause you don't want to break any tabs or clips
or anything like that.
Once you get 'em loose, it'll pull off there
and you can put it aside and not worry about damaging
it during the sanding process.
Just showing you the two clips right here.
And now, I went and washed these lights with soap and water
and let 'em dry, and now I'm masking it off.
I'm just doing this to protect the edges
because I'm gonna be using a DA sander to sand this,
don't want to scratch it all up and also,
to protect it from the clear,
when I go to clear coating.
So, I'm taping those edges off and then I get this DA sander
and I'm gonna sand 'em with 500 grit.
Now, when sanding don't be afraid to sand
I mean you can sand these pretty hard.
May scare ya because it's gonna make the glass
or ya know the plastic look frosted,
like you can't see though it you think
you may have ruined it, ya know.
But, don't worry about it because when we're done,
we're gonna use some 800, and then we're gonna clear 'em
and they will look brand new so don't be scared
when they start looking frosted, they're not ruined.
I'm gonna sand this really good with 500 grit,
just to get everything off of there
and then once I've done that, I'm gonna switch to 800 grit.
Now, what the 800 grit does, it just minimizes
those 500 grit scratches, and really there is no reason
to go any finer than 800 grit
if you're gonna be clear coating.
Now, if you're gonna be polishing them,
you will want to go with some finer grits than that.
Clear coat fills 800 grit scratches just fine,
so I'm gonna sand it with some 800,
and I'm gonna do both of the lights the same way.
Once I've sanded 'em with 800 grit,
I am going to get a gray scuff pad 'cause you wanna
make sure that everything's sanded good
so the paint sticks or the clear coat sticks.
I'm gonna get a gray scuff pad and get all those
hard-to-get areas and edges so that everything is scuffed
good so the clear's not going to peel
from the edges or anywhere.
Then, once I'm done doing that, I am going to wash 'em
with soap and water and let 'em dry
and put 'em in the booth.
Now, what I'm doing in the booth,
I'm using some water-based plastic cleaner,
now you don't have to do this step
if you don't have the cleaner.
Just allow 'em to dry and then you can start,
apply your adhesion promoter and then clear coat.
I'm applying this plastic cleaner just to make sure
the plastic is nice and clean.
This is another important step with plastic,
a problem with it is stuff sticking to it good adhesion,
so this is an adhesion promoter for plastic.
One thing to remember about adhesion promoter,
is do not put it on too thick,
just put some mist coats, a couple of mist coats.
If you put it on real wet, too thick,
that will actually cause adhesion failure.
So, a couple of mist coats, allow it to dry
for about five minutes and then you can tack 'em off,
remove any fine dirt, lint things like that
and you're ready to spray.
So, what I'm doing now is I got some 2k, two component
clear coat it's automotive finish clear coat,
and I am going around the edges and I'll go around the edges
of these lights and then I'll do the centers.
Now, the reason I do that, is so I can get the edges
and then when I'm putting that top coat on,
it's nice and smooth and even.
If I did it the other way and sprayed the edges last,
it may have some over-spray that kinda sets
on there weird, might look dry or something like that,
so always wanna do what you're gonna see, last.
So now, I'm putting on that top coat
and I want nice and even, now if there's any curves
in the light, you wanna be sure and get those.
There is one curved area on these lights
so it takes an extra pass at the end,
if not it may have a dry appearance to it.
Going to the other light and I'm doing the same thing,
putting that top coat on nice and even,
making it look good and then I'm gonna come over here
and get that pass or two that's curved
so that does not look dry.
Then, once you have a coat applied,
be sure to allow it to flash the recommended time,
whatever the technical data sheet says ya know,
10 minutes or whatever it is and I've done that
and now I'm coming around with the last and final coat,
the second coat.
Gonna do the same thing, I'm gonna go around all the edges
and then I'm gonna come back and do that top surface,
and get a nice glossy finish on that,
because you want this coat to look really awesome
'cause how it looks after you're done spraying,
that is what they're gonna look like.
Got the edges, and now I'm 'bout ready to put on that
top surface coat and I'm going on real nice,
real even and I'm really slowing down
making this look great.
When I get these on the pickup they're gonna look brand new.
So, I got the first light and I'll have to go over there,
remember if there's any angles, be sure and catch
those angles so you don't have a dry appearance
and I'll go to the other headlight and clear coat that one.
Now, I'm doing both headlights here,
one of 'em was really not that bad,
but I want 'em both to look the same,
'cause that is what the problem was one looked
newer than the other and that just makes it look horrible.
I think it looks better when they both look bad,
if I was gonna do one, I would just go ahead and plan
on doing both of 'em.
Once you get 'em clear coated,
you're gonna allow 'em to dry
and then you're ready to put 'em back on the pickup.
And there they are, they look brand new
and also, it helps you see at night.
Fogged up lights actually decrease your visibility at night.
Anyone using two component clear,
when it's done you know they're gonna last for years.
So, here's a before and after photo
of the headlight that was real bad,
and as you can see it makes a huge difference.
It went from looking old and hazy, to brand new.
So, as you can see they look brand new
and they're gonna last forever,
unlike polishing or any of these other methods.
I've tried toothpaste and WD-40,
some of 'em work for a limited time, but this will last.
You can use this method even if you don't have a spray gun.
There is some 2K clear coat that comes in an aerosol can,
the way this works when you get it,
you'll open it up, you'll shake it, you pop the bottom
which breaks a seal and it releases the catalyst
and the clear mixes together and once mixed together,
it turns into a 2K clear coat.
I think it's about $20 a can, I'll put a link down
in the description, but to get your headlights
looking brand new that's a small price to pay.
So, down in the description, I will put the video
where I took this grill out, if you're needing to know
how to take that out, 'cause this will need to come out
to get your headlights out if it's a Nissan Titan.
I'll put a link down there to the 2K aerosol clear coat
and I'll also put a link to the adhesion promoter.
I really hope you enjoyed this video!
If you did be sure and give me a thumbs up,
give me a like on this video.
Share this with your friends, if you have any questions,
leave a comment down below.
And as always, if something's worth doing,
do your best and have a blast doing it!
Thanks for watching, take care and we'll see you,
in the next video.
To uninstall this, I'm gonna remove the grill,
now there's four clips up there on top,
couple on the sides and some on the bottom.
Really easy to remove, you just get a flat-head screwdriver
and you twist that clip and they will come out.
And there's two on the side, that you'll have to squeeze
with some pliers or something, squeeze that clip...