Need Info on Pro Windshield Polishing (socal)

[Burabuda]

saw a place in socal who posted some youtube vids, but they seem to have gone bye-bye

 

anybody know of a place that can polish out scratches/haze from auto glass plz lmk thx

[MikeRL411]

Cerium Oxide polishing kits from, among others, JCWhitmey. Bring your own power drill, the rest is in the kits.

[metalmonkey47]

Been meaning to ask this question for a while. Subscribed

[Dawa]

my windshield has so many fine scratches/etc. driving at night is such a bitch cuz of all the light refraction.

ive been wondering if i could polish it and i assume that is what youre talking about?

good to know that it is an actual option.

[72240z]

My last job was as a mech in a glass fab and tempering plant. 60 hours a week in that hell hole taught me a ton about glass lol. Cerium oxide mixed with water and a felt polishing wheel on a drill will do fine. You can take out some pretty nasty scratches but you have to work the area. Let the drill do the work.....

 

I guess to take out scratches it may not matter as much but be aware there are complete shit cerium oxides that leave a cloudy polish and there are great ones that polish crystal clear. The stuff can be expensive for sure but considering how much is needed for just doing a windshield my advice is to buy higher quality stuff.

[Ratwagon1600]

Don't want to hijack this thread, but, I'm chasing info on this topic (windshield polishing).

 

I have a brand new screen which has been sitting in the plastic bag for about two years.

 

I removed the screen from the bag a couple of weeks ago and it (screen) was covered in wavy lines like some of the chemicals used in the plastic bag manufacture had leeched onto the glass.

 

So far I've tried the following to remove the build up.

 

Hydrochloric acid

 

Paint thinners

 

Paint stripper

 

Prepsol (wax and grease remover)

 

Acetone

 

Steel wool

 

Buffing compound and a buffing pad on my 9" grinder

 

Various grades of polishing compounds

 

Ammonia

 

Bleach

 

Lots of swearing and cursing.

 

All of the above have produced some results, although there is still a very visible build up on the screen.

 

Previously I've found Meguirs paint cleaner to be excellent at removing things like water marks and other nastys. Generally I use this with a very fine grade steel wool 00, followed by buffing with a fine cloth.

 

This one however has got me stuffed.

 

I'll try and post some pics later today.

 

Thanks

 

Jason

[Ratwagon1600]

Not the worlds greatest photo, but, if you look at the screen where the ladder is lying at right angles the snake like wavy lines are visible.

 

This is the residue from the plastic covering.

 

[72240z]

Using Cerium Oxide and a felt polishing wheel like mentioned I believe you can polish that out. So long as its on the surface. I have seen glass come out of the tempering furnace with all kinds of different imperfections and they just had the guys sit there with polishers until they were gone.

[metalmonkey47]

Nice answers. 72240Z, is there any particular brand that can say is better then the rest?

[72240z]

I cant give a brand because they ordered the stuff a dozen 55 drums at a time from china lol. All mitering machines and polishers ran through it very quick. One of the reasons a well mitered and polished piece of glass is so expensive. Will say though anything from C.R. Laurence (CRL) should hold up well. They are a huge supplier with a great rep. The CO my old company used was actually prob sup par to what they were getting from china quality wise but a pound from CRL will run from like 30-50 bucks a lb where as the shit from China was coming in more like 20 a lb when they bought in such bulk.

 

We used a hydrometer to determine the concentration but I'm sure if you order a pound from CRL I'm sure there will be a mixing ratio. A pound goes a long way, if I had to guess Id say like a pound to 5gal of water. Though the higher the ratio of CO the better the polish is going to be.

[Ratwagon1600]

Using Cerium Oxide and a felt polishing wheel like mentioned I believe you can polish that out. So long as its on the surface. I have seen glass come out of the tempering furnace with all kinds of different imperfections and they just had the guys sit there with polishers until they were gone.

 

Thanks for the advice.

 

Searching for somewhere in Australia that doesnt charge a ridiculous price for this stuff.

 

One place wants $50 for 1/2 a kilogram, not sure if that is too expensive but will keep searching.

[72240z]

No prob

 

Actually the price seems close to what I listed above, 50aus? is 52us and 1/2k is .45lb lol. The only cheap kinds are trash because cerium oxide is a rare earth mineral. Far as quality is concerned your going to get what you pay for.

[Ratwagon1600]

Far as quality is concerned your going to get what you pay for.

 

Couldn't agree more.

 

There's no one locally in the town I live in (Australia's capital city) that appears to sell this so I've placed an online order for the 1/2 kilo this morning.

 

Hopefully it will arrive sometime next week and I can add another skill to my collection of automotive talents.

 

Didn't realise cerium oxide is also used for polishing gemstones!

 

The Wonderful! Things you learn from Ratsun.

[Burabuda]

found this shop in l.a.

called them but they haven't responded

 

http://www.unscratchthesurface.com/

[Boaty]

I used Diamondite products with great results.

I wouldn't do it by hand, that would take forever - and you'll get a much better finish using a machine to do this, as said before.

Cerium Oxide works great, it's just kind of messy is all. You basically make a slurry with the powder and use the FACE of a felt bob on a drill or die grinder to polish with. And slow speed. You don't want heat.

 

I bought my stuff from Autogeek, FWIW.

Here's a link to the Glassworks system, but the individual stuff will be fine. No need to buy the kit, but you can find all the info on stuff here.

http://www.autogeek.net/diglkitforma.html

[FJDatto]

We had a boat with a deteriorating aluminum frame for the windshield. The corrosion stained the windows something fierce, but nothing we used to remove the stains worked. Finally, someone suggested a buffer with toothpaste (not gel), and voila, stains gone. In fact, it was surprising how fast it worked.

[FJDatto]

Oh yes, this particular advice was directed at RatWagon1600

[Ratwagon1600]

We had a boat with a deteriorating aluminum frame for the windshield. The corrosion stained the windows something fierce, but nothing we used to remove the stains worked. Finally, someone suggested a buffer with toothpaste (not gel), and voila, stains gone. In fact, it was surprising how fast it worked.

 

I'm willing to try anything and my cerium oxide hasn't turned up (yet).

 

I've tried buffing compund(s) which haven't worked, but will give this a go.

 

Good thing the wife went shopping yesterday and amongst the things she bought was toothpaste :)

[FJDatto]

As I said, I recommend using a non-gel toothpaste. Crest or Colgate should work just fine. Likewise, your Datto will be smelling minty fresh!

[BenJammin]

Fyi, not all toothpastes are the same, abrasive wise they vary greatly....

 

http://www.levysmiles.com/docs/Abrasiveness_of_Common_Toothpase.pdf

[FJDatto]

Fyi, not all toothpastes are the same, abrasive wise they vary greatly....

 

http://www.levysmile...n_Toothpase.pdf

 

Irrelevant...the point is to use a toothpaste that has a good amount of abrasives, and when combined with a buffer, they will remove the crap on a windshield quite effectively. The only reason I said not to use gels is because they tend to have fewer of the good stuff.

[Tristin]

your Datto will be smelling minty fresh!

 

I like the sound of that!

[Ratwagon1600]

Tried toothpaste today, and, epic fail!

 

Not surprised seeing the various polish/buffing compounds didn't work :(

 

Waiting for my cerium powder to arrive.

[Tristin]

Awww so there isnt a second minty fresh 510? :( Oh well, at least you have something on the way to fix it already.

[BenJammin]

Irrelevant...the point is to use a toothpaste that has a good amount of abrasives, and when combined with a buffer, they will remove the crap on a windshield quite effectively. The only reason I said not to use gels is because they tend to have fewer of the good stuff.

 

Not sure how you can slam my post as 'irrelevant' when the grit varies so greatly on that list, there's non-gels listed very low and one gel listed pretty high on abrasiveness. Keep in mind the list points out the difference is crucial between simply cleaning your teeth or totally sanding thru the outer tooth shell (dentin) !

 

Would be kind of like saying the difference between using 80 grit vs 220 on a sanding job would be irrelevant (although the toothpaste list is kind of inverse to our normal thinking about sandpaper grit).