i want to get the black out paint off my tail lights but will thinners damage the plastic? or is there something else i could use?
yep it will.. thats why you work your way into a finer grade sand paper. and it will be smooth as all hell.. how do you think they sand bog? and somehow it comes out smoother than anything in the world.
it also depends how it was blackened in the first place.. if it was a spray on system than sand it back... if it was dipped and left to soak (stained style) than sanding it wont help much.
nah it was sprayed and its not that dark so hopefully it shouldnt take to long would i be better off doing it by hand? or with a sander?
yes it will scratch the plastic and yes it will be visible once painted over. thinners wont eat the plastic depending on which thinners you use but if you have any weakness,stress fractures or perishing of your acrylic lens then the thinners will cause it to crack,maybe not straight away but before you finish cleaning the lens. toluene is less harsh so it takes a bit longer to remove the paint but same shit can still happen. Best method to use is a small hard paint brush like the little ones that artists use and keep applying thnners or whatever to the surface it will eventuallly react and then just keep scrubbing with the brush.The longest part is waiting for it to react initially so maybe you could tape up the oval sections to avoid scratching and then sand gently to remove gloss coating to allow chemical to penetrate.this will reduce the amount of chemical required and may help you avoid damage. Another suggestion would be to try graffitti remover of correct type or paint stripper but I have not tried those methods.I spent many hours experimenting with the suck it and see method until i got a decent result.Oh yeah i also killed 3 sets of tail lights and 3 center panels and still did not get the wanted result for the centre panel. After you have tried everything and got thoroughly jacked of the whole situation you can always paint he outside of the lens like it appears ztoy has done and it looks good from all reports. good luck
Ha! Thanks dedzed, you beat me to it, I was only going to quote your information anyhow in regards to our recent discussions. You're the go-to guy regarding this, of that there is no doubt
lol... God I wish I had've seen this before I just sanded mine all the way back to clear to re do them. Sanding works well but it's a lot of work bringing them back to standard going up through the grades of paper and finally finishing on 1000 then 1200 wet and dry. They look good now though and I feel like I've done 200 Chinese Push Ups! But I'd definitely go the Thiners option if I had to do it again. [TIS]
have you painted them yet? if so can you see the sanding eg hazed instead of clear look. remember thinners can still crack the lens without eating it.
i would think a heavy cut and polish, maybe even on a buff for extra effect would take it of rerasonably easily
When I did my lens clearing, I noticed the blackout was a little thin in places. So I decided to tidy it up with a light dusting from a spray can of black whatever that I had laying about. The reaction with the original blackout was quite amazing - better than paint stripper I reckon. No choice then but to remove it all, then a light sand and a respray and it came back pretty good. But if I was paying myself by the hour it was a $1,000 job.
the original paint is almost a thin gloss plastic coating when first viewed as opposed to spray paint. As for the graffitti remover i would have checked if it was safe for plastic as there are a lot of grafiiti removers out there for different paints or inks. I would do the same before applying paint stripper too. Still have not found a perfect chemical yet.
