Title: my 88 t-bird
Post by: lionman on November 24, 2011, 08:20:02 PM
Post by: lionman on November 24, 2011, 08:20:02 PM
So the first time I signed up there was some issues in my first post... I like to say sorry to the person I said "British cigarette" to, I was pretty upset after a heated argument came up... I removed the eye soar from the dash and am in the process of fixing the cracks.
I'm adding some new custom chrome around the fender and bumper, and a little in the interior. A new V-8 emblem is on the hood.
Need to buy another Ford decal, I screwed up the other one.
I'm adding some new custom chrome around the fender and bumper, and a little in the interior. A new V-8 emblem is on the hood.
Need to buy another Ford decal, I screwed up the other one.
Title: my 88 t-bird
Post by: 88turbo on November 24, 2011, 08:24:57 PM
Post by: 88turbo on November 24, 2011, 08:24:57 PM
welcome back :)
Title: my 88 t-bird
Post by: vinnietbird on November 24, 2011, 09:01:55 PM
Post by: vinnietbird on November 24, 2011, 09:01:55 PM
Very seldom on this forum are there any issues to deal with. On occasion some pop up. Roll with it and keep going. Think before you talk (that goes for anyone). It's a learning process with cars in general. If you need help, advice or whatever, just ask. Good to see you're still working on it.
Title: my 88 t-bird
Post by: Beau on November 24, 2011, 10:30:37 PM
Post by: Beau on November 24, 2011, 10:30:37 PM
Quote from: lionman;373793
Perhaps centering the emblem, and if it's plastic, heating it carefully and bending it slightly so it will fit to match the crease down the center of the hood.
My honest opinion: leave the emblem off, strip, lightly sand, and then paint the grille body color, and probably try to not add chrome in a gaudy fashion. Also, wheel covers are not "rims"..they are just that; wheel covers.
I'm not trying to insult you, don't take it as anything but constructive criticism. For that matter, you can have a jab at me: my car hasn't even ran in 6 months because I'm too stupid to swap (again) a dash harness..
Anyway, if you need or want a driver side inner marker light I may have one around here I'd let ya have cheap....let me know :)
Title: my 88 t-bird
Post by: lionman on November 25, 2011, 07:30:05 AM
Post by: lionman on November 25, 2011, 07:30:05 AM
Yea, had a little trouble with centering the emblem. I might see what I can do Saturday. I'd like to have that inner marker light. Is there anyway of getting the light lenses cleaned? I've tried a cheap way of using tooth paste but didn't do much. Still don't like to spend $15 on a headlight cleaning kit.
Title: my 88 t-bird
Post by: Shadow on November 25, 2011, 08:26:33 AM
Post by: Shadow on November 25, 2011, 08:26:33 AM
simple 3 stage process.. but it's going to cost more than $15 bucks.. those stupid cheap kits aren't worth a .. you need 1500 and 2000 grit 'wet or dry' sand paper, a bucket of water, microfiber or soft towel/rags and PLASTIC polish.. doing it by hand sucks, but if it's a 1-time thing, there's no point in spending money on a good mini buffer.. step 1: wet sand with the 1500 grit, make sure you keep the paper AND lense nice and wet.. sand until all or most of the discoloring is gone. step 2: repeat step 1, but with the 2000 grit this time.. step 3: start buffing with the plastic polish until you're satisfied with the clarity of the lense.. doing it by hand will take a while, but the end result is worth it
Title: my 88 t-bird
Post by: Soul on November 25, 2011, 09:21:41 AM
Post by: Soul on November 25, 2011, 09:21:41 AM
X2 on the sanding, just did a spare set of lights and they look much better.
Title: my 88 t-bird
Post by: hypostang on November 25, 2011, 12:57:13 PM
Post by: hypostang on November 25, 2011, 12:57:13 PM
Quote from: Shadow;373812
simple 3 stage process.. but it's going to cost more than $15 bucks.. those stupid cheap kits aren't worth a .. you need 1500 and 2000 grit 'wet or dry' sand paper, a bucket of water, microfiber or soft towel/rags and PLASTIC polish.. doing it by hand sucks, but if it's a 1-time thing, there's no point in spending money on a good mini buffer.. step 1: wet sand with the 1500 grit, make sure you keep the paper AND lense nice and wet.. sand until all or most of the discoloring is gone. step 2: repeat step 1, but with the 2000 grit this time.. step 3: start buffing with the plastic polish until you're satisfied with the clarity of the lense.. doing it by hand will take a while, but the end result is worth it
While I agree with the directions you gave .....
I do have a question,, what exactly do you think those kits consist of ? The ones I have seen have had abrasive pads and plastic polish :)
Title: my 88 t-bird
Post by: 20thanniver-ls on November 25, 2011, 01:16:16 PM
Post by: 20thanniver-ls on November 25, 2011, 01:16:16 PM
Quote from: hypostang;373822
While I agree with the directions you gave .....
I do have a question,, what exactly do you think those kits consist of ? The ones I have seen have had abrasive pads and plastic polish :)
I agree with what you're getting at....;)
There's a Turtle Wax brand kit that comes with 3 different stages of sanding blocks, plastic polish, latex gloves, clearcoat and a little spray bottle to wet sand with said blocks that costs about 7 bucks at Wal Mart. It works just as good as the sandpaper method but it's a whole lot cheaper. It's basically giving you everything you need to do the sandpaper method but with just enough to do the all the front lights twice.
Theres also this stuff that BlueMagic makes and all you need is a rag, it works awesome for cleaning the lights, a lot better than I thought it would. But, unless you clearcoat it, you be be re-doing it again in a few months.
Title: my 88 t-bird
Post by: Shadow on November 25, 2011, 10:47:23 PM
Post by: Shadow on November 25, 2011, 10:47:23 PM
i don't like those kids.. i use the meguiar's plastic polish and it's second to none.. i haven't used anything turtle wax in years, as i hate dealing with it, it's not that great in my opinion
Title: my 88 t-bird
Post by: 20thanniver-ls on November 25, 2011, 10:53:33 PM
Post by: 20thanniver-ls on November 25, 2011, 10:53:33 PM
Quote from: Shadow;373855
i don't like those kids.. i use the meguiar's plastic polish and it's second to none.. i haven't used anything turtle wax in years, as i hate dealing with it, it's not that great in my opinion
Just because you don't like them it doesn't take away from the fact that they actually work..... some great for that matter. I actually liked the Turtle Wax one the best. I've used sandpaper and Meguiars, and it does work great, but it's very time consuming and a real PITA, not to mention the costs of the sandpaper, plastic polish, and clearcoat. You get the same results with some of the kits, with less time and cost. You can't beat that.
Title: my 88 t-bird
Post by: Shadow on November 25, 2011, 11:11:05 PM
Post by: Shadow on November 25, 2011, 11:11:05 PM
i beg to differ but to each his own.. all i will say is, no matter what you use, without a buffer, it's a real PITA to get them crystal clear
Title: my 88 t-bird
Post by: fordguy545 on November 26, 2011, 01:09:15 PM
Post by: fordguy545 on November 26, 2011, 01:09:15 PM
Its worthless anyway when they are usually fogged on the inside too! The kits do help though.
Title: my 88 t-bird
Post by: Shadow on November 26, 2011, 02:31:10 PM
Post by: Shadow on November 26, 2011, 02:31:10 PM
i've only ever had 1 set that was fogged on the inside, because the lense seal was wasted.. but you can do inside the lense as well, it's just a real pain in the arse
Title: my 88 t-bird
Post by: cougarman on November 26, 2011, 03:46:39 PM
Post by: cougarman on November 26, 2011, 03:46:39 PM
I removed the lenses from the housings. I started with 320 grit to remove all the yellowing, and moved up to 600 wet 800 wet 1000 wet and then 1500 wet. I then machine polished them with two grits of polishing compounds, and finally a hand glaze. Came out pretty good.:D
Title: my 88 t-bird
Post by: lionman on November 27, 2011, 11:47:35 PM
Post by: lionman on November 27, 2011, 11:47:35 PM
Quote from: cougarman;373896
I removed the lenses from the housings. I started with 320 grit to remove all the yellowing, and moved up to 600 wet 800 wet 1000 wet and then 1500 wet. I then machine polished them with two grits of polishing compounds, and finally a hand glaze. Came out pretty good.:D
nice... Its going to be a bitch removing the lenses... I tried to see if I can loosen them last month when I tried to clean them.
Title: my 88 t-bird
Post by: cougarman on November 28, 2011, 06:37:07 AM
Post by: cougarman on November 28, 2011, 06:37:07 AM
You could always just rermove the whole assembly, and polish them that way also. I mainly took the lenses off so I could paint the inside of the housings. :)
Title: my 88 t-bird
Post by: lionman on November 28, 2011, 11:15:05 AM
Post by: lionman on November 28, 2011, 11:15:05 AM
btw, I just discovered the car radio is I guess I can say bolted in? Was able to remove the 4 star screws, but got stopped by something else. Anyone know how I can remove it?
Title: my 88 t-bird
Post by: vinnietbird on November 28, 2011, 11:32:14 AM
Post by: vinnietbird on November 28, 2011, 11:32:14 AM
After the screws, it should just pull out. It has a kind of clip on the bottom that keeps it braced. Give the stereo an assertive, yet nice, pull. It should slide out. It is the factory stereo, right?
Title: my 88 t-bird
Post by: lionman on November 28, 2011, 11:36:52 AM
Post by: lionman on November 28, 2011, 11:36:52 AM
Quote from: vinnietbird;374011
After the screws, it should just pull out. It has a kind of clip on the bottom that keeps it braced. Give the stereo an assertive, yet nice, pull. It should slide out. It is the factory stereo, right?
Yes