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So I eventually took on the task of painting my headlights to color match my car. It took me months and months to get the courage up to finally do it!! This is kind of a quick walk through to paint the headlights-I didn't have to wetsand between coats at all and the final result had zero orange peel, the paint turned out like glass.
#1. Sanding
Use some fine sandpaper to do the initial sanding so you don't gouge huge scratches into the plastic. I believe I used 800 grit sandpaper to do the initial sanding. Just remember after sanding to clean the bezels and blow them dry to get rid of any sanding particles that are left on them. This is a pic of the bezel completely (mostly) sanded and ready for primer:
#2. Primer
Next is to prime the bezels. I used Dupli Color Automotive Paint Primer in the small 5oz cans. I'm sure you could buy a larger 12.5oz can of just regular primer but I wanted to use the automotive paint for everything. Just make sure you cover every part of the bezel completely. I sprayed a total of 2 wet coats and then set them aside to dry. Pics of the bezel primered:
#3. Top Coat-final coat
Once the primer is dry it's time to spray the top coat or final coat of paint-the actual color you choose. I bought the only can of granite metallic paint in AZ from my Pontiac dealership for a little over $13.00. If you use the paint sparingly you can get away with just one can of paint. Just the same as with the primer I just sprayed 2 wet coats and called it a day. I consider myself a master of the rattle can so if you think you need practice just use a cheap can of paint to get the technique down of spraypainting. Here's a pic of the bezel with the two wet coats of Granite Metallic almost dry:
#4 Clear Coat
For the clear coat I bought 2 of the 5oz Dupli Color automotive paint Clear Coat. I used the majority of each can for each bezel-so basically one can of clear per bezel. Take your time with the clear coat to make sure you cover every part of the painted bezel and try your hardest to minimize the overspray on other parts you're not painting. I put down an initial coat of clear, let it dry, then did a second heavier coat of clear and that was it-after drying the quality was unbelievable. Here's a couple pics of a finished bezel with the two coats of clear:
Now it's hard to see the difference in shine and deepness of the paint from steps 3 and 4 but in person you wouldn't believe the difference-it's MAJOR!! Just remember to take your time and you shouldn't have to hassle with wetsanding or anything else of that matter.
Here's a requested after shot of the finished headlights:
#1. Sanding
Use some fine sandpaper to do the initial sanding so you don't gouge huge scratches into the plastic. I believe I used 800 grit sandpaper to do the initial sanding. Just remember after sanding to clean the bezels and blow them dry to get rid of any sanding particles that are left on them. This is a pic of the bezel completely (mostly) sanded and ready for primer:
#2. Primer
Next is to prime the bezels. I used Dupli Color Automotive Paint Primer in the small 5oz cans. I'm sure you could buy a larger 12.5oz can of just regular primer but I wanted to use the automotive paint for everything. Just make sure you cover every part of the bezel completely. I sprayed a total of 2 wet coats and then set them aside to dry. Pics of the bezel primered:
#3. Top Coat-final coat
Once the primer is dry it's time to spray the top coat or final coat of paint-the actual color you choose. I bought the only can of granite metallic paint in AZ from my Pontiac dealership for a little over $13.00. If you use the paint sparingly you can get away with just one can of paint. Just the same as with the primer I just sprayed 2 wet coats and called it a day. I consider myself a master of the rattle can so if you think you need practice just use a cheap can of paint to get the technique down of spraypainting. Here's a pic of the bezel with the two wet coats of Granite Metallic almost dry:
#4 Clear Coat
For the clear coat I bought 2 of the 5oz Dupli Color automotive paint Clear Coat. I used the majority of each can for each bezel-so basically one can of clear per bezel. Take your time with the clear coat to make sure you cover every part of the painted bezel and try your hardest to minimize the overspray on other parts you're not painting. I put down an initial coat of clear, let it dry, then did a second heavier coat of clear and that was it-after drying the quality was unbelievable. Here's a couple pics of a finished bezel with the two coats of clear:
Now it's hard to see the difference in shine and deepness of the paint from steps 3 and 4 but in person you wouldn't believe the difference-it's MAJOR!! Just remember to take your time and you shouldn't have to hassle with wetsanding or anything else of that matter.
Here's a requested after shot of the finished headlights:
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