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914World.com _ Originality and History _ Restoring white headlight surrounds
Posted by: PancakePorsche Nov 12 2015, 01:22 AM
I have typical cruddy, yellowed white headlight surrounds on my repainted car and I want to restore them the best I can.
Painting them would be easy and look o.k. but I know it is kinda frowned upon by the purest because it is not original and I agree.
Any known tricks out there ?
Posted by: gms Nov 12 2015, 09:28 AM
sandblast and paint with Krylon Fusion for Plastic®
Posted by: Tom_T Nov 12 2015, 02:02 PM
I've been told that bleaching them with Clorox will take out some of the yellowing from age. Also same idea with the windshield washer bottle, rear trunk latch cups, etc. in the white or translucent plastic parts. But I've not tried it yet with mine, so can't attest to it's efficacy.
Tom
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Posted by: Johny Blackstain Nov 12 2015, 02:21 PM
sandblast and paint with Krylon Fusion for Plastic®
???
media blast them, do not sand blast them & then paint.
Posted by: gms Nov 14 2015, 10:40 AM
sandblast and paint with Krylon Fusion for Plastic®
???
media blast them, do not sand blast them & then paint.
or you could use my time-tested method
Posted by: Pat Garvey Nov 15 2015, 09:15 PM
I've tried two methods:
Bleach - use a 25% solution (or less). Soak for 3-5 days. Rinse, let dry. They will look a lot better but remember - these guys are 43 years old! They won't be bright white again AND the bleach (even diluted) will have a negative affect on the life of the parts. This worked for ONE set for me, but no others.
OR....paint. No, they didn't come this way, but they can look pretty good if done right. Did 2 sets this way(with a lot of prep work). Looked good, but you could tell they were painted.
Choose your poison!
Posted by: PancakePorsche Nov 17 2015, 12:25 AM
Thanks for the tips guys. Since this is not a concours car I will paint them to compliment the new silver finish.
Posted by: Pat Garvey Nov 17 2015, 08:03 PM
sandblast and paint with Krylon Fusion for Plastic®
Sandblasting will ruin the original finish!!!! DO NOT DO IT!!!! Painting makes the surface lost. Bleach and leave alone.
Posted by: Martin Baker Nov 17 2015, 11:36 PM
These are painted. using the Krylon plastic primer and Rustoleum Shell White Satin Finish, 7793830 - 12 oz. Spray Looks far better than my original set on my 914/6.
http://www.rustoleum.com/product-catalog/consumer-brands/stops-rust/satin-enamel-spray
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Posted by: Martin Baker Nov 17 2015, 11:45 PM
These are the best originals I have seen. The painted method looks great, if done correctly.
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Posted by: scotty b Nov 19 2015, 01:38 PM
Funny this comes up. I was just last night playing with this as Cairo's have been completely rattle canned black. I have about 5 other sets of white surrounds and ALL of them have either been repainted black, grey primer, or body color. My first attempt was with one that had a LOT of red overspray on them. Aircraft remover got the paint off without affecting the surround, but it has a red stained look to it now. I may try Pat's Clorox method on it next, to see if it will remove the stains. I'll try one of the black ones next to see how it fares as the red looked almost like red oxide primer
Posted by: mepstein Nov 19 2015, 01:55 PM
Funny this comes up. I was just last night playing with this as Cairo's have been completely rattle canned black. I have about 5 other sets of white surrounds and ALL of them have either been repainted black, grey primer, or body color. My first attempt was with one that had a LOT of red overspray on them. Aircraft remover got the paint off without affecting the surround, but it has a red stained look to it now. I may try Pat's Clorox method on it next, to see if it will remove the stains. I'll try one of the black ones next to see how it fares as the red looked almost like red oxide primer
The white ones on my '71 are painted black. I heard oxyclean works as well as bleach. I've had ok luck with the windshield washer bottle. It's hard to reverse 45 years of chemical reaction on the plastic. I'm pretty ok with white plastic paint on white plastic. I won't loose sleep at night. I appreciate that Scotty b sweats the details.
Posted by: rhodyguy Nov 27 2015, 08:59 AM
Try soaking in '30 Second Cleaner'. Or make your own with bleach and TSP. You MUST completely immerse the cover or the solution will leave a distinct line on the part that's not in the solution. The longer you soak the lighter the cover.
Posted by: PancakePorsche Dec 1 2015, 02:17 AM
Gonna try that !
Posted by: scotty b Dec 1 2015, 10:04 AM
a quick follow up. I stripped one of the painted surrounds I had with aircraft stripper. It got it to a stained white. It looks like the primer and paint bled into the plastic. The next thing I did was to sand a section with 180 grit. It made it better but still slightly discolored. Next step is to try a soak in oxy clean today. I'll get some pics of the sanding I did then the half I soak in Oxy for a day or 2.
FWIW the 180 grit let very minor sand scratches and did NOT alter the plastic nor did the aircraft stripper, lacquer thinner, or brake fluid, or brake cleaner ( yeah I tried brake fluid too ) 180 followed by 240, 320 and maybe even 600 grit would probably get it back to the original finish ( Judging by the sets I have here, all of the whites were a smooth finish )
Posted by: rgalla9146 Dec 1 2015, 12:14 PM
Sounds like a lot of trouble.
White ones must be out there, what does a good pair they go for ?
Posted by: sbsix Dec 1 2015, 12:51 PM
I couldn't find any three years ago when I started looking for white surrounds for my '70, so I purchased the last two sets from EASY in Emoryville that were not too far gone and were restorable. Bought a gallon of 30 Second Miracle Cleaner too but I haven't got around to trying it yet. It's on my list of things to do soon.
Posted by: Cairo94507 Dec 1 2015, 05:41 PM
Thanks Scotty. I would prefer no paint on them if possible. Absent that, a plastic paint that as closely as possible matches the original will have to do.
Posted by: Pat Garvey Dec 11 2015, 07:12 PM
sandblast and paint with Krylon Fusion for Plastic®
???
media blast them, do not sand blast them & then paint.
Agree! Never sand blast these. I wouldn't blast them with anything because they are PLASTIC.Try soaking in 20% sodium hypochloride ( that's concentrated bleach) after they've been hard-core cleaned. Soak for 48 hrs. Some will look brand new...others not. If not, paint the suckers. Ooooh, you could try to powder coat them! JOKE! please disregard!!!!
Posted by: scotty b Dec 13 2015, 06:34 PM
SOooooo I've now tried Oxy clean and bleach ( independently ) in over night soaks, changing the hot water out every couple hours ( once it got cold again ) and a light scrubbing with a plastic bristle knuckle brush, and have not seen ANY change from the initial stripping. I've also sanded with 180 grit. This cleaned a lot of the "staining" up, but still not all gone. Next step is top try soda blasting, but I'm not sure these will ever be completely white again without paint
One of these was black paint directly on the plastic, the other was red oxide primer over spray. I have a couple more that had grey primer, grey primer + black paint etc. I'll try one of the grey primer ones next. Hopefully the staining won't be as bad as the black and red.
You'll see in one pic where I sanded a spot on each and how much of the discoloring that removed, hence my attempt to soda blast next. FWIw the sanding did not fuzz up the plastic, or leave overly harsh scratches. I think if I can find a way to sand off the staining, the housing can be progressively wet sanded back to a smooth OE finish
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Posted by: Martin Baker Dec 19 2015, 12:15 PM
I was asked to provide an actual paint code for what I used by PM, and I ened up editing my post as I did NOT use FUSION paint, only Primer. It was a Rustoleum Paint. See link in my previous post.
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Posted by: NeunEinVier Dec 29 2015, 04:52 PM
Is it better to use walnut shell or soda media on plastic?
Posted by: Garland Jan 10 2016, 11:21 AM
Started with 3 unpainted very good condition surrounds.
10% bleach, 24 hours.
Untouched set
Untouched & bleached.
Untouched & bleached,& bleached and 600 scotch bright pad, and light polish. 
Bleached, 600, polished. 
Posted by: Garland Jan 24 2016, 09:51 AM
Just noticed that one set has part numbers, I think these were from a 70. 
Posted by: bonzer5 Jan 24 2016, 05:55 PM
Great thread! Motivates me to try and strip the signal orange paint of my original housings!
Posted by: maddin Feb 14 2016, 06:56 PM
Does Acetone affect the type of plastic they used for the housings?
Mine are painted red so I'm about to strip the paint off,acetone works great but I only used it on fiberglass parts.
Thank you :-)
Posted by: maddin Feb 14 2016, 11:46 PM
ok...I thought I'd give it a go and see how sanding works.
Acetone didn't do anything on that paint anyway...
I started with 180 until paint and primer were gone,then 240,400,800,1200 to get it nice and smooth.
The paint hasn't bled into the plastic at all.
It sure takes a while and you could get it even smoother if you put some more time into it,depending on your level of OCD.
Pretty happy with the result but will try paint stripper for plastic and see how that works.
Would it make sense to use clear coat to preserve it, polish,leave as is?
Thank you
close up
Posted by: Pat Garvey Feb 24 2016, 05:17 PM
ok...I thought I'd give it a go and see how sanding works.
Acetone didn't do anything on that paint anyway...
I started with 180 until paint and primer were gone,then 240,400,800,1200 to get it nice and smooth.
The paint hasn't bled into the plastic at all.
It sure takes a while and you could get it even smoother if you put some more time into it,depending on your level of OCD.
Pretty happy with the result but will try paint stripper for plastic and see how that works.
Would it make sense to use clear coat to preserve it, polish,leave as is?
Thank you
close up
I wouldn't clearcoat them. It yellows with time so the problem returns some day. Watch out for that acetone! It is really carcinogenic!
Posted by: maddin Feb 25 2016, 09:25 PM
Hi Pat,
thanks for the reply...I think it'll look good when pollished and without the clear coat. I certainly don't want to sand them down again....almost there!
Posted by: pete000 Jun 21 2016, 06:51 PM
To paint or not to paint that is the question... 
Here are my 914 early head light doors. They are original white plastic and showing some aging (Yellowing).
Paint, or no paint...
I keep hearing they are only original once !
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Posted by: mepstein Jun 21 2016, 08:50 PM
To paint or not to paint that is the question...
Here are my 914 early head light doors. They are original white plastic and showing some aging (Yellowing).
Paint, or no paint...
I keep hearing they are only original once !
they look nice. i would leave them as-is. mine were black. bead blasting cleaned them up and paint made them white again but I'm sure they don't look original. Still, I'm happy with the result.
Posted by: PancakePorsche Jun 22 2016, 09:51 PM
Do not paint ! Those are excellent for their age and look right.
Posted by: 1970 Neun vierzehn Jun 24 2016, 05:24 PM
pete000,
Do not paint them. Leave them as original and untouched. Embrace the patina 
Here are my untouched '70/4 items.......
Paul
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Posted by: thenewgarage Dec 1 2016, 09:58 AM
Bleached, 600, polished.
I am curious...what polish did you use?
Posted by: JmuRiz Dec 2 2016, 01:55 PM
+1, did you use plastic polish or some kind of auto-paint polish.
They look great BTW!!!
Posted by: thenewgarage Dec 2 2016, 09:06 PM
Here is after 24 hours of the 10% bleach recipe. 
I am pretty happy how they came out as is. I will try some polish too - maybe the Meguiars plastic polish.
Posted by: thenewgarage Dec 7 2016, 09:21 PM
+1, did you use plastic polish or some kind of auto-paint polish.
They look great BTW!!!
I hit them with some Griot's Complete Compound today. Got rid of some light stains and gave them a nice smooth look and finish.
Posted by: Pat Garvey Dec 17 2016, 07:12 PM
+1, did you use plastic polish or some kind of auto-paint polish.
They look great BTW!!!
I hit them with some Griot's Complete Compound today. Got rid of some light stains and gave them a nice smooth look and finish.
All of you are learning well. They mostly look really good.
Posted by: thenewgarage Feb 28 2017, 09:57 PM
+1, did you use plastic polish or some kind of auto-paint polish.
They look great BTW!!!
I hit them with some Griot's Complete Compound today. Got rid of some light stains and gave them a nice smooth look and finish.
All of you are learning well. They mostly look really good.
Thanks!
Posted by: Garland Feb 28 2017, 10:50 PM
[quote name='thenewgarage' post='2429196' date='Dec 1 2016, 10:58 AM']
[quote name='Garland' post='2287964' date='Jan 10 2016, 09:21 AM']
Bleached, 600, polished.
[/quote]
I am curious...what polish did you 
600, Automotive finishing polish, with silcone.
But wax is a good idea after.
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