:iagree::iagree:

Is there any issue with the bulb temperature and the paint?

Nope. Holds up just fine on mine.

The guys who reworked my headlight mess said that you need to wet-sand and do multiple coats to make sure the paint holds (especially on the chrome parts) but I haven't heard of anyone else's paint flaking so ymmv

I've got a few questions, my bumper is off, headlights are out, and I'm about to order the paint for my lights. Going to go with Gloss black Krylon Fusion for the housing, AutomotiveTouchup's spray can of Monterey Blue paint for the shrouds, and I'm thinking about VHT night shades for the reflector. Is VHT night shades the best one to use for the smoking?

Also, how are you guys removing the old silicone, any special tools? I watched Nut_N_Much's video of using a heat gun and a cardboard box which looks like a combination of both the oven and heat gun methods combined. Pretty good vid if you guys haven't seen it.

More questions. I'm going to wipe down everything with alcohol, but I wont need to use an Adhesion promoter on the housing if I'm going to be using Krylon Fusion right? because that stuff is made to be used on plastics etc and should stick just fine I think, but on the shrouds where I will be using the Automotive touch up paint I'm assuming I should use an adhesion Promoter?

Maybe I'm over thinking, but I'd just like to get it done right. Any information is helpful and I would love to hear from the guys who have had there's done for a year minimum and see if you have any problems that have occurred and if so what?

Thanks!

Kinda just chillin at the moment!!

http://img.tapatalk.com/d/13/01/17/evupa8av.jpg

Bump for answers

I just did mine last week. What i did was buff the housing with a green scotch bright pad, then wiped it down with alcohol until there were no more smudges on the rag. Yes Kyrlon fusion is the way to go. No adhesive promoter is needed.

VHT night shades will probably be the best thing you can find locally tbh... I just did my reflectors black.

As for the silicone, just leave it in there and reuse it when you put it back together. They is more than enough to reuse and it works just fine.

This brings me to my last suggestion/comment. Use the oven! I did mine at 190-200 for about 8-9 minutes. I put my light right on the oven rack, and had no melting issues what so ever! I took one appart with the heat gun, and did one in the oven. The oven took me 12 minutes to get appart, the heat gun took hours, and i eventually ended up putting it in the oven anyway... Also make sure to stripe the light of the bulbs and ballests and that wire harnes that the bulbs are connected to. I had to use vice grips to get the little screw off that connected to silver braided wire to the bulb and ballest, that sucker was on there good!

Take your time, and have fun with it! It was a blast, though the first one was a little stressful...

PS make sure you are in a dust free invironment when putting the light back together. Got dust on my lenses, and was really upset, but i took an air compressor and blew air though the back access port!

GOOD LUCK!

Also, PM me and i can give you my number if you need help with section, or are not sure. If you are not sure about something, don't hesitate to ask!

The baking part is where you are most likely to damage your headlights. If you want to do it the safe but long way, you use a heat gun and a damp piece of cardboard and sloooowly pry it open as you go.

For resealing them, I would use a combination of the original sealant plus that horrible black rubber butyl sealant stuff (makes a huge mess but works).

Thanks for the answers ya'll. feeling pretty confident, looking through automotive touch ups website and they're products I learned a lot about the whole process as well (painting, not disassembling). Hopefully have it back together for cars and coffee down here February 2nd. Will post pics

Oh and for the record, 11 minutes at 210 degrees in an oven is ~too long~ unless you really like the melty headlight look

Questions......


Can this beaded wire stay inside the light while baking?
Attachment 61982

Also, I can't get this bad boy off, it's the last thing holding all the wires to the light, and it looks like it should just slide off........ Well, it won't. Suggestions?
Attachment 61983


Here it is again, top left-ish area of the photo. Also I'm assuming I can leave this other gray plastic piece attached to the blue wrapped wires in? Because I don't see how to take them off
Attachment 61984


Another angle
Attachment 61985

Well for starters in image 1, yes that wire stays on while you're baking.

Awesome!!! What else

Pretty sure you do need to disconnect that doohicky in the rest of your pics. I'm holding my salvage light set in my hands and that wire is unhooked (part of the ballast assembly iirc)

I could be wrong about that though.

Wait no that's the bottom of the light. Hmm I dunno.

Here's what I remember.

-The HID bulbs are attached to the ballasts which you can completely disconnect. Be very careful extracting the HID bulbs and whatever you do, don't touch them with your bare hands. Don't touch the bulb part at all if you can help it. The bulbs should come right out with the ballasts (which you can then disconnect)

-The blinker bulbs come completely out attached to their harness which unplugs from the assembly.

-Be super careful with the little hatched/conical shiny reflectors that surround the parking bulbs. They look like plastic but they're not. They're ceramic and easily damaged.

I'm pretty sure that's everything you need to remove prior to baking.

I'm just going to continue and try to take everything I can off, I'm only going to put it in for like 9 minutes at 190-200 degrees, even though I've heard plenty if people go 250 for 10 minutes

Don't do 250. I achieved melty headlights at 11 minutes at 210.

Got it!! Nasty F***** it was just stuck on this indention and you have to yank it for like 5 minutes and it finally broke loose

Attachment 61987


Here is a pic of the PITA holding it in place.
Attachment 61988



And here is the removed wire assembly
Attachment 61991

Yeah that's the blinker bulb assembly and that needs to come off. You can use a screwdriver to apply pressure to those clip thingies to get it off. Sometimes it's easier to do with two people

Okay I m not the patient type nor want to take the time to do this myself.

If the OP or someone state side could get a core exchange going, then I would be on it for two sets staright away. I do not want the down time as this is my DD, therefore if someone would get hold of a unit and use if for a core exchange I am sure they could make a mint.

Good job, simota...btw: I am still waiting for you to come state side and install my dash fuel gauge decal from three years ago. The plane ticket is about to expire. We could hang out with your HS skool buddy Jaimie...haha

The guys who cleaned up my headlights after I screwed them up might have a core/swap set.

Good sir, could you please shoot me a pm with their 411.

Just finished trying the first light... FAILURE!!!


We went for 200 degrees, initially for 11 minutes because we wanted to make sure the silicone was nice and gooey and easy to remove.... Well it wasn't. We pulled for probably 2 minutes full strength, got the first coupe tabs pried off but we could tell it wasn't hot enough, so we tossed it back in at 200 degrees for another 4 minutes, it hadn't been out of the oven for that long and was still hot.

We pulled it out, immediately went at it with mechanix gloves, no budging. I've watched Nut_N_Much's video and could tell I was pulling hard enough it just was still not hot enough. So we went for an additional 7 minutes at 200 degrees.

This time, it started hinting at coming apart but no crackling of the silicone was heard, the light was still obviously not hot enough, so we're going to call it a night. The light is still in perfect shape and I pushed it back together before the silicone fully hardened. So now I have to ask, HOW THE HELL DO YOU GET THESE THINGS OPEN?!?!?!?!

I've heard people say
"250 will melt your lights"
"250 for 10 minutes is perfect"
"Never go over 200 degrees and 15 minutes max"
Blah blah F'n blah

What am I doing wrong?

When we did it, we used a flathead screwdriver wrapped in electrical tape to help break them open. Took 2 people to do it. One would be trying to pull the lens apart with his hands and the other would use the screwdriver to help pry it open and break up the silicone seal. If you still can't get it, stick it in the oven at a bit of a higher temp. Check on it in short intervals (like 2-3 mins) to make sure it isn't melting anywhere.

The problem we had with it melting at 250 degrees was because we put in the headlight lens down. If you don't do that you should be ok, but I'm not guaranteeing anything. All I can say is to check it often to make sure it doesn't melt.

Now that the frustration is wearing off, I can go one of 2 routes tomorrow. I have heard to put it directly onto the rack at 200 degrees for roughly 10 minutes and that it would be just right, no melting issues. I thought that was risky, but after the rag we used was in the oven for a total of 22 minutes, it was still mostly cool, temperature wise.

And the silicone I could tell was soooo close to budging so most likely placing it directly onto the rack would do the trick, and in reality, about 1% of the headlight is actually making contact with the rack and its pretty thick pieces as well.


What would actually make contact w/ rack
Attachment 61998

OR..........

I could put the light back on my tray & damp cloth at 240-250 for 8-10 minutes and hope that does the trick.

Work station
Attachment 61999

Attachment 62000

What I learned DIY'ing with this mod is that it's better to be safe than sorry. I'd put it on the tray with the damp rag and maybe put the temp at 210-215 first. I wouldn't leave it in there for the whole 10 mins without at least taking it out and checking for melted spots like 2 or 3 times.

Take some extra time to figure out the best safe temp and time first then the next one will be a lot easier. We went through 3-4 full sets of headlights doing it the same way before we melted 2 of them.

The part that makes contact with the rack is small, but it's also where the headlight gets bolted onto the car. Definitely don't want to risk ruining that.

Gonna get started again tomorrow hopefully. Thanks for all the help guys

Yeah what blades said. Don't up the temp. Just work slowly and carefully. Don't up the temp and definitely don't put them directly on the rack.

MKG was the only set of headlights that escaped unscathed. Yours, mine, and the guy with the 350z got melted. D broke the clip that holds his HID bulb in on the driver's side.

I'd say raise the temp only if everything else doesn't work, but do it slowly and carefully.

My cousin's 350 headlights didn't get melted so I guess we're 2/4. D was just the unlucky 1st trial :icon17:

Why not just buy a heat gun... I'm a complete noob at this stuff and it was incredibly easy with a heat gun.

They're like $15 too. Requires a bit more patience but if I had to do it over again, this is probably what I'd do.

Success!!
Attachment 62052

We got it the second go around, up'd the temperature to 250 degrees for an
Initial 10 minutes, no dice. So we went in for another 3 minutes (at 250 still) no issues melting, whatsoever, and we finally got it apart after 3 minutes of pulling and wiggling a flathead around to help pry. But I still used a baking tray and instead of just getting a little water on it, we soaked it in cold water, and just wrang it out really good.....

Bullet proof idea. It was also folded in half so double the heat blocking power.
Attachment 62053

After it was all said and done, the cloth on the tray still felt cool to the touch, nothing to worry about melting at 250 degrees if you go lens up.

We had one as backup if the oven didnt work. It's almost more stressful though. We did try and use it for a while, but your barely getting anywhere, and as you go it's all messy so IMO, just get it all heated to the proper temps, and get it apart as quickly as possible because that stuff (silicone) cools fast and it's really stringy and gets all over.Attachment 62054

I'm going to video the next one, start to finish, stripping the light, to getting it apart etc. and post it up here. I'm going to do one at a time and probably won't get them done for a few days. Don't have much time off

it aint fun to do at all xD I took almost 2 days to finish it up xD

it's not silicone because silicone melts north of 400 depending on what stuff it is. it's butylene rubber sealant i posted the nissan p/n in this thread a ways back if you reseal with silicone you will never get them back apart.

Thanks for clarifying, I haven't really know what to call it except goop lol