Spider webs on windshield--can I sand them out?

I've seen minor scuffing being polished out of windshields, headlights, etc. Mine seems uglier than that.



I started with 1000 grit sand paper and wet sanded. Eventually went to 3000 grit and then polished. All it ended up doing was making my windshield look cleaner, but still had those spider web marks.

Would being more aggressive with the wet sanding (starting with 100 grit?) do any good? Or should I just replace the windshield? What are your experiences on this?

Thanks!

if its "crazing" due to age or chemical attack then no.... it is too deep. your description of "spiderwebs" sounds like crazing to me... very common on older aircraft plastic.

It's hard to photograph, but it sounds like "crazing". Alright, I'll put the $3 in sandpaper costs toward a new windshield.

Hi all ! I would try one of those kits for polishing bad headlight lenses . We used the 3M kit on our cars and they came out awesome .

I tried it. Like I said, it looked cleaner, but it's still opaque.

Careful applications of heat can fix minor scratches and crazing in polycarbonate plastic.

http://maic.jmu.edu/journal/10.2/r&d/heafitz/heafitz.htm

Where the hell did you find this?

Haven't tried it myself but I've heard that the mild abrasive in toothpaste can help revive old windscreens.

go with #3

Some combination of methods above have now caused my windshield to be unusable.

This is now moot.

acrylic can be polished back to clear.... polycarbonate on the other hand will never come all the way back.

there is a kit made by Micromesh to repair aircraft windshields that works good, but all it really is is a set of cloth sandpapers from about 800 to 8000 grit.

I have had good results doing what you did. 400 or 600 to remove scratches, then 1000, 1500 and maybe 2000. follow that with rubbing compound. I like Presta. they make 1000, 1500, 3000... etc. 1500 removes scratches left by 1500 sand paper. I use the 1000 then the 3000. finish with Plexus or Pledge

all this stuff can be had from a real autobody paint store

I would try a small spot to see if you can get all the spiderwebs out. if it works then do a bigger area


edit: oooop... looks like I'm too late. ah well I'll leave the post anyway because the stuff listed works

So long as you do not look through it, one solution to pretty it up is to simply paint it. I did this on my 1100GS and it looked pretty good.

For actual scratches and gouges, sanding can work wonders:

http://www.advrider.com/forums/showthread.php?t=853435

From this:



To this:



In about 20 minutes.

Jim

Eh, oh well. Mine already caught on fire.

pics or it didn't happen!

It didn't flame up, but it was burned enough to say "f it"!