Plexiglass Windscreens - polishing

Ventucky Red

Ventucky Red

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Seen a few videos one using Crest Toothpaste... has anyone here undertaking this project and if so a few pointers?

Thanks
 
Crest and other toothpaste are somewhat abrasive. I’d think when you were pointed into the sun your windshield would be an opaque haze of scratches.

Search and you’ll find a lot of posts on how to clean windshields. Lots of different ideas, but in general use cotton cloths, dawn and water, finish with lemon pledge to clean and wax to fill in micro scratches and protect the plastic.

Lots of various opinions even on that - others will be posting those soon.

FWIW, I use Prist because it’s just what I’m used to.
 
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Yes I have done it twice now on windscreens and on the side windows. Get the kit "Scratch Off" It has 4 grades of polish and pads. You supply a drill. Worked well and hard to screw up.
 
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If you are indeed *polishing* a windshield (not just cleaning it), the Novus products are a great way to go. They have a cleaner, a mildly aggressive polishing compound, and a more aggressive polishing compound. I use the mild stuff once every few years on my airplanes to remove those light scratches that occur over time and use the more aggressive compound when/if there is a deeper scratch, usually caused by yours truly doing something careless. I use the cleaner almost every time I fly. The Novus products are available at your local Harley dealer, on Amazon, and through several other outlets. The full 3 product setup shouldn't cost more than $20 or $25...
 
My instructor/mentor used pledge on his 172 and H500. Been using it for quite a while with no issues. No paper towels. Cloth only. We get Plexus at work when we can.
 
rhkennerly said:
Where are people finding Plexus? I can’t find it in stock anywhere.
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Plexus had a supply chain issue and was out of stock everywhere. It's slowly starting to come back, but hard to find unless a full case or a ridiculous price.
 
@Ventucky Red - What is the problem you are trying to solve? Novus is good if you have scratches or hazing, the others are related to just cleaning a dirty windscreen. If have more than cleaning needed, test a small, out of the way area first. Look at that test area in full sun. Doing a bad job can make swirls and distortion that are horrible. Toothpaste is just an easily available mild abrasive. Good if you are dealing with a very small area, but not as good as a Novus type product with very specific abrasive qualities.
 
When got scratches in the windshield and side windows during construction, I used wet/dry sandpaper and worked up to 6,000 grit. Then finished it off with Meguiar's plastx.
 
Ventucky Red said:
Seen a few videos one using Crest Toothpaste... has anyone here undertaking this project and if so a few pointers?

Thanks
Click to expand...
DON'T use anything on your acrylic other than acrylic cleaner/Polish. Also don't use Window cleaner without ammonia thinking it is ok.
 
Hang 4 said:
@Ventucky Red - What is the problem you are trying to solve? Novus is good if you have scratches or hazing, the others are related to just cleaning a dirty windscreen. If have more than cleaning needed, test a small, out of the way area first. Look at that test area in full sun. Doing a bad job can make swirls and distortion that are horrible. Toothpaste is just an easily available mild abrasive. Good if you are dealing with a very small area, but not as good as a Novus type product with very specific abrasive qualities.
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Bunch of tiny scratches... they are more annoying than anything else.. the PO had used cheap tarps to cover the plane so I am guessing they're may have been some abrasion caused by them... I am heading out there tomorrow an will take a pic to show.

Thanks
 
My mechanic in Wichita recommend a guy down at the main airport that did windscreen polishing. I really wish I would have had him do it before I moved back to Tennessee. I'm not sure I trust myself enough to try it DIY.
Maybe after my son gets his private license we can take a long, time building cross country out there to have it done. 5-6 hours each way. I've done that flight more times than I care to remember, but it was always better than driving. :)
 
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You have to be very careful when polishing (which removes material) to avoid waves in the final surface.

My CAP-10 seems to have been polished on the sides of the windshield. Very obvious waves when the sun is at the right angle.

Due to this and some crazing, it is getting a new windshield.
 
It is not hard to do even for a beginner with the right tools and materials. I didn't know what I was doing and it came out great. Absolutely no waves and I don't think I removed much material at all?
Scratch Off 4 grades of polish. Took me about 2 hours with rest in between polish's.

I did mine after having a small piece of scotch bright stuck in a fiber cloth that I used to get the bugs off. It scratched up the windshield badly, I was sick. My buddy looked real close afterwards and couldn't see anything. He said it looked new to him and he is real picky about his windshield.

https://www.aircraftspruce.com/catalog/cspages/scratchoff_1.php?clickkey=11631766
2306cf9f-a720-4225-bb60-632aab5270c2.jpg
 
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