DIY Tinting Lens

I've gotten many PM's and emails over the years asking me how I "tinted" my tail lights and various plastic lens. This is a detailed write up on how I did it. These are stock 86' NA units that I paintedb ut the process is all the same regardless of the Make or Model. The paint used for "red tinting" is Tamiya Translucent Red model paint. Its specific for painting tail lights on model cars and can be found at hobbie stores. For "smoked" I used VHT Nite Shades which can found at most automotive stores.
There is no change in the light output at night with the red tint, they actually appear to be brighter. But with the smoked tint the light output is deminished the darker the shade.




Basic Rules:

1. Clean. Everything must be clean. The assembly you are going to paint must have a clean grease free surface. The area in which you are going to be doing the painting must be a warm clean, dust free, well lit, well ventilated area.
2. Patientence. Slow and steady. Be deligant and methotical in your process. Any short cut here or time saved there can and will lead you to more time spent in the end fixing your impatient mistakes. Allow ample time inbetween coats to allow the paint to dry.
3. Thin even coats. Better to go thin than thick. To many times have I seen hurried work where thick layers were applied and alot of un-necessary "touch-ups" needed to be performed after wards. Thin coats allow for more precise control of the "shade" you are trying to achieve. Thin coats also dries qicker between coats and have a less tendancy for "runs" and "orange peel" Runs is when the paint is applied so thick that it pools together and forms a drip that runs. Orange peel is exactly as it describes the paint will look orange peel in texture with many small dimples.
4. Consistantcy is the key. Keep the spray nozzel at least 10" from the surface area you are painting to prevent " runs" from happening. Keep your movement fluid, dont stop in the middle of a pass, dont slow down or speed up either, Try and keep the same distance and pace with every pass, almost robot like in motion. When you start your spary start it "off" the unit you are painting and end it "off" the unit as well. Another way is to start further away from the unit move in quickly and then across evenly lifting away when you approach the end of your pass. These two processes also prevent runs and dark spots. A simple trick I learned regarding the paint is to submerse the can in a pan of warm water. This process "thins" the paint eliminating clotting and heavy spray patterns.


Step 1:

What I did first was removed all the raised lettering with a straight edge razor blade. Keep the blade 90* to the surface area and scratch the raised lettering off, this will take some time and some elbow grease. Scratching it off is better than cutting it off because it removes only the raised lettering without cutting into the rest of the lens. Reason for removing the raised lettering is so that when you are painting the lens the paint doesnt "pool" around the lettering giving them a darker appearance around them.




Step 2:

Next I wet sanded the whole unit with 1000 grit sand paper and soapy water, then I switched to 2000 grit. I choose a sandpaper specific for wetsanding. I cleaned them with window cleaner and let them dry throughly. Diluted windshield washer fluid works great as well. When they are dry they should have a hazy almost weather beaten look to them. When you wipe them with a damp cloth the lens should look like they are brand new with a nice sheen to them with no signs of them looking 20 years old. Wet sand to remove any scratches left behind from the removeal of the raised lettering process, it also preps the surface area for good adhesion of the paint.
Wet sanding is important because it removes "fallout' embeded in the plastic that cant be removed from normal washing. A neat trick I learned from a painter to tell if you have "fallout" is take a piece of plastic wraper, like that found on cigarette packs. Place it between your finger and surface you want to check and run your finger and plastic along it. If you have fallout embedded in it - you will feel it. Try this this the next time after you wash your car and you will be suprised at just how much fallout is still embedded in your paint. A clay bar and liquid spray wax works well to remove "fallout".
Be gentle and distribute force evenly. If you need to wet sand again between coats to remove some of the paint, be gentle or else you will get light and dark areas from where you pressed unevenly. This trick also works if you applied the paint too heavily and got "orange peel" or "runs". Also works if you got a hair or dust settlements on the lens as the paint was drying.




Step 3:

Then I masked off the portions of the lens that was already red with masking tape and news paper as awell as the reverse light lens. I then applied thin even coats of the translucent red model paint on the orange or amber sections of the tails first. Apply as many coats until they are as near in color as the rest of the red of the lens. Better to be to light than to dark by comparison because then that section will always appear to dark compared the rest of the lens. If you painted to dark you can wet sand them again to remove some of the paint but only after the paint has cured.

Step 4:

Once you got the amber/orange section painted as close as the red of the rest of the lens its now time to paint the entire lens. You should have already removed the masking tape and news paper shortly after painting the amber sections. You will however need to mask off the black border of the lens assembly if you dont want that portion red. As well as the middle divider or "black strip" that runs length wise across the lens assembly. I didnt care for the middle divider so when I was wet sanding I removed the "black strip" in the process.

What you want to do is paint thin even coats across the entire length of the lens in one pass. What I mean is you will not be able to cover the entire lens with just one pass but when making the pass from one side to the other keep it consistant. Dont stop half way or only to the portion that you painted before - cover the whole lens.

The red paint is subtle and you might not think you are appling much in the process but its deceving. By the time you can tell the difference it has made, you may have applied to much. Better to be safe than sorry. Appy as many coats as you wish until you get the desired "shade" of red. The more coats the darker it will appear. I was after a neutral shade, not to light not to dark. I can remember how amny coats I applied but when I got through half the can of paint I stopped. The can is only 100ml or 85g or 3.3fl.oz

Step 5:

Next comes the clear coat, this is the protective layer that will prevent the paint from staining, fading, running and gives it that nice "wet" look.
Remove all the masking tape from around the borders and "black strip" divider if you decided to keep those black. The clear coating process will bring back the black and give them new life making your entire lens assembly look brand new. The clear coating process is exactly the same as the red painting process. Thin even coats. Here you can apply as many coats as you want. The more coats you put the better the barrier between the paint and the elements. Also the more layers of clear the wetter the appearance.




As long as you followed the basic rules and those steps I outlined you should come out with a really nice set of refurbished lens without spending alot of time or money.

 

Sorry for the horrible picture. We were re-arranging the garage. Hence the dust and bad angle.

I decided to keep the white reverse lights. It adds a little bit of class. lol