fixing/restoring a plastic lenses

[56 nomad]

if this has been covered already my apologies...
i know we all have a few of these , mine were faded and i did not want to buy new ones so i decided to repair/repaint mine.
i wont go into all the sanding and masking since i know you all have a sense as to what to do...using 600 sand paper i did roughen up the edges of the black trim for better paint adhesion



i also used a plastic polish prior to painting in order to polish the front of the lens. i did this in order to minimize the chance of getting polish onto the newly painted surfaces etc.
after polishing wash everything with warm soapy water and dry throughly.



masking with blue tape


mask off the orange and clear areas and spray paint the trim edge black using high gloss krylon or equivalent (or chrome depending on you application), do this on the backside of the lens then mask a ready the lense for the orange spray,,use several light coats.



i used krylon high gloss paint for this.
mask the black off and apply a number of thin coats of the color..it will look yellow at first , but a few more coats and the orange will appear.

This is what i used...a few more hints . do not spray the lens when the outside temp is high as the paint will not "gloss" up as well and let the black dry very well before applying the orange paint. i hope this was helpful.
regards, ben

[NY65912]

Nice work! I've done a few myself, amazing what can be done if you just try.

[56 nomad]

Originally Posted by NY65912

Nice work! I've done a few myself, amazing what can be done if you just try.

yeah just a little elbow grease and 6.00. if it did not work out i could spend 175.00 for a set!
the paint is the hardest to find as they have changed the formula for the more strict voc laws in ca. it is made for plastic and so far has not cracked or faded.
ben

[WRGREENER]

can you clarify? you used krylon high gloss...but in the picture there is a can of TAMIA are they the same?

[56 nomad]

Originally Posted by WRGREENER

can you clarify? you used krylon high gloss...but in the picture there is a can of TAMIA are they the same?

sorry about that, i used the krylon for the black trim on the edges and the Tamiya "clear" or "transparent" for the orange on the lens. i have also had good luck painting the chrome edges on the lens with chrome paint (backside , facing the gasket)...just be sure to clean and polish the older finish material off and polish it so it is not dull or scratched, wash well and paint.
if there are a lot of scratches on the plastic the chrome paint will not be as shinny...remember "all" of the paint is applied to the back of the lens. hope it answers your question.
tamiya also has yellow as well as red "clear" paint.
regards, ben