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Topic: lexan and other clear composites (Read 1322 times) previous topic - next topic

lexan and other clear composites

ok well i've eliminated the yellowed py lenses on my car.  thats right, eliminated.  i've been missing the lens on the passenger side for quite a while now WITH the bulb exposed.  well it took everything nature threw at it untill we got a storm that had hail, and untill i ran into a hail storm the bulb worked perfectly.  so basically i was running with a spotlight on the right side (good for tracking that white line with bright on coming traffic.)  well i got sick and tired of having a lens and not having one.  so i decided hell if the other bulb exposed worked fine for 4 months even with road work layin down new asphault (and all the  that comes off other people's tires) then why wouldnt they both work.  so i got home from takin my mom to the hospital and used a knife to pop the other lens off my headlight.  mind you, i've tried pollishing them with LOTS of elbow grease on many occassions.  what i figured out the first time was the most of the yellowing was on the INSIDE of the lens.  so, just for shiznits and giggles when i took the lens off i waxed the inside and what do you know, looks brand new.  now if i had 2 lens' i'd use some glue and put them both back on.  thats not an option so im brain storming.

what i want to do is mount lexan or plexi infront of the headlights thats raised to meet the corner lenses (im most likely ganna peel those off, clean them up good and if i dont break the housings getting the lens off i'll put them back on.)  the corner lens hovers about an inch or 5/8th's of an inch out from the housing.  my plan is to paint the housings chrome with a black accents, with lexan or plexi sorta smoked over the housings.  im missing the inner lights (housings and all) so i think i might use some metal screen or "grill" that replaces the stock sport grill and have it go over the iner lights to complete the look.  i''d take the bird off the grill mind you and mount it on the screen grill.

here's my problem, i've checked the home depots and etc but they dont to my knowledge of not going to the store my self that they dont sell lexan sheets.  so i was wondering if anyone knows where to get some lexan or plexi-glass. im not really looking for stock thats REALLY thick.  thick enough to protect the bulbs basically which wouldnt be very thick.  i plan on using a mounting system that allows me to replace the shields as need be.  i think it'll add a custom flair tied in with the grill i outlined above.  it'd be like imo having a 2 eyed bird.  (play on words with the 4-eyed birds).  im thinking of making this perminant so i'll do what i have to do to make it look right.

so again, anyone know where to buy lexan or plexi by the sheet?

EDIT: btw, i got the trim pieces covering the holes for the turning lamps.  would look complete if i had the trim behind the front wheel on the fender on the drivers side. (im ganna shave the trim except the rear trim behind the rear wheels when i get it ready for paint.)

lexan and other clear composites

Reply #1 –
Homie Depot has plastic sheets about 2' x 2' in the electrical deprt. At least I think that's where I saw them. They're with the stuff like they put in flourescent light fixtures for diffusion, I don't recall if they had clear or if it was lexan... the small square grid stuff was there. There are also plastic/maybe lexan sheets back in lumber. They're 4' x 8' and ain't cheap, maybe there were smaller pieces I didn't see or they'll cut and sell a smaller piece?

lexan and other clear composites

Reply #2 –
my local hardware store in  a nearby town "Martin and Jones" in ronceverte wva sells 4x8 sheets.

could call them and get the name of the vendor.

lexan and other clear composites

Reply #3 –
could you call and see what they're pricing a 4x8 sheet of it?  and the thickness?  im worried of getting lexan thats a tad bit too thin.  4ftX8ft would have me set for a long while with replacements.  i'd say go ahead and get the vendor's name, my dad might unknowingly be working on forklifts at a distribution warehouse.  he usually gets to know the people working there and get a deal cut.. like the pies chik-fil-a sells piece by piece?  he gets the whole pie for a dollar b/c the break rooms are full of them. (the company he works for leases forklifts, pallet jacks, etc, and he does the warranty work)


edit: just talked to my dad and he said when he was building asphault circle track cars he would by a 4x8 sheet for windshields etc and he said from the distribution place he got them from it was 125+ tax.  for that much i may as well buy new headlights off ebay....  what im ganna do is try and find either a shop that builds tarmac cars or see if i can go to home depot etc and get either s or part of a sheet cut etc.  out of curiosity, i need some mesh wire for the grill, and the mesh that comes to mind is like what you'd use for a fence and to me it has the possibillity to look out of place... like i put fence mesh on my car >cringe<.  is there any mesh out there that would look good.  its ganna be painted black but i dont want someone 2 feet from it knoticing its fence mesh >cringe again<

lexan and other clear composites

Reply #4 –
My local home depot sells plexi-glass in different sizes and thickness. They are located by the doors and windows. I look at them all the time cause I am thinking aboout making some sort of display case for my collectables.

lexan and other clear composites

Reply #5 –
I mad a few for my dodel cars with plexi and superglue. Nothing spuer speical but it works

lexan and other clear composites

Reply #6 –
Quote from: 83Heritage;152474
My local home depot sells plexi-glass in different sizes and thickness. They are located by the doors and windows. I look at them all the time cause I am thinking aboout making some sort of display case for my collectables.


thats exactly what gave me the idea.  i have an earnhardt sr "pit scene" (its as if he was pulling into the pits, early 90's, all the figures look like him and the driver has full face helmet :hick:) that came in a display case.. and there i was staring at it wondering what to use..

i know this seems cheap, i mean why work so hard for something so cheap.. at least i question it.. why not just save wait and have it right.  or modify what you have (are left with.)  inner lights are a premium, and a lot i've seen have spider webs in yellowed plastic.  there's a golf ball size hole back there, why not drimmel it out even more and make it functional.  as for the headlights and corners. the whole purpose of making shields is not only money but to add the aerodynamics back into the car.  having the non lensed lights reminds me of having a 4 eyed bird, and i like how they're more recessed and accented, where the 87s were bubbles in comparison.  looks  good when all 6 lights are there.. but to me i ask, why not make it even more menacing?  :evilgrin: and then comes the part that i havnt figured out yet... the corners.

lexan and other clear composites

Reply #7 –
There is one major problem with your idea: you will have lost the diffusion. With totally clear lenses, there will be no method for breaking up the light to properly illuminate the road. As you stated in your first post, you would basically have floodlights on the front of your car.
Also, the bulb has no shield on the inside, so you may blind oncoming drivers.
If you can find a way to make the mirrored sections of the inner housing faceted, then you're on to something. That could be pretty cool, actually.
Take a look at '96-'97 Thunderbird/Cougar headlights to see what I mean.
[SIGPIC][/SIGPIC]

lexan and other clear composites

Reply #8 –
Somebody sell this kid a useable, cheap set of lights quickly.....
Long live the 4-eyes!  - '83 Tbird Turbo - '85 Marquis LTS - '86 LTD Wagon

lexan and other clear composites

Reply #9 –
Just get some headlight covers and put them on.:hick:
 

lexan and other clear composites

Reply #10 –
the majority of headlight covers i've seen used the structure where the lens is glued to the housing, so most likely they wouldnt stay on for long.  but belive me i thought about covers.  cc you got me there... the difusion..  what came to mind was dooda's comments on the diffusion plastic that i could possibly put on the backs of the lexan lenses.  chuck, i dont have the money for cheap ones.. im leaching the money as i go along.  im not even financially ready to start this project.  being that bulbs are 20 bucks, i dont mind runnin them exposed b/c i know it works.  besides chuck, im tryin to make an old school look.  im not ganna glue and throw this all together.  i plan on taking the header pbuttstuff off and spending a weeks worth of work on this project.  belive me when you see it complete it should look good.  i even plan on using the bottom brackets and a heat gun to sort of bend the bottoms of the lexan to fit.  and im actually looking for an alternative to the corners.  if the lexan i get forms with a heat gun without fn up the clearity i might do the corners, paint them a dark amber to fit the blacked out light buckets (you'll have to see the finished product.  im basically tired of "put OEM parts on there b/c thats what looks good" yada yada yada!  im going for a complete custom look... i mean if i do this the way im planning, who would have thier lights and grill like mine?  besides, i'd like to get away from the plastick oem sport grill and go mesh...  just wait lol thats all i can say.