[GO.army.1969]

Sorry if this is the wrong place to post.

I want to paint my headlights flat black but I have a Convection oven not a regular oven. Dont want to mess up my headlights I have read all the post on cooking them. Should I cook them less than 20 min or lower than 300 because I have a Convection oven??????

Thanks for any help you can give me.

 

[l3chner]

I just painted mine last weekend. i dont have a convection oven, but i do know that the only difference is that they cook food more evenly because the heat is circulated by a fan. I had my oven on 200 degrees, and i put them in for right around 15 mins. if you pull apart the lens fast enough you really only need to stick each headlight in one time. also, the "how-to" in this forum leaves out a step in putting the lens back on. its soo much easier to put your lens back on if you soften up the glue again in the oven. hope this helps!

 

[GO.army.1969]

So did you do that to remove the old glue?

 

[l3chner]

you dont actually remove the old adhesive, if you pull out your headlight and look at it, youll see that the glue is very hard, by sticking it in the oven, you soften it so that you can wedge the lens off of the headlight. you could try to completely remove the silicone adhesive, but i feel like that would be next to impossible. once you get the lens off of the headlight and the adhesive cools, it will get very hard again. this is why its useful to use the oven once again to put the lens back on.

 

[l3chner]

before...

[/IMG]

 

[l3chner]

after...

[/IMG]

 

[GO.army.1969]

Looks good.... So how long did you let it dry after putting back together before the install.

 

[l3chner]

heres a video on how to take off your lens... http://youtu.be/HI4ErrG3DO4
and heres one on putting it back on... http://youtu.be/KFWdVStR1Vs

 

[l3chner]

Looks good.... So how long did you let it dry after putting back together before the install.

you just have to let it dry at least 8 hours or overnight works. go into a home depot or lowes and buy an RTV Silicone Adhesive. Its what they use to glue on a winsheild and also to seal cracks on boats and things like that. very sticky stuff. if you get it on your hands youll have to use something like lighter fluid to get it off. i know from experience lol soap and water will not work. did you look at the Official "how-to" in the archive yet? ill post the link for you.

 

[l3chner]

http://www.focusfanatics.com/forum/showthread.php?t=59986

i know you have a different model focus than mine, but aside from removing the headlights from your car, everything else will be the same. and you probably already know this too, but dont forget to remove bulbs. if you cant remove a little wiring harness it should be okay since its only 200 degrees. i left my wiring harness in and it was okay.

 

[whynotthinkwhynot]

Moved to Second Generation Ford Focus Discussions

3 words of advice:

1) Have pot holders handy, and use a pan.
2) Lower temps are ok, it just takes longer, but less damage to the plastic. All auto plastics should be able to handle 200F.
3) Remove all the old adhesive. The proper adhesive auto glass sealant- if you can find it. I used Mortite which is rope caulk available at hardware stores for about $6 for more than you'll need. It's worked for 2 years for me. Auto glass sealant cost me $20 for a tube the last time I bought some to install windows. You might get it to seal up with the old sealant, and you might not. If it doesn't seal up, then you'll be replacing halogen lamps frequently.

 

[GO.army.1969]

Thanks for all the help going to start doing it here in about 2 hours when the stores open

 

[l3chner]

Thanks for all the help going to start doing it here in about 2 hours when the stores open

No problem. Just be sure to give yourself enough time to get it all completed. 2 days is ideal!

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