You might want to try getting a mothers powerball or powerball mini at wal-mart for $20. I used that and a power drill at slow speed with plastx to buff out my headlights.

 

Damn looks like something I need to pick up.

 

There's no coating on the headlight. The UV protection is in the plastic.

 

To the OP:
Ive done this numerous times and has worked perfectly....

First take some painters tape and tape around your headlights to protect the paint of your car from being sanded. Next if your headlights are really pitted i would suggest starting w/ 1000 grit (keep a bucket w/ soap and water near you) and wet sand it out for about 10 minutes and wipe it clean and *MAKE SURE THE ENTIRE SURFACE is "evenly dull" as best as you can by eyeballing it, then repeat w/ 1500, 2000...

Next step is to use a rubbing compound for about 10 minutes followed up with a polishing compound for about 10 minutes... After that clean up the headlights really good and make sure to get all the compound off and then throw some good ol' Plastic X on those bad boys and prepared to be amazed... Every car wash rub some plastic x on the headlights or at least once a week and you'll be happy for quite some time..!!

Follow those steps and your headlights will come out looking pretty clean if done properly, just take your time and don't rush through the process...

 

I did mine the same way but ll the super fine scratches would not come out. Had someone with an orbital buff it with some compound for a little while and then it cleared right up. I don't know if the fine scratches can be buffed out by hand or not.

 

The fine scratches can be buffed out by hand...but it takes a long time.

PlastiX needs a bit of heat to do it's thing (read the label, it even tells you that ) properly. Hand buffing will do it - but not anywhere near as quickly as with an orbital. One pass isn't going to be enough either. You'll want an orbital and to make a number of passes (till it's as clear as you want it).

And I would recommend pulling the headlights from the car (not that hard - pull the bumper, pull the headlights...30 mins tops).

 

Meguires PlasticX is what I used worked good for 3 months then start to dull again,

 

Negative. Every plastic lense headlight comes with some type of coating that protects the plastic from UV damage and oxidation. That's why on older lenses that are not cared for you will see the coating flaking off, usually at the top of the headlight and then oxidation turns the plastic yellow and cloudy.

The best defense against this is to keep the lenses waxed monthly with a high quality synthetic wax or better yet cover them with Lamin-X headlight vinyl clear film and keep them waxed.

I have wet sanded and polished about 20 sets of headlight lenses and I use a dremel with polishing wheels, rubbing compound and polishing compound after finishing with 3000 grit wet sand paper and a LOT of hand work. they come out almost as clear as new once you polish them and spray with headlight clear coat or cover with the Lamin-X film.

 

Please correct me if im wrong but isnt "clearing them w/ spray paint" not really a good idea because they'll began to discolor and fade...?

 

when i bought my s2k the headlights needed lots of work and this is pretty much what i did exactly. took a lot of hard work doing it by hand but they came out very nicely.