I used all the steps in this video 5 years ago to do a few friends and my own tails. They all came out absolutely amazing. I got lead back to this video today because i was looking for a refresher since I'm finally going to refinish mine. Following this awesome video will get you good results, my tails lasted 5 years in AZ sun and even then they still look pretty good just slightly faded. RUclips is full of a lot of dumb*ss what not to do videos, this is not one of them. Thank you Sir for the time you spent making this for all of us.
There was this guy I met, that painted custom cars, his paint jobs looked like he put 20 layers of clear, they were deep looking and wet shinny looking, I asked him how he made his paint jobs look so amazing, he said the secret is to wet sand the clear coat between every coat he put down, he said that is how you get that very deep and very smooth wet looking paint jobs. Just thought I would pass that on to your viewers 🤠👍
I watched this video 6 years ago on my first car, a 2000 mustang. The tint came out perfect and even 5 years after driving it, it still looked brand new and perfect. I sold that car almost 2 years ago and now i searched for this video again for my new car. I think it's really cool that all these years later and yours is still the best video on this subject. I saw @Jon S had commented his story which was almost exactly like mine lol small world. Anyways, this video is awesome. Thanks for the help all these years, stay safe
Great video! Good end results, just so you guys know, it's best to let your wet dry sand paper sit in the water bucket for a few hours before use, the paper is designed to hold water. This is why the wet/dry backer feels different than dry paper, it's a sponge like material.
I have done this on all of the cars I have owned and I have to say like everything else you get better with repetition. Started on the Park Avenue then the Taurus then the jeep. Then the Charger and now the Chrysler 200. I decided to step it up and challenge myself on the last one. I only did the borders. I was worried that it wouldn't "fade" , but I have to say it looks freaking sweet. The solid black looks good but this looks like it came out of the factory. Still very "classy". Anyways. Ty for the video man.
I did the VHT on my 2005 Yukon last night, it came out cool, but it was 100% matte, I would have been happy with the amount of shine you had before you cleared these... so I will be def trying the clear coat
+Jim Holley Thank you for the support. I am always up for correction, as I am not perfect when I create these videos and also sometimes I forget things.
What I learned from this method. 1. Expect the. Nite shades to lighten up after sanding. So maybe go one extra layer and sand gently. 2. Donny attempt to scuff up the raw light like other videos. It just isn't necessary and I had some poor outcomes. 3. Be careful around edges as you can easily sand off the edges. 4. Consider skipping 1000 grit anywhere.
You don't need soap as u can see he didn't use it and still came out nice, tho u can use soap. If I don't use soap I just soak the sandpaper and use less pressure but u can tell if it's catching unevenly
It did but they had been sanded before the nightshades was put on so it would have been hazy either way. I sanded with 2000 grit sandpaper all in one direction then i buffed with Meguiar's Plast-X and it looked great. If you don't have an orbital buffer you'll have to do some work with the Plast-X to get it to get really shiny but it works great.
I was half way done tinting my tail lights, following this "How-To"... that's when i seen them shoes and had to throw my tail lights away... I can't trust someone that wears THOSE! lol!!
"U wsh" plate. Unless it was another car with "uwsh". But I'm pretty sure it was on a stand or something. It's been a while. And in Milford-Cinci area.
Actually it WAS goof off. I thought it was goo gone but just checked and goof off was the magic stuff. I got the big bottle of it and poured it on near the top and let it run down. if you let it sit for 30 seconds or so it comes off pretty easy. Might need a plastic scraper to help you out.
@UWISHPROD you are right on the monet, a shop just quoted me $250 for my 2019 gx460 tail lights...wet sand, vht(2 coats), wet sand, 2 coats clear coat? Is that what I should be asking for??
yea, i used 2000 and dulled it out, no sign of dimples. Im in the process of sanding again with 1000 grit, will add one light coat of NS then reapply clear coat, prob about 5 coats. I'll let sit for several hours and sand with 2000 again. I was tentative about sanding the clear coat last time, im gonna give it a good through sanding this time and see if that makes a diff. Thx for thr repy and if you have any thoughts im open to hearing them D
I just bought a brand new 2022 Indian motorcycle. Due to Canadian laws the Plexi windshield came clear as where the states come tinted. I'm very skeptical on trying this to a $20,000 machine as tint film won't stick or last on Plexi. But watching this process makes me really want to try it. I've seen videos of people spraying the INSIDE of there cars windows, looks good from the outside but blotchy on the inside looking out where they sprayed. Would you recommend if I tried this to spray it on the outside of my windshield, or inside where I look thru? I also understood to slightly rough up the Plexi first to give the VHT Something to adhere too.... Any thoughts?
Looks awesome I've been wanting to get mine glossy looking, they have the blotchy looking spots as you described so be much nicer if I did what you just did! I wondered if that same procedure would work on item's I paint matched to my car colour, I did my deck surrounded it looks nice but not shiny smooth and the paint I used was mugged at Napa with clearcoat in it but not shiny at all really! so could I do the same with that use the 2000grit wetsand and then clearcoat, follow up with wetsand the clear then polish and wax! Thanks for any info abs if this will work for my deck surrounding I painted my car is goon to really look sharp, thanks.
I realize that you did your Mustang taillights really dark only the first section that light's up in sequence, now when you did The wetsand, polish etc that section looked amazing better then new! I just want to know if the same thing can be done on my whole taillight once cleared, can i clear it all then wetsand & apply polish & buff finish with wax across The whole light!?
Quick question on my 2001 mustang taillights I have my black spay on and I sanded with 1500 grit sandpaper wet and really smooth then on one taillight I got to much clear coat on and it's to think on places looks stupid please tell me what sandpaper I can use to sand that down and be smooth my other taillight has no clear coat just smooth. And after I do that what's best grit to use 1000 1500 2000 after I clear coat it thanks just need to get this clear coat off to think it gunked up on places probably should spay very lightly next time lol thanks 👍
mine literally has no gloss at all. it looks matte. is there any way I can fix it? I havent done the final sand and added a rubbing compound yet but I highly doubt thats going to make a big difference
I was reading it can give a hazy look to the tail light! I have a 2012 Chrsyler 200. I dont want to be annoying..do you think you can make a video of the removal
question, is the clear coat enamel or lacquer. When i did mine it didnt come out glassy. heres what i did. wet sand lights 2000 grit apply 3 coats of nite shades, 10 min in between waited 40 min applied 5 coats clear coat Dupli Color Acrylic Enamel waited 30+ min,wet sand with 2000 grit dried well used Turtle wax polishing compound, by hand Was dull so tried applying wax to bring out the shine but still dull. Where did i mess uo? please advise Thanks, Dmitri
i have a question. so i used vht night shade on my cars tail lights. GF said one was darker so i added a little more to one " she was wrong" now one is way to dark and i want to bring it back a little any idea of how to do that?
I've seen some videos where the 2k clear coat was applied with no sanding or prepping just let the 3 coats of Nightshade dry and go over it with clear coat... is prepping necessary or not?
I put the vht on my tail lights and about two hours later I put the clear coat on it and it had all kinds of little dots every where , they was too deep to wet sand . Did I not wait long enough or should I get a better quality of clear coat ? Or did I do something dumb ? Any help would be appreciated thank you
Duplicolor can says white 48 hours to cure before polishing did u wait 48 or nah and if these werent random taillighy and ur card taillight would u wait?
I believe what I used was enamel. I used and automotive type from Auto Zone. When you sanded it did it dull the clear coat and did you see any dimples?
I might be able to. No promises since I leave in a month for overseas and the light i used for the video got thrown away. Have you searched online to see what works?
I have clear tails. I will be applying the red nightshades then the smoke. Should I hit the lights with the 1000 grit after applying the red or just do it after the smoke?
could i sand with 2000 grit, clear coat, sand again with 2000 grit and then clear coat again? or would the finish from the final 2000 grit be satisfactory?
How do I remove this? My tint has faded and looks like shit now. I wanna remove it all and do it properly with a vinyl tint. Will the sanded surface cause any issues when applying the vinyl?
![[TF2] The Russian Bear Trap](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/YFNSwz2_rOA/mqdefault.jpg)
I used all the steps in this video 5 years ago to do a few friends and my own tails. They all came out absolutely amazing. I got lead back to this video today because i was looking for a refresher since I'm finally going to refinish mine. Following this awesome video will get you good results, my tails lasted 5 years in AZ sun and even then they still look pretty good just slightly faded. RUclips is full of a lot of dumb*ss what not to do videos, this is not one of them. Thank you Sir for the time you spent making this for all of us.
Thank you for your support and glad it all worked out. Best comment ever.
There was this guy I met, that painted custom cars, his paint jobs looked like he put 20 layers of clear, they were deep looking and wet shinny looking, I asked him how he made his paint jobs look so amazing, he said the secret is to wet sand the clear coat between every coat he put down, he said that is how you get that very deep and very smooth wet looking paint jobs.
Just thought I would pass that on to your viewers 🤠👍
In the process of doing this to my Mazdaspeed right now, except I used VHT red tint. Looks great so far! Excellent advice and very clear instruction.
Awesome car, handles like shit and hood weighs more than car, but still good car. Glad the vid helped
Just Us Mine whips around corners, dunno what you’re talking about! Turned out fantastic btw.
Awesome tutorial! Still helpful 8 years later.
Thank you
I watched this video 6 years ago on my first car, a 2000 mustang. The tint came out perfect and even 5 years after driving it, it still looked brand new and perfect. I sold that car almost 2 years ago and now i searched for this video again for my new car. I think it's really cool that all these years later and yours is still the best video on this subject. I saw @Jon S had commented his story which was almost exactly like mine lol small world. Anyways, this video is awesome. Thanks for the help all these years, stay safe
Thank you!
I have never watched a youtube commercial without hitting skip but your video has been so helpful I just did ! Thanks man
Thank you. Glad the video could help you.
Great video. There's a lot of nonsense when you go searching for how to's online but this answered several questions! Many thanks!
Best video on nightshade I have seen. Thanks for the vid!
mattay finish haha
Wanted to add a little humor for the trolls.
Just Us Sure man. Surre you did.
Thomas Berry surray😂
its french
Finally someone that knows what they're doing polishing Tinted Tail Lights.... Thanks for the video
+Kenneth York Cause I am awesome...and I know what car people want, since I am one myself. Thanks
+Kenneth York what type of foam or stage did you use to polish?
Great video! Good end results, just so you guys know, it's best to let your wet dry sand paper sit in the water bucket for a few hours before use, the paper is designed to hold water. This is why the wet/dry backer feels different than dry paper, it's a sponge like material.
brake fluid to remove it
Been searchin every where for a legit vid on making the VHT tint a very clean gloss finish. Great work man! Can't wait to do mines!
Glad I could help
I have done this on all of the cars I have owned and I have to say like everything else you get better with repetition. Started on the Park Avenue then the Taurus then the jeep. Then the Charger and now the Chrysler 200. I decided to step it up and challenge myself on the last one. I only did the borders. I was worried that it wouldn't "fade" , but I have to say it looks freaking sweet. The solid black looks good but this looks like it came out of the factory. Still very "classy". Anyways. Ty for the video man.
I used both of your tutorials. They Rear taillight cover of my Motorcycle came out perfect. Thanks !
Great step by step instructions...just did mine and they turned out flawlessly!
how long it last ?
Thank you!!! I followed your video step by step and my tails came out amazing!
+Zchezary Negron awesome. Always makes my day that The video helped someone out. Thank you
I did the VHT on my 2005 Yukon last night, it came out cool, but it was 100% matte, I would have been happy with the amount of shine you had before you cleared these... so I will be def trying the clear coat
Thanks for taking the time to go through this, as well, your attitude about constructive criticism is great.
Keep up your work and videos.
+Jim Holley Thank you for the support. I am always up for correction, as I am not perfect when I create these videos and also sometimes I forget things.
+Just Us
For the love of cars, we all stick together.
This video helped me out so much thank you! 👍 I’m sending anyone that ask about my lights this link!
Glad this many years later, this video still helps people. Thanks for the comments
What I learned from this method. 1. Expect the. Nite shades to lighten up after sanding. So maybe go one extra layer and sand gently. 2. Donny attempt to scuff up the raw light like other videos. It just isn't necessary and I had some poor outcomes. 3. Be careful around edges as you can easily sand off the edges. 4. Consider skipping 1000 grit anywhere.
Yup I agree....had to redo the light because it cane out too light...went extra layer....sanding is alot of work tho...has to be super smooth
Man, just did my lights....they turned out amazing...start to finish 1 1/2 hrs! Awesome
its pronounced mat. not matay. the e is silent. nice vid though. very informative.
Give him a break he’s from the South
shouldn't there be a tad bit of soap in that bucket. pretty sure most wet sanding is done with water and a dob of dawn to lubricate more efficiently
You don't need soap as u can see he didn't use it and still came out nice, tho u can use soap. If I don't use soap I just soak the sandpaper and use less pressure but u can tell if it's catching unevenly
Very informative. Exactly the information I was looking for. Thanks for taking the time to make this video.
Thank you.
this was the best video ive seen gonna share on facebook, because you should have way more views. thank you!
It did but they had been sanded before the nightshades was put on so it would have been hazy either way. I sanded with 2000 grit sandpaper all in one direction then i buffed with Meguiar's Plast-X and it looked great. If you don't have an orbital buffer you'll have to do some work with the Plast-X to get it to get really shiny but it works great.
Great instructions man! Did the taillights on my 2011 Flex to duplicate the "Titanium" look
That finish was quite matay. Good thing you did this! 😂😂
Very matay actually haha
It does take a lot of wet sanding and patience, but the end result is well worth it
What are those shoes..!! HAHAHAHA
Hey hey hey now haha
I was half way done tinting my tail lights, following this "How-To"... that's when i seen them shoes and had to throw my tail lights away... I can't trust someone that wears THOSE! lol!!
That’s just rude haha go get your light out of the trash lol
Only cool people wear them man, don't let them bother you brother
See...this guy gets it. We can be foot shoe buddies
Great vids mate just did my widebody fd rx7 tailights they look slick!
Thanks for posting this video I did exactly what you did and it came out great!!!!!
"U wsh" plate. Unless it was another car with "uwsh". But I'm pretty sure it was on a stand or something. It's been a while. And in Milford-Cinci area.
Thanks man. Also thank budlightsk8er he is our master to intros. And of course a master to our Go Fast commercials.
The rustoleum tint is just about the same as VHT. The clear coat will clean it up nice.
My buddy Matt Tay approves of this video
That’s my dogg right der!!
I have a pair of those shoes and they're the BEEEST!
Finally someone who appreciates them.
Can I spray nite shade over clear coat
Good stuff man, detailed and to the point.
Easy an a very simple way to tint your lights!!
Actually it WAS goof off. I thought it was goo gone but just checked and goof off was the magic stuff. I got the big bottle of it and poured it on near the top and let it run down. if you let it sit for 30 seconds or so it comes off pretty easy. Might need a plastic scraper to help you out.
Amazing and informative video! How much should this cost say on a SUV at a shop? For the rear tail lights
I’m sure a shop would price gouge this service. It’s simple but prob 200-300.
@UWISHPROD you are right on the monet, a shop just quoted me $250 for my 2019 gx460 tail lights...wet sand, vht(2 coats), wet sand, 2 coats clear coat? Is that what I should be asking for??
Yeah that sound about right. 250 isn’t to bad, probably a couple hours of work and don’t by professionals.
I love wearing my Vibrams too..
Holy shit. I have seen you around before. I recognize the plate behind you.
Which plate did you see and where did you see me
thanks dude I would've taped off the other sections but great help!!
yea, i used 2000 and dulled it out, no sign of dimples.
Im in the process of sanding again with 1000 grit, will add one light coat of NS then reapply clear coat, prob about 5 coats. I'll let sit for several hours and sand with 2000 again. I was tentative about sanding the clear coat last time, im gonna give it a good through sanding this time and see if that makes a diff.
Thx for thr repy and if you have any thoughts im open to hearing them
D
beautiful finish. why did you call it mattay though? is that different than matte? or did you just pronounce the "e" at the end of matte?
Think I had a blonde moment.....or I did it on purpose to upset people lol.
Thanks for taking the time to make the video!
+dustinzmkr thank you for watching!
I just bought a brand new 2022 Indian motorcycle. Due to Canadian laws the Plexi windshield came clear as where the states come tinted. I'm very skeptical on trying this to a $20,000 machine as tint film won't stick or last on Plexi. But watching this process makes me really want to try it. I've seen videos of people spraying the INSIDE of there cars windows, looks good from the outside but blotchy on the inside looking out where they sprayed. Would you recommend if I tried this to spray it on the outside of my windshield, or inside where I look thru? I also understood to slightly rough up the Plexi first to give the VHT Something to adhere too.... Any thoughts?
Looks awesome I've been wanting to get mine glossy looking, they have the blotchy looking spots as you described so be much nicer if I did what you just did!
I wondered if that same procedure would work on item's I paint matched to my car colour, I did my deck surrounded it looks nice but not shiny smooth and the paint I used was mugged at Napa with clearcoat in it but not shiny at all really! so could I do the same with that use the 2000grit wetsand and then clearcoat, follow up with wetsand the clear then polish and wax!
Thanks for any info abs if this will work for my deck surrounding I painted my car is goon to really look sharp, thanks.
Very nice, can't wait to try this out!
how much curing time do you recommend for the nite-shades before clear coating?
very nice video, i will do the lights on my vet. thanks !
I realize that you did your Mustang taillights really dark only the first section that light's up in sequence, now when you did The wetsand, polish etc that section looked amazing better then new! I just want to know if the same thing can be done on my whole taillight once cleared, can i clear it all then wetsand & apply polish & buff finish with wax across The whole light!?
Your description below doesn't show any of the products
you sir just saved me a ton of money thanks!
YOU ARE THE MAN!! I'm goina attempt this today
Quick question on my 2001 mustang taillights I have my black spay on and I sanded with 1500 grit sandpaper wet and really smooth then on one taillight I got to much clear coat on and it's to think on places looks stupid please tell me what sandpaper I can use to sand that down and be smooth my other taillight has no clear coat just smooth. And after I do that what's best grit to use 1000 1500 2000 after I clear coat it thanks just need to get this clear coat off to think it gunked up on places probably should spay very lightly next time lol thanks 👍
a day after polishing, the light started building up a white haze. Any idea of what's going on??
Thanks for the video but i think using tint film will be faster and cheaper although i understand it can be tricky
very educational!
I need to match my mazdaspeed miata oem dark headlights with the tails ;) That might look nice
mine literally has no gloss at all. it looks matte. is there any way I can fix it? I havent done the final sand and added a rubbing compound yet but I highly doubt thats going to make a big difference
Great video, thanks for posting.
Nice! Where’s the description of materials you said you would post?
Great question! This was 8 years ago. I forgot :(
Just us,I have had my vht on for a month done by a shop but don't think they used clear on it.can I spray clear on it after a month?thank brother!!
I was reading it can give a hazy look to the tail light! I have a 2012 Chrsyler 200.
I dont want to be annoying..do you think you can make a video of the removal
question, is the clear coat enamel or lacquer. When i did mine it didnt come out glassy. heres what i did.
wet sand lights 2000 grit
apply 3 coats of nite shades, 10 min in between
waited 40 min applied 5 coats clear coat Dupli Color Acrylic Enamel
waited 30+ min,wet sand with 2000 grit
dried well
used Turtle wax polishing compound, by hand
Was dull so tried applying wax to bring out the shine but still dull.
Where did i mess uo?
please advise
Thanks,
Dmitri
Great video very helpful doing mine tomorrow!
bro your doing the most.
do the lights ever dull out? like do I have to re polish them every couple of months?
Oh and mine turned out shiny with the products I used just takes a lot of wet sanding
Thanks man. And thanks for the support.
Not sure how to answer this. Try and find a clear coat that is sandable which some will say on it
Thanks for the support
i have a question. so i used vht night shade on my cars tail lights. GF said one was darker so i added a little more to one " she was wrong" now one is way to dark and i want to bring it back a little any idea of how to do that?
I've seen some videos where the 2k clear coat was applied with no sanding or prepping just let the 3 coats of Nightshade dry and go over it with clear coat... is prepping necessary or not?
Thanks boss, you've helped me alot with this video
Glad it helped. Thanks for watching
I need them shoes son 🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥
Vibram Five Fingers. They’re fire
I put the vht on my tail lights and about two hours later I put the clear coat on it and it had all kinds of little dots every where , they was too deep to wet sand . Did I not wait long enough or should I get a better quality of clear coat ? Or did I do something dumb ? Any help would be appreciated thank you
I like the new intro.
Duplicolor can says white 48 hours to cure before polishing did u wait 48 or nah and if these werent random taillighy and ur card taillight would u wait?
I believe what I used was enamel. I used and automotive type from Auto Zone. When you sanded it did it dull the clear coat and did you see any dimples?
Awesome shoes lol very comfortable
I might be able to. No promises since I leave in a month for overseas and the light i used for the video got thrown away. Have you searched online to see what works?
I have clear tails. I will be applying the red nightshades then the smoke. Should I hit the lights with the 1000 grit after applying the red or just do it after the smoke?
So you can just use polish and no compound before the polish?
Can you do this method with regular spray paint?
Does it matter what kind of polish i use?
And also would i need a cutting compound or will just a polish compound work?
Great instructional!!
Glad we could help
could i sand with 2000 grit, clear coat, sand again with 2000 grit and then clear coat again? or would the finish from the final 2000 grit be satisfactory?
so after the six coats you put on you wait about an hour or two before re-sanding?
+Jesus Bolanos yes
How do I remove this? My tint has faded and looks like shit now. I wanna remove it all and do it properly with a vinyl tint. Will the sanded surface cause any issues when applying the vinyl?
Lightly wipe away with mineral spirits and use a small amount. Don’t sand it off. As long as you never sanded the original plastic it should be fine.
okay thanks for your reply. how would I buff?
So to get this right?
2000 sand > clear coat > 2000 sand > buff?
How long did you let the vht sit for before sanding and applying the clear coat ?
Mat-TAY. Cmon now.
+Placer I thought it was funny lol
How long after your final clear coat did you wait until you polished?
My good buddy I used to drink with back in the day...:)
Do you suppose to sand before applying paint?
the key to have a nice shiny look is to used a electric sander???.