Re: 1961 MFG Oxford Deluxe - Beginning a New Life
........My frame was about as dull as it could get but otherwise in very good condition. I discovered a product called AUTOSOL for cleaning metal. It works especially well on aluminum. A small amount goes a long way....almost look like chrome!....Meguiar headlight restoration kit to remove some of the dull gray film from the windshield. It worked great. Used my corded electric drill to polish inside and out. So far I made 2 applications and the glass is very clear compared to when I started. If you have the same cloudy looking windshield, this is worth a try. Buy for $20 at Walmart....
That AUTOSOL seems like an AWESOME product- never used it. I worked up to 600 wet-and-dry and finished with Mother's Mag & Aluminum polish- seems like the hard way compared to your photos. I mean- mine looks good, but I think I used a lot more elbow grease! It's been ten years and it is time for a refresh so maybe I will try that.
Headlight polish- that will probably do a good job.
If you find that you need more product than the headlight kit contains, Meguiars has "Mirror Glaze" and "professional" products that work well, are inexpensive (?!!!) and go a very long way. I used
Meguiar's Professional Clear Plastic Polish 10 with a 100% cotton terry rag bound over a wool bonnet on a mandrel chucked into a 2700rpm drill. (you probably know this but for others:
never use synthetic, cotton/poly blend and especially not wool on a plastic anything to polish. It gets the windshield too hot and melts the surface making a mess). I maintain it with
Meguiars Professional Clear Plastic Cleaner
One bottle of polish will probably do five or six windshields, and I still have half a bottle of plastic cleaner from years ago.
On two other related notes for those who are not experienced at this kind of detailing:
never use windex or any general-purpose cleaner like fantastic on your plastic windshield. The ammonia in these products can actually degrade the clarity of the plastic windshield. Second, do not use paper towels to clean your MFG/TaylorMade windshield. Instead, flood the windshield with water to flow away loose grit and follow with a very soft car-wash brush with a little bit of liquid dishwashing liquid in a pail of very warm water. Don't scrub hard, just keep dipping and "brush away" anything on the windshield. This will rid surface dirt and most stuck or embedded grit from the plastic without adding any scratches. Paper towels, scrub cloths, and sponges often grab grit and create scratches especially if you scrub hard. Once grime is safely removed, you can go to the plastic polish of your choice. A wash product that works better than dish soap is
NXT Generation Car Wash which seems to float away removed grit extremely well and dry without water spots.
You make me want to start another boat project!
