I tried sprucing up my old taillights on my Cutlass, the usual clean like heck, careful masking and repaint with the correct argent/silver. Looked not bad. Then I got a second chance. A complete set of NOS tailights for (are you sitting down) LESS THAN 80 bucks. So I couldn't wait. In they went. They look great. Then I noticed that even from the factory, they aren't perfect. There's a little tiny bit of overspray on the red lense. But at this point? I could care less; I think these look fantastic and they really dress up the car

I have the old lenses packed away just in case of emergency (hope I never need them again).

 

yes. i have seen many NOS parts that are not worth putting on a car. i had a set of front hood moldings for a 70 cutlass that had the worst chrome job i have ever seen. i have a set of NOS tail light linses for a 72, i will have to look and see how they are.

 

GM was never interested in perfect, that's for sure. They just wanted production. And towards the end of a production life cycle for some of these NOS parts, quality clearly suffered.
It's always a bit of a treasure hunt if you find a sealed box and buy it. I have been unpleasantly surprised more than once to find my NOS "prize" to be nearly junk.

 

One of the big problems with NOS parts is they may have actually been produced two, three, or more years after the end of a production year by a different vendor than those used in production. They are not subject to the same QC scrutiny because they were never subject to any GM inspection before being shipped to a dealer as a replacement part. Of course this same thing applies to NOS parts for other makes as well.

 

Allan,

I need to do this same process to my lenses some day...
Would you mind sharing some details, like how you prepped it and what paint you used, etc? Yours came out great.
I doubt I will come across a good deal like you did for NOS units...
Thanks!

 

Hi Rob!
For prepping the lenses, believe it or not I used Meguires plastic finish. Just a lot of elbow grease (ha ha actually I used my dremel with a polishing cloth, but you can't use a lot of pressure. Use low speed). You have to gauge this by feel and look. The plastic finish actually gets hot enough that the small scratches polish or "melt" away. Took me about 20+ minutes per set of 3 lenses.
Carefully remove any residue from the surface, especially around the trim line for the lens. I used a toothpick and compressed air to avoid getting finger acid on the surface. You could wear latex gloves instead I guess.

Use painters tape (or masking) and get the whole red area masked off. Doesnt matter if there's overlap up the sides, just keep it to a minimum. Now take an exacto knife and VERY CAREFULLY trim around the lens reveal line. Use your finger nail to make sure the edges seat down nicely so no paint gets underneath. The good part about polishing the heck out of the red lens is that the tape forms an incredibly good bond and not much, if any paint is going to go under the tape. Only place you need to be really careful is where the SAE number is. The raised surfaces have to be pressed flat.

I used a Dupli-Color paint from the local Automotive store. Took the lens with me to try and match up as best I could. Don't have the can left so I can't tell you the number off hand. Anyway, dont paint up close. Light coats from about 12-18 inches away. Let the paint get tacky before putting on a second coat. I put 3 coats with a waiting time of about 20 minutes between coats. DONT TOUCH THEM for at least 3 hours to let the layers of paint cure. I waited for a full 24 hours to remove the tape. Peel up from the corner so each layer of tape takes the next one with it. I went on a diagonal and it was slick. The results are really darn good. They could easily pass for OEM NOS - almost perfect.

I know that I lucked out on the parts I got. Saw Fusicks advertising a set of 4 for 140 bucks. If I see any with a really good price I'll let you know. If I can't get in touch, maybe I'll just buy em anyway and we could hook up on them later. I know this is a lot of work for such a small detail, but I know you're a detail guy too. Hope yours turn out perfect!

 

Thanks Allan!

I will see what I can do with these later when I get time. I could use one of the right lenses, as it is broke on the side (small detail though). Do let me know if you see an inexpensive NOS or repro set!

I need to find a scrap lens to practice polishing on. I tried this long ago on something and burned the plastic...

I think it would be easier for me to just send mine to you for a professional refurb!

 

Hey Rob!
From what I've seen of your work, it's only a matter of time and patience. And you take pride in what you do. You might want to do the same thing I did for practice. I got a set of clunkers from the bone yard and practiced on them so i didn't screw up my good ones. I've now got 2 sets of show lenses that can go on anytime.

FYI, I've NEVER found any repop gaskets that fits these lenses the way GM does. If you ever have a chance to pick some up from 71/2s at a boneyard, they're worth it. Same goes for the front ones.

FYI, Fusick makes repros and they look really good. But Yikes, they're 140.00 a set.