Restoring Faded scratched windows

[HoudiniUK]

Hi all. Doing some winter work on my recently purchased Colvic Salty Dog. She has very faded scratched windows which would be great to get more light into the cabin and clear it up. Any affordable products I could try and get her back to some sort of bright clear condition? Any advice appreciated. Thanks.

I will.no . doubt be posting more here asking for all sorts of tips and tricks! Great to have this online community.

 

[Rappey]

You could experiment with a car headlight polishing kit?
I was buffing an offroad vehicle to sell and used t-cut. The results were amazing as it removed nearly all the scratches.
I did a plastic headlight lens and that also went back to clear.

 

[Bobc]

If they are just scratched in the surface, then sometging like Autosol will get the scratches out.

If they are crazed inside the acrylic, then you can't restore them. You have to replace them.

 

[TernVI]

The 'crazing' is often only a few microns deep.
Where it goes wrong is if there's a coating of some sort, you can end up with a patchy effect.
It IS possible to make things look worse!

 

[TernVI]

The 'crazing' is often only a few microns deep.
Where it goes wrong is if there's a coating of some sort, you can end up with a patchy effect.
It IS possible to make things look worse!

 

[Quandary]

I changed my acrylic windows last year, before I ordered the replacements I had a go at one of the portlights, even working in a workshop with power tools and wet and dry starting at 500 gauge and going to 2000 it made no impression on the crazing though it brought up the surface to a really sparkling clear gloss. I am not sure how many microns I removed but the crazing was well below any depth I thought could be reasonably reached, the little cracks from which it is formed well below the surface seemed to be a couple of mm. deep, not sure how many microns. I am not sure that polishing out the uv crazing is a reasonable expectation. I used some of the salvaged acrylic to make scrapers and pointing tools the old stuff seemed significantly weaker and more vulnerable to breaking than the new.

 

[jim.howes]

Hi all. Doing some winter work on my recently purchased Colvic Salty Dog. She has very faded scratched windows which would be great to get more light into the cabin and clear it up. Any affordable products I could try and get her back to some sort of bright clear condition? Any advice appreciated. Thanks.

I will.no . doubt be posting more here asking for all sorts of tips and tricks! Great to have this online community.

Hi i would go with the T-cut or Autosolve. You may may not get all the scratches out but you should be left with a haze-free surface and fairly clear set of windows.

 

[cherod]

Is that autosolve the one most used for chrome or stainless , or is there another product

 

[jim.howes]

Yes. It is a chrome/stainless steel polisher a mild abrasive paste. Its proper title is solvo-autosolve.

 

[peter gibbs]

I changed my acrylic windows last year, before I ordered the replacements I had a go at one of the portlights, even working in a workshop with power tools and wet and dry starting at 500 gauge and going to 2000 it made no impression on the crazing though it brought up the surface to a really sparkling clear gloss. I am not sure how many microns I removed but the crazing was well below any depth I thought could be reasonably reached, the little cracks from which it is formed well below the surface seemed to be a couple of mm. deep, not sure how many microns. I am not sure that polishing out the uv crazing is a reasonable expectation. I used some of the salvaged acrylic to make scrapers and pointing tools the old stuff seemed significantly weaker and more vulnerable to breaking than the new.

Scratches are detectable with the fingernail etc. Crazing is within the material owing to exposure to sunlight; this cannot be reversed although it is only a problem when sun hits it directly. Otherwise crazed widows have pretty much the same strength integrity as clear owing to the thickness of the material.

Replacing windows is a lot of fun, just the thing for a lockdown weekend. Get the replacements professionally cut - most supplier will do this on the spot to a template. Whack the sealant into the cleaned out channels and allow to cure. Big tip - use tape (as when painting the waterline) to prevent to Sikaflex spreading all over the shop, and because you want a nice clean line when the tape is removed. Bingo. And after a couple of seasons you'll begin to notice the crazing returning.....

PWG

 

[ashtead]

Personally I would save my time and cash and send the windows if possible away for replacement as I don’t believe the costs are that great in marine terms .

 

[Iliade]

You have nothing to lose by trying to polish the surface: I used the stuff for aeroplane canopies to good effect, but that is probably just expensive Solvol. I have used cheap toothpaste on scratched glasses in the past. It's little too coarse for that job but cuts quickly and could then be finished with something finer.

It looks like you have a 27: If the sides are flat enough and you have frames, you could consider toughened glass. Westerly used it to great effect. It is a little more expensive (maybe not) and heavier than plastic but is far clearer from the off and lasts indefinitely. I only ever managed to break one and that was with a ladder and a rising tide...

 

[HoudiniUK]

Hi Guys, thanks a lot for all your advice. I bought a tube of Autosol Solvol, and gave it a good scrub and buff down and seems to have definitely helped, and given more light to the cabin. Thanks.

 

[Trundlebug]

Keep them clean by using household wax polish like Pledge. Really cheap and works a treat.