Polishing Glass - Hard Water Stains

Croatan_Kid

Croatan_Kid

How's your hammer hangin'?
Joined
Nov 4, 2007
Location
New Bern
My 2500HD has some really bad hard water stains. It's bad enough that driving at night is a pain in the ass! All four side windows and the back glass. The windshield is new and so are the tow mirrors.

I've tried vinegar, gritty toothpaste, CLR, and a few other things, but I'm thinking this is going to require some assistance from a good polish and some power tools. It was severely neglected in its previous life as evidenced by the hazed clear coat, which I have had buffed out since I've owned it.

So what suggestions do you guys have for me?
 
A good thick wax or buffing cream and the finest steel wool you can by. I could be wrong, and I’m sure I’ll be corrrcted is so, but I think that’s what this old guy I worked a summer job restoring old Chevrolet’s with did. You can also use the real fine stool wool and dawn dish soap.
 
Maybe try buffing compound? That stuff works amazingly well on plexi glass and I'd think it would work on regular glass, just a little slower. Obviously get the foam pad attachment for the drill.

There are some guys that polish glass. There is an art to it because so it wrong and it will destroy the glass and make it really weird to look through where all shapes are distorted.
 
My company car must have had a stick of sandpaper installed for a drivers side wiper before I got it. It's clear the wiper has scratched the glass severely somehow. Makes for horrible streaks of light at night.

I've hit the windshield with 3m buffing compound and a damn multi speed buffer and zero change. Next step will HAVE to be sanding the damn thing...but terrified I'll screw it up.

I too need a solution!
 
77GreenMachine said:
A good thick wax or buffing cream and the finest steel wool you can by. I could be wrong, and I’m sure I’ll be corrrcted is so, but I think that’s what this old guy I worked a summer job restoring old Chevrolet’s with did. You can also use the real fine stool wool and dawn dish soap.
Click to expand...

Ultra fine steel wool and keep it wet with a foaming glass cleaner, a paste may dry out while working it. Don’t allow it to dry while using the wool.

Tight circular motions and keep it wet, also used to remove over spray from glass as well.

Don’t think this will work to remove scratches from the glass though.
 
fine steel wool and wd40. I used to live near the steam plant and when they would blow the stacks, all the windows would get bad spots on them. Not sure of the long term effects but it got the spots off.
 
CasterTroy said:
My company car must have had a stick of sandpaper installed for a drivers side wiper before I got it. It's clear the wiper has scratched the glass severely somehow. Makes for horrible streaks of light at night.

I've hit the windshield with 3m buffing compound and a damn multi speed buffer and zero change. Next step will HAVE to be sanding the damn thing...but terrified I'll screw it up.

I too need a solution!
Click to expand...

I'm pretty sure that windshield would accidentally catch a rock while I was driving down the road...hint, hint, wink, wink :D
 
I'll have to try the buffing compound. Sounds promising!
 
Move to SC. By law insurance has to cover glass at 0 deductible.

We get new windshields every tire change lol
 
After that wreck, I'm not asking my insurance company for a damn thing. They only need one little excuse to drop my ass like a bad habit.

@rockcity Glad you can read :D
 
Croatan_Kid said:
After that wreck, I'm not asking my insurance company for a damn thing. They only need one little excuse to drop my ass like a bad habit.
Click to expand...
I thought since NC being mandatory insurance that they HAVE to issue you a compulsory insurance policy? (I would think that comp & other non mandatory parts they could drop though).. is that incorrect?
 
They can't legally drop your liability, but they can deny you comp and collision while they raise the hell out of your rates for liability.

There's no reason to involve them with dirty, acid rain stained windows though.

I did go out briefly this afternoon and hit one of the rear windows with this RainX paste cleaner and some 0000 steel wool and it worked fairly well for no longer than I scrubbed it...I might be on to something. Seems like any decent paste cleaner substance and steel wool will work.
 
I finally broke down and got a bottle of this stuff. I saw it on YouTube and I gotta admit, it works pretty damn good! I first tried it with a non-scratch brillo pad, but wound up having to hit it with four ought steel wool. Of course, thaf will leave little swirl marks, but I believe they can be polished out. I'm just glad the glass is reflectie again and I can see through it!

Not sure what's in that shit besides amonia...there's definitely amonia in it!
 

Attachments

  • 20180109_184938.jpg
    20180109_184938.jpg
    65.5 KB · Views: 184
The absolute best thing I've ever used was some Amway glass polish... ate hard water/acid rain spots with little more work than hand waxing.
No idea where to get it anymore, but will start looking... I'm sure there's someone here involved?
 
Back
Top