Technical Can scratches in glass be buffed out?

I have a question! The original windshield on my corvette looks great except there is one place where it was scratched by the wiper. Can light scratches in glass be polished or buffed out? And if so how?


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It can be done, depends on how deep the scratches are. It is a lot of work and time consuming. I removed some scratches from the rear glass of my car. It does work but I would look for a new windshield.
Eastwood has the kit to restore the glass.

 

Also the buffed area will be distorted once done so if it's in your field of vision be aware of that.

 

Good point, you must keep cold water running on the glass. If it gets to hot it will definitely distort.

 

Look into new glass. A brand new windshield is a wonderful thing. It's only money.

 

Search -- Buffing glass -- here on the HAMB, several threads, this is just one of them. https://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/threads/buffing-glass.577282

 

You seem to have done this before with success, care to share your process and materials/kit used?

Thanks

 

Can you buff out scratches in glass? Yes. Will you be happy with the results? That depends. If you never drive the car you will be satisfied. If you drive the car probably not. There will be a wave or distortion in the repaired area. If it is where you look out to drive it will drive you crazy when you drive. If it is not in the "critical" area you will be ok. If it is on the edge of the area you will be surprised how often you need to look at that part of the windshield.

 

I used Eastwood's "Pro Glass Polishing Kit" several years ago on my '55 Chevy's glass.
https://www.eastwood.com/pro-glass-polishing-kit.html
It smoothed the glass & removed all the scuzz so it looked newish.
However, any scratches that are big enough to catch your fingernail are too deep for any decent repair- you might remove the scratch, but the remaining low spot will be seriously distorted.

 

A couple of years ago I tried buffing some scratches from my El Camino windshield. I bought a kit from Eastwood that required you to mix with water and use a soft cotton buffing disc mounted to a drill. The process was sloppy (slinging abrasive around) and not very effective. A buddy who used to work in a body shop warned me not to get the glass too hot or it will crack. I got impatient and tried putting tried putting some muscle into it and sure enough the glass cracked.

I think you will be happier with just buying a new windshield.

 

Tried it with limited success. New glass is the way to go unless prohibited by budget or availability.


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@Lloyds Paint and Glass

 

After a couple decades the rest of the windshield is probably sandblasted so a new one will seem incredible

 

If you decide to try this yourself, the material you're looking for is cerium oxide.

https://www.bing.com/search?q=CERIU...s=n&sk=&cvid=77121E1F38DA4C9BBFC6FA90AA02D03B

 

I might try that on the rear glass where its not as important, but if the scratches are not very shallow, the windshield shouldn't be that costly to replace.

 

I used the Eastwood kit as mentioned. It's been awhile, but I believe it came with a buffing pad to fit on a drill and a abrasive compound you mix with water.
I used this on the back glass because there weren't any available new. It's very messy.
You have compound flying everywhere.
YOU WILL NOT BE ABLE TO REMOVE LARGE SCRATCHES.
I did this with the glass removed from the car. Used saw horses wrapped in towels to lay the glass on. This was done outside otherwise your shop will be a mess.
With the amount of labor(8-10 hrs) on one piece I wouldn't do it again and definitely not a windshield.

 

Thanks everyone for the responses. This is why the H.A.M.B. is awesome!
I’m not opposed to new glass......
But I buy the new glass plus shipping. Then the side glass with factory tint and rear plexiglass doesn’t match the new glass. Okay so I should change the side glass, but then the stainless around the glass isn’t perfect and I might as well do that too. Those are a few hundred a piece. And since I have the windows out I can rebuild the regulators. Now that I did that the back plexiglass doesn’t match and since I it needs to be re done........
I’m trying to avoid this part.
We will see.


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Ah, the magic of "while I've got this apart" - - -

 

Totally! I have this amazing ability to take shit apart! The problem is it never seems to go back together. Lol I am trying to avoid this with the corvette and the 60 Pontiac.


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I know the feeling well. It's like pulling a thread. Sometimes I wish I wasn't so OCD.