Clear lenses on gauges ruined from brake clean.

[signcrafter]

Today I was cleaning some tools up after doing a transmission fluid and filter change on a 2019 silverado. A dozen or so more bolts and I could have pulled the trans out since they run the exhaust crossover right under the trans pan so have to remove the exhaust on these 8l90 trans. Filled it back up using one of my fluid extractor/fillers, just a cheap one from amazon but works good. It was a messy fluid change so was cleaning tools up with brake cleaner and the pressure gauge on it is "frosted" over now and can't read it. This also happened to a dial caliper I have a few months ago. I don't remember the brand and don't have it with me, it's not a starrett but think it might have been a mitutoyo. Same thing happened to the plastic(guessing) dial cover. I was using it to measure something and grease or oil got on it so I wiped it down with some brake cleaner and it messed the dial cover up.

Is there a way to fix these at all or do I need to just get a new better gauge for my fluid pump and look into replacing the dial cover on my caliper?

 

[andys]

You can't un-ruin the plastic lenses. Replace or remove them and avoid brake clean on things that you don't want to fade or discolor.

 

[Union Delegate]

Try to polish it if it's only a surface blotch

 

[cgrutt]

If they're shot anyway I'd try wet sanding to at least 2500 then buff. What do you have to lose...

 

[JABgj]

Might try a 3M headlight polishing kit or something like the Novus. If you can replace the covers for a few bucks that will save a lot of elbow grease.

 

[CoogarXR]

Yeah I was gonna suggest trying a headlight resto kit too. Worth a shot.

 

[The Cobbler]

might be possible as well to remove the bezel & replace the lens with new on the gauge.

 

[Shiftless]

might be possible as well to remove the bezel & replace the lens with new on the gauge.

Agreed
I bet the label said to not spray it on plastic. But who reads labels anyway?

“Non-Chlorinated Cleaners: These usually rely heavily on solvents like acetone, toluene, and heptane. Acetone acts as a literal melting agent for many types of plastic (especially polycarbonate and ABS plastic used in lenses and sensor housings). It will quickly dissolve, warp, or permanently cloud them.”

 

[man-a-fre]

Chlorinated brake cleaner is hell on plastic but it works better disolving grease , non chlorinated brake clean is a little safer for use around plastic. As you found out it is best to keep both away from plasics if possible.

 

[RTM]

If it’s a Starrett, they do have parts available. Not sure ithis is the right one, so don’t proceed blindly.

PT19041 DIAL FOR #120 CALIPER

DIAL FOR #120 CALIPER Starrett Part and Repair Information Parts may be purchased directly from Authorized Starrett Distributors. Use our Distributor finder on starrett.com Parts may be purchased directly from the Starrett Company using a Visa or MasterCard. There is a minimum $8.95...

www.starrett.com

 

[DGersic]

If you can remove the lens, maybe replace it with a glass one. You can find lots of sizes of “flashlight lens” on Amazon. I did that with a 3’ level recently. Glass won’t craze when you wipe it with brake clean.

 

[cleaner]

Be advised that if the frosting is caused by solvent exposure (very likely in this case) then the mechanical properties of the polymer will be degraded and any environmental stress (temperature, UV exposure etc.) will age the plastic at an accelerated rate. They will become quite brittle if not already in that sate. The best option is to replace the lenses if possible.

 

[Beerhippie]

Perhaps consider mineral spirits for cleaning tools in the future?

 

[signcrafter]

Thanks guys, figured they were shot but thought I would ask and learn something new if there was a way to fix them. The fluid extractor/filler I don't really care about. Don't really need a gauge but will order a replacement gauge for it sometime. The caliper I do care about since it's a paperweight when you can't see the dial clearly. I'll have to look into a replacement cover for it.

I didn't even think about the clear covers being plastic and not cleanable with brake clean so will have to pay attention in the future. Guess that's what I get for trying to give my tools some love, LOL.

 

[KnurledNut]

+1 on polishing.

 

[signcrafter]

+1 on polishing.

What did you use and what was your process? That's a really good finished product from what it was. The fluid filler I'm not going to waste time on and will just put a new gauge on it. But my caliper I might spend some time on to see if I can fix it before ordering a new cover and figuring out how to replace it.

 

[ChefRex]

I would start with a very fine wet sandpaper then a polishing compound, it can take time but I have polished out some heavy damage.

 

[KnurledNut]

What did you use and what was your process? That's a really good finished product from what it was.

Its been a few years ago, but I first took it apart to remove the lens.
I’m going off memory, but I believe I wet sanded with 1000, 2000, and I know for a fact I finished with 8000 sanding cloth. Then I used Klasse all-in-one cleaner and high gloss sealant glaze.
I’ve used this method successfully on other clear plastics too.
-
I can’t say what caused the damage on this torque wrench. I bought it that way.

 

[Wamsutta]

Might try a 3M headlight polishing kit or something like the Novus. If you can replace the covers for a few bucks that will save a lot of elbow grease.

I have those bottles and have tried them extensively on face shield lenses and welding lenses. I have finally come to the conclusion that the only way to get that stuff to work is with a mechanical buffer of some kind. Using the stuff by hand is a total waste of time and pointless.

Also there is very little information on YouTube or the internet about polishing clear plastic. I hate it.

 

[Beerhippie]

Also there is very little information on YouTube or the internet about polishing clear plastic. I hate it.

Did you search for "headlight lens polishing"?

 

[paulsomlo]

I've been there - a dial indicator, thought I'd clean it with acetone. But polycarbonates and acetone don't mix. You can polish out the damage - headlight restore kit, or try some rubbing compound.

By the way, acetone's a great way to get rid of those of smelly screwdriver handles.

 

[Beerhippie]

By the way, acetone's a great way to get rid of those of smelly screwdriver handles.

Entirely! No handle, no stink!

 

[rust in the eye]

+3 on polishing

 

[rust in the eye]

Entirely! No handle, no stink!

Now just some napalm that smells like vomit.

 

[bwringer]

The instrument lens in an old Camry we bought aeons ago was cloudy with hair spray, hand sanitizer, hand lotion, perfume, and Cthulhu alone knows what else from the former owner.

Anyway it was a horrible mix of dissolved plastic and caked on gunk, but I took the lens out, and using potions similar to that Novus kit, I rubbed and rubbed and rubbed and rubbed for hours on end, and then rubbed and rubbed and rubbed and rubbed some more. And it actually turned out pretty dang nice.

It's a very, very, very slow process, and I couldn't see any safe way to use a power tool on a fragile heat sensitive piece of plastic like that, so I stuck with hand polishing. For hours. And hours.

The steering wheel, seat, and seat belt were also disgusting. The steering wheel actually cleaned up pretty easily with some strong interior cleaners, although there was some permanent damage from the former owner's many rings. The seat cleaned up pretty nicely with many rounds of upholstery cleaners, but I had to give up and replace the seat belt; I actually found a really nice one in a matching color in a junkyard, along with replacements for several other crusty interior pieces.

That was a damn good car, especially once we cleaned out the mummified chili under the rear seat.


So anyway, back to the actual topic... you probably can polish that lens back to functionality. It'll take a good while, and it'll never be the same.

If you can find a replacement part, that would probably be the best move.

 

[tarmy]

I am still impressed with you getting that damn exhaust out of the way. I have 3 Tahoes and a Silverado…all have that **** set up with the exhaust…engineers are assholes.

Get new gauges OP…this is GJ and we all need new tools

 

[cleaner]

I have those bottles and have tried them extensively on face shield lenses and welding lenses. I have finally come to the conclusion that the only way to get that stuff to work is with a mechanical buffer of some kind. Using the stuff by hand is a total waste of time and pointless.

Also there is very little information on YouTube or the internet about polishing clear plastic. I hate it.

There is plenty of information available on how to polish plastics on the WWW. Here is one example with some basic info and guidance on which materials are suitable for what process. Optically clear (and correct) shapes and surfaces are much more difficult to achieve (i.e. lenses). Even if the material is clear enough if the shape is off it can cause distortion that can interfere with legibility.

https://www.controlledfluidics.com/en/resources/blog/a-guide-to-plastic-polishing/

And for those that did not notice the link embedded in the above URL
https://www.controlledfluidics.com/en/machinedplastics/plastic-polishing/

 

[cleaner]

I am still impressed with you getting that damn exhaust out of the way. I have 3 Tahoes and a Silverado…all have that **** set up with the exhaust…engineers are assholes.

Get new gauges OP…this is GJ and we all need new tools

As a design engineer I can say that much of the enshitification as it relates to maintainability is driven by cost reduction or regulatory compliance and not poor engineering efforts. The goals are set by product marketing and the cost is capped by the business teams and repair and maintenance are under-weighted (often not considered at all) when doing trade studies during the product planning phase.

 

[signcrafter]

I am still impressed with you getting that damn exhaust out of the way. I have 3 Tahoes and a Silverado…all have that **** set up with the exhaust…engineers are assholes.

Get new gauges OP…this is GJ and we all need new tools

They are definitely fun to do. Was going to leave it in and ratchet strap the exhaust to the cross member and take the two nuts out for the ****** support and jack up the ******. But the two bolts for the heat shield that come down from above the ****** have no clearance to get a wrench up in there so figured just pull it and be done. Helps that I had it pulled last year when I replaced the camshaft and lifters on this truck. All brands have their own issues but I seem to always have a GM product in the shop to work on. They have paid for a lot of shop tools in the past few years.

 

[signcrafter]

As a design engineer I can say that much of the enshitification as it relates to maintainability is driven by cost reduction or regulatory compliance and not poor engineering efforts. The goals are set by product marketing and the cost is capped by the business teams and repair and maintenance are under-weighted (often not considered at all) when doing trade studies during the product planning phase.

They supposedly ran the exhaust under the trans pan in order to heat the trans fluid up faster to get it into optimum range. Along with the thermostat they put in the cooler lines so that it's closed until the trans fluid temps get up to were they want them. Guess they are more worried about trans temps instead of their torque converters failing and the rest of the trans going out. At least they get up to temp quick until the trans fails.

 

[Wrench97]

They supposedly ran the exhaust under the trans pan in order to heat the trans fluid up faster to get it into optimum range. Along with the thermostat they put in the cooler lines so that it's closed until the trans fluid temps get up to were they want them. Guess they are more worried about trans temps instead of their torque converters failing and the rest of the trans going out. At least they get up to temp quick until the trans fails.

Don't forget about the cooler line thermostats failing and overheating the trans......

 

[Wakefield]

another vote for trying the "plastic headlight restoration kit" preferably one that doesn't require a drill for polishing.

 

[tarmy]

As a design engineer I can say that much of the enshitification as it relates to maintainability is driven by cost reduction or regulatory compliance and not poor engineering efforts. The goals are set by product marketing and the cost is capped by the business teams and repair and maintenance are under-weighted (often not considered at all) when doing trade studies during the product planning phase.

And….i owned an engineering company with 105 of them…so my comment is with my tongue firmly planted in my cheek.

 

[Dagny]

rouge and tripoli.

 

[Shiftless]

rouge and tripoli.

Tripoli then rouge to finish up… Isn’t that what you meant?
I don’t know if the O.P. is set up with the right buffs to take advantage of those compounds.

 

[Chipm]

I dropped a box knife the other day, and it went point down straight into the front of a regulator gauge that was lying on the floor. It pierced it and stood straight up. I was amazed. New covers for this style gauge are $10 for two n Amazon.