I got really angry at my 400ex for lacking a good shine on the plastics. So, I set out on a mission to polish them to a near mirror finish. This process is sure to work on Honda brand black and red plastics, but I assume it would work elsewhere too.

If they are just dull, you can start by 600-grit wet sanding, othewise, sand the deep stuff out by working up from 200 to 400 to 600.

After there is an even 600-grit sand-down on your plastics, go to 800 grit wet-sanding, and proceed to 1500-grit wet sanding from there. I’ve found that keeping a hefty amount of water on the plastics as opposed to a gritty sludge of re-used water works best. Do whatever creates the most drag between the sandpaper and the plastic. Then, you know it’s cutting the most it can.

After the plastics are dry (and you’ve washed them of sanding crap!) you can proceed to buying and extensively using the finest steel wool you can get your hands on. This will make your dominant arm very strong. Buff them long enough so that you can see no more sanding lines of any sort, and the plastic has a matte finish. Doing little circles helps.

Then, find some tool that spins at about 3000-4000 rpm, and a very loose-knit buffing wheel. I use the type that have a bunch of layers of cloth stitched together near the center. Chuck the wheel up, and coat it lightly with a polshing compound. I use Turtle Wax Polsihing Compound. It’s like 4 bucks. Now, go at your plastics. At first, they will look dull and poopy, but as the compund starts to dry, and you go back over it with the wheel, stuff starts to get REAL shiny.

If you’re hardcore like me, you can go to wal-mart and grab a 15 dollar 6″ random-orbit buffer and a wool bonnet. This gives a non-directional finsh that I could compare to showroom floor. I run it dry. (no compound)

There is nothing about this that is fun. It’s 88 billion times better than PC racing’s plastic renew. Stickers actually stick this way.

WARNING!!! Ways to screw this up: Dry sanding, using a tight-knit wheel, using the wheel on an angle grinder, using RUBBING COMPOUND, not polishing compound.

PS.I’ve found also that those microfiber cloths are excellent way to clean things up between those time-consuming detailing sessions. Plastics, seats, grips — gets ’em all clean! And the dollar-store ones work just as good as all the others.