Eyelashes on the headlights with your own hands

2024 Author: Erin Ralphs | [email protected]. Last modified: 2024-02-19 11:41

As you know, progress flies forward with inexorable steps and does not intend to stop. And this applies to almost any sphere of human activity, including the automotive industry. Thanks to modern advances, many motorists have the opportunity to significantly transform the appearance of an iron horse. On the face of any person there is one noticeable detail, and in women it is, of course, the most attractive. So why not put eyelashes on your headlights and on your vehicle?!

What kind of tuning is this?

In the language of motorists, cilia on cars are called special plastic lining, with the help of which a certain charm is created. This decoration will appeal to many ladies who have their own car. And thanks to the cilia, the car will look more feminine, as if being a reflection of its mistress. For everyone else, this is the right way to give car optics a little original flavor.

Only during the purchase of this accessory, care must be taken, because due to improperly selected sizes, the functionality of the front automotive optics will be seriously impaired. And under no circumstances should this be done. At best, this threatens with a fine, at worst, there can be much more serious consequences.

Sometimes, in addition to the decorative function, eyelashes may have another functional purpose. They will help keep the headlight from being damaged by gravel or other small stones.

Advantages and disadvantages

Like any thing, installing cilia on the headlights of a VAZ or a car of any other brand has both pluses and minuses. Characteristic advantages include:

1. Good opportunity to eliminate the gap between the headlight and the edge of the hood.
2. Create an attractive appearance of the car.
3. Easy, simple, low cost.

As for the disadvantages, here they are:

1. In some cases, the cilia are very difficult to attach to the headlight.
2. If the car is moving at high speed, you can lose the decor (rather, this applies to products that have been poorly fixed).

As you can see, such a car accessory has fewer minuses than pluses. Therefore, more and more drivers are trying to "ennoble" their vehicles.

Varieties of eyelashes

Many manufacturers in the field of car accessories can offer several options for eyelash decor:

1. Protective - this is justthose cilia whose main function, as you might guess, is to protect the headlights from mechanical damage. They are made of thermoplastic.
2. Chromed. Such cilia on the headlights serve rather as decoration and favorably emphasize the exterior of the car. And if it already has a few details of their chrome, then such cilia will serve as a great addition.
3. Plastic. Such products, no doubt, are widely used. This is due to their availability and versatility.

Only, not always an industrially made accessory will be able to fully please the motorist.

For this reason, some car owners decide to make their own eyelashes. In addition, in terms of cost, manual work will cost no more than the price of finished products.

Methods of implementation

The main advantage of eyelashes is that they fit any car. There are two main ways to put into practice the idea of transforming your personal vehicle:

1. Purchase finished products.
2. Self assembly.

Cilia headlights are now considered a kind of automotive fashion trend, and therefore such decor is found on sale in most relevant stores. You can also contact any atelier of an automotive profile. If the master manages to understand the desires of the client, then the result will be obtained with minimal costs in terms of labor and time.

You can try to make an eyelash accessory yourself, only in this case you need to be patient. Especially when the work is done for the first time, because here it is possible that it may not work out.

What to consider?

If anyone decides to significantly transform their car by installing cilia on the headlights, he should consider something. There are a number of nuances along the way. And first of all, it is the complete preservation of the functionality of automotive optics.

The second point is that in the course of work you have to manipulate small details. And for this, certain qualities are simply needed, such as:

• good perseverance;
• attention;
• excerpt;
• basic tool skills.

As a rule, eyelashes on headlights (Toyota, Nissan, Ford, VAZ and other cars) are made of fiberglass, but some craftsmen manage to use other materials for work.

Production Methods

If someone decides to make cilia for his car on his own, then it will be useful for him to find out what methods exist for implementation. Each of the options has its own disadvantages and advantages. In this regard, it is necessary to choose for yourself exactly the method that best suits your personal preferences and capabilities.

In addition, today there are plenty to choose from, as the modern automotive market is full of new interesting materials. Toin addition, thanks to an individual approach to work, the car will be presented with a new, brighter appearance.

What are the actual methods of making cilia in question? More on that later.

Foil edging

There is a great variety of film material, however, not every option is suitable for making eyelashes on headlights on a Nissan (for example). It is better to purchase an oracal, but vinyl or tinted film will do. The final result depends on the time spent and the amount of materials. If all the work takes from 5 to 10 minutes, then it is unlikely that it will be possible to significantly change the appearance of your iron horse. Otherwise, we can already talk about a "masterpiece".

Narrowing headlights with black film will look relevant on a car of the same color. Otherwise, you need to look for an acceptable shade that will be in harmony with the body color. Fortunately, today it is easy to do.

With the help of vinyl film, which is usually pasted over cars, you can show your imagination. The carbon shade will give a more expressive look and will look no worse than bright cilia.

To begin with, with the help of an insulating tape, an outline of the cilia is made, then the pattern is transferred to tracing paper. Then it is already possible to cut the overlays from the film according to the pattern. There is nothing easier, you just need to act carefully so as not to spoil the beauty of the cilia on the headlights. On a Chevrolet, for example, they look very interesting. We should not forget that the light from the optics through the decor should not shine through. To do this, it is better to make them multi-layered.

Plastic decoration

Today, there are many types of plastic on sale, which comes in sheets of different thicknesses. For the manufacture of cilia, plastic up to 1.5 mm is suitable, but, as practice shows, it is advisable to opt for a thickness of 2.5 mm. In this case, reliability and beauty will increase.

The first step is to make a template, as in the case of making film decor. Only cut the cilia will have another tool. The blanks should be attached to the headlights and, if necessary, make changes.

After that, you need to round off the edges of the cilia, for which you can use a small file or grinder. The entire flat surface should be sanded with 600 sandpaper to increase the adhesion coefficient so that the primer is well fixed.

But before you prime and paint the cilia, you should give them the desired shape. This is easy to do with a building hair dryer. The surface of the product is heated, after which it becomes more plastic. It is better to bend the cilia on the headlights slowly, stage by stage. The finished decor is attached with double-sided tape.

Fiberglass solution

This method is the most time consuming of all, but all the work is worth it, because the result will be on top. All bends and design features are repeated in great detail, which is relevant for most foreign-made machines. Therefore, this method should be analyzed in a little more detail.

Beforeeverything, you need to prepare everything you need:

• material itself (fiberglass or fiberglass);
• epoxy or glue;
• household and masking tape;
• a brush with a short but stiff bristle;
• small roller;
• rubber gloves (to protect hands);
• respirator (also for protection).

After that, it is better to remove the headlights, which will facilitate the work. In addition, this way you can eliminate the possibility of staining the hood or bumper with resin. Next, the removed optics should be pasted over with household tape, on top of which the masking tape lies. Moreover, he must close all the joints between household tape in order to avoid getting epoxy on the headlight. And it's almost impossible to remove.

To make the cilia on the Ford headlights, for example, strong, it is worth preparing epoxy glue. To do this, take 1 part of hardener and 10 parts of glue. Violations of proportions will lead to undesirable results: the glue will dry too quickly or too slowly. Also, do not forget about safety precautions and work with glue with gloves.

Production process

Now, actually, the work itself:

1. Cut several strips of material longer than the width of the headlight.
2. Then, a thin layer of epoxy is applied to the removed headlight, on top of which fiberglass (or fiberglass) is laid. It is worth rolling it with a roller before the epoxy shows through.
3. Another layer of resin is applied over the material, on which, in turn,lays down another strip of fiberglass. Then it is also rolled with a roller, which will remove air bubbles.
4. The last layer of material should be poured abundantly with resin. In this case, the final thickness of all layers will be at least 4 mm. Then everything must be left to dry for the whole day. Moreover, the headlight should be located strictly horizontally, which will avoid smudges and bumps.
5. After the resin has completely dried, the pads can be removed. Then remove all adhesive tape from the headlight by washing it with any solvent or gasoline.
6. A drawing should be applied to the surface of the blanks, after which the cilia on the headlights are cut out with a jigsaw or a grinder (as you prefer).
7. Ready-made pads should be tried on to the headlight - how they will look. If everything is done successfully, then you need to process them with sandpaper. And first you need to take rough material, and then finer material for the final stage.
8. The next step is priming and painting the cilia to match the body. Usually, after applying the first coat of paint, small defects appear that are easy to eliminate with finishing putty. Then the entire surface needs to be sanded again, covered with a primer and paint (there should be three layers in total).

Now ready and dried eyelashes can be fixed with double-sided tape. Whether to do all this work on your own, with the support of friends and relatives, or to entrust this matter to specialists is the business of every motorist.

In any case, the end result, regardless of the implementation method, is worth the investmentfunds - the car will be transformed to the delight of its owner and everyone around. In addition, making eyelashes on headlights with your own hands will allow you to acquire new skills, and the products themselves will be original due to an individual approach.