Celica Forums General Discussion Exterior easier way to dis-assemble headlight housing ?

i now i'm not the only one who wants to knw this but is there an easier way to dis-assemble the headlight housing without having to put it in the oven. i'm gonna get some stock headlights off ebay but i'm afraid i might melt them (like everybody else). but is there some type of liquid that might eat away at the epoxy without damaging the headlight housing or anyother ideas anybody can think of?

It's been done by so many people, I think the techniques are basically nailed down. I did mine a while ago, haven't heard of any problems opening them. They all seem to have went smooth except for the guy who painted the chrome (plastic) reflector parts inside.

Here's a guide I whipped up while I did mine.

http://celicagarage.com/forums/viewtopic.php?t=1185

You think a oven is gonna melt them? If that was true none of us would have done it! Our headlights can take a headon collison at 70, a little heat is childs play for em

THink about it, to cook a chicken breast at 350 it basically has to be in the oven for about an hour. We put the lights in at 350, then TURN THE OVEN OFF & let it cool for 15 minutes with the light inside. So the temp is actually dropping as the light is inside. I would do it again without hesitation.

^ ahaha yeah good logic. For me i had some trouble. I just moved into this new recently built like couple months ago and the new oven seems to take away all the heat inside if you turn it off. So if you preheat to 360, it like sucks out the heat or cools it or osmething so when i was blackhousing, the epoxy just would melt! Plus i totally forgot that you have to turn it off so yeah i had encountered some problems.

If you're going to blackhouse or open your lights, make sure you have a towel underneath the lights and please don't place the lights Plastic side down. ahah i was absentminded and placed it on the grill thing with the clear plastic laying down, AND i left the oven ON for 15 minutes. Guess what happened? It was hot and gravity pulled my lights down and it made a small dent but not that noticable. Also, it started to smoke in the oven because i placed a towel in there that was not wet, and because i left the oven on. lol, yeah.. well gluck with yours. oh yeah, bumper sticker removers gets rid of epoxy great. That thing is amazing.