I've been buying wrecked or damaged headlights on eBay for parts.
This means I can use damaged lenses now, too
I finished up with 2500 grit, then polishing
compound, then straight polish.
Afterward, as I posted, the polish had to be washed off, but
any type of cloth will just scratch it again, hence the warm water, soap, and fingertips only. Using alcohol and compressed air to flush out the water dries it with 0 water spots and no touching
Thanks for the encouragement guys!
It was tough setting that sandpaper down for the first time...