What I thought was sandblasting on the windshield actually seems to be maybe a little clear overspray (at least some of it). I think I need to use some kind of solvent on it, what would you suggest?

I remember that Jaguar uses some kind of paste to clean the windshield, has anyone ever used it?

 

Thinners if its paint related, but the risk of that stuff getting onto the body paint is always there, so be careful.

A sharp razor blade, used as a scraper, and again great care.

Any abrasive could scratch teh glass, so I would stay away from them.

Find an Automotive Glazier, and let them do it, they will know what is what.

 

I use a razor, as Grant mentioned, for tough stuff.

Or use an ordinary mild polishing compound such as you'd polish your paint with. I 'polish' my glass that way several times a year.

Ultra fine steel wool would do the trick as well I'd think. It'll make your glass sparkle and should remove overspray in a whistle, faster then polishing compound. Try combining WD40 or other mild solvent with the steel wool to soften the overspray.

Cheers
DD

 

I use a good quality glass cleaner (e.g. Autoglym) and a "Magic Sponge" and get good results.

 

Stuff stuck on the glass can often be removed carefully with a razor blade and/or 0000 steel wool as already mentioned. I'll use a small amount of gum remover for sticker residue, but more potent solvents can be dangerous as they could soak through most anything like plastic sheeting or tarps you might mask off the rest of the car with and then after all that effort, might not work very well. Don't know about ordinary car polish but a reducing compound something like Meguiars Mirror Glaze #4 sometimes does the trick if there's years of stuff really stuck on. If the surface is indeed abraded, then you need to use cerium oxide but you have to be careful on a windshield not to let it get hot while polishing as it can cause it to de-laminate. I've removed some very deep scratches, but it can literally add up to a few 8-hour days worth of polishing, only worth it on antique cars where either you can't get replacement glass or trying to preserve the original date-coded glass.

 

The razor blade worked great! Thanks.

 

Getting stuff off the glass is easy, I would be worried about what is on the paint.

 

On the paint were I had over spray I used an oil based liquid to seep under the micro spots leaving it on for a couple of days , then I used one of the cheap ( dollar bins at the hardware store ) plastic putty knifes ( any plastic square edge will do ) to pop of the offending spots . To get do down to the base clearcoat I hand washed several times with some strong laundry soap . Leaving the strong soap on for a couple of hours each . Supprized at how much dirt and grime in encased by the wax substraight . Spot repairs of the chips . My local household equipment rental shop has car buffers for $ 20 a day .