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Restoring a Scratched Display?

Posted: Thu Dec 09, 2010 10:51 am
by VastOrangutan
Hi all,I feel like I've been posting like a madman trying to sort out all the little things involved with buying a used vehicle. I just bought an AWD Vibe with 115k and am trying to get everything the way I want it inside and out! (Auxiliary ipod adapter soon to be added).Anyway, the inside of the car is flawless, except for a severely scratched radio display. It is not so much small uniform scratches as it is a few larger nicks! It looks similar to a normal protective plastic film on a new screen that gets scratched and eventually needs to be removed to properly see the display. However, the marking is unfortunately on the display itself. Searched the forums and haven't found any info on restoring a display, if it's even possible.I've thought of clear nail polish or some sort of lacquer to smooth over the whole display, but I would like to maintain the low-glare of the original surface. Any ideas would be great!Thanks.

Re: Restoring a Scratched Display? (VastOrangutan)

Posted: Thu Dec 09, 2010 11:14 am
by epcIII
As a descendant of redheads, I welcome you to Genvibe (even though it's not you first post)! Sorry, though, I'm no help on the display. But I think you would probably end up with a bigger mess if you try nail polish, etc..How deep are the scratches? Could you try a polishing compound with a dremel tool?Good luck!

Re: Restoring a Scratched Display? (VastOrangutan)

Posted: Thu Dec 09, 2010 11:40 am
by dgekiere
THE STOCK RADIOS DISPLAY IS HARD TO SEE IN THE DAYLIGHT EVEN WHEN IT WAS NEW. THIS MAY WORK BUT MAY BE WAY OUT THEREhttp://www.autozone.com/autozo..._0_0_IT WORKS GREAT ON HEADLIGHTS AND ALSO GOT IT TO WORK ON A SCRATCHED COMPUTER DISK. ONLY USED THE WET SANDING DISK AND THE POLISHER. MIGHT BE WORTH A SHOT ESPECIALLY IF YOUR HEADLIGHTS ARE SCRATCHED TOO

Re: Restoring a Scratched Display? (dgekiere)

Posted: Thu Dec 09, 2010 12:01 pm
by VastOrangutan
Yes! I actually have some restoring compound I used to buff the haze off my headlights. I'll try it...it's just hard to guess how the surface will act since it's such a unique texture.

Posted: Thu Dec 09, 2010 12:09 pm
by audiovibe
if the scratches are not that deep you could dry sand the display with some 2000-3000 grit sandpaper then use a polishing compound and polish by hand and get good results.

Re: (audiovibe)

Posted: Thu Dec 09, 2010 5:14 pm
by A Psycho Martyr
I agree with audiovibe...try wetsanding with 2000grit with a LITTLE soap on it until you get an even haze, then polish the haze off with a buffing compound. Should come out nicely....ORIf you think you wanna fab something, you could get thin plexi or even a cd case cover and dremmel it to the shape/size you need, and try to replace the existing cover....just throwing ideas at ya

Re: (A Psycho Martyr)

Posted: Fri Dec 17, 2010 12:44 pm
by VastOrangutan
Ended up using some emery cloth to get past the deep scratches, and then a restoring with the same wax/polish that I used to wetsand my headlights. Seemed to work! The Vibe is at peace once again.

Re: (VastOrangutan)

Posted: Fri Dec 17, 2010 1:05 pm
by epcIII

Posted: Sat Dec 18, 2010 1:21 am
by cptnsolo77
I used plastX on my display. Didnt take out the deep scratches but helped clear it up a LOT !