I made some pretty nasty scratches in my custom I/O panel acrylic mod for the Modding On The Cheap project. I did some research and came up with a recipe of my own to remove scratches in acrylic that was quite successful. It combines procedures for lapping heatsinks with general automotive paint scratch removal and surface finish perfection, so I thought I'd post my home-cooked recipe here.

It begins with this post here, and I'll pretty much copy/paste it for easier reading.

Today's Recipe-Du-Jour: Acrylic Scratch Removal.

The pic shows the ingredients needed for a smooth and delicious acrylic scratch removal:

-sandpaper in 800 & 1000 grit (1500 grit optional but results might be barely noticeably better)
-rubbing compound
-polishing compound
-toothpaste
-Nu-Finish Scratch Doctor (removes haze and swirls in automotive paint)

The Nu-Finish could be optional. It didn't make a huge difference, but it was noticeable.



Recipe Preparation:

BEFORE PICS:





1) First, grab the 800-grit and sand over the scratch you wish to remove, rubbing perpendicularly to the scratch. I found that the acrylic would heat up with friction and catch on the sandpaper surface, so I suggest doing this with water running over the acrylic as you sand it (this is known as wet-sanding, to you newcomers to the sanding scene). Imagine that!



2) Once the scratch is no longer visible, now you have to begin the arduous task of blending everything in so that you no longer see the scratches you just made in the surface, with the 800-grit. Grab the 1000-grit and sand first in one direction back and forth, then the opposite direction, perpendicular to the first direction you chose. You should have a consistent hazy look to the acrylic now.



3) Wash it off, get a cloth and the rubbing compound, and give the acrylic a major rub-down. I first went in one direction and then the opposite, as with step 2, but after that, did more even circular motions until everything was rubbed out nice and evenly. Wash it off.



4) Use the polishing compound and another cloth (or paper towel, is what I used) and rub again in even circular motions. Wash it off.

5) Now the acrylic will have a very fine hazy appearance, now it's almost looking quite smooth. The scratches are nowhere to be seen, only nice, smooth acrylic. Whip out your Colgate or Crest or what the hell, Aqua-Fresh Gel (it's the blue LED of toothpastes!) and some paper towel, and repeat the procedure as for #3 and #4. Wash it off.



6) Now you'll have a very nice, smooth finish with barely visible swirling. For most people, that would be good enough.

7) I had this Nu-Finish sitting around so I thought I'd try it out and see what happened. Turns out the results were even smoother! So if you want the best results, finish up your acrylic recipe with a nice creamy dessert of your choice of automotive scratch & swirl remover.



AFTER PICS:

You're a genius. You already know it. As you know who I Am

I was going to say that the acrylic had a constant cloudy look on it, even when you didn't use compound, but then I relized it was the carpet behind it

You flamed down those edges right? They look darn spiffy smooth!

Dude.... You Tha Man!!!!!

Quote: Originally Posted by Gzim I was going to say that the acrylic had a constant cloudy look on it, even when you didn't use compound, but then I relized it was the carpet behind it You flamed down those edges right? They look darn spiffy smooth!

Yeah, I flame-polished the edges before the scratch removal.

Yo, does this work with UV reactive acrylic, like on the Ultra Mini Wizard? The UV effect makes the scratches more noticeable and I doubt it will work. What do you think?

Quote: Originally Posted by U8312_1337 Yo, does this work with UV reactive acrylic, like on the Ultra Mini Wizard? The UV effect makes the scratches more noticeable and I doubt it will work. What do you think?

Of course it'll work. It doesn't matter what kind of acrylic it is, or even metal for that matter. Scratches show up very obviously with UV-reactive acrylic, and this procedure explains how to remove the scratches--whether the acrylic is clear, black, or colored.

Thanks a bundle

Thanks for the guide.

You're welcome guys! I'm happy that it worked for you.