Posted by Allen on 05/11/07 13:13

efffemm@f-m.fm wrote:
> I saw this thing for cleaning scratches from CD/DVD .
> It has 3 pads pressed against the disc, which you turn by
> a crank handle.
> Now because I saw it on one of those 4 AM home shopping
> infomercials, I thought it must be a dodgy piece of crap.
> I haven't seen them for sale at the purveyors of premium
> high-fidelity audio equipment.
> Therefore I ask the universe: does this scratch remover
> actually work?
>

I use a kit from Allsop called "CD-R Scratch Repair"; I bought my second
one at BigLots for $4.99. It is hand-powered, consisting of a 0.5 ounce
bottle of a white viscous liquid, the bottom half of a jewel case to
hold the CD, and a supply of lint-free cloths. I use it mainly to clean
up discs from the public library, many of which have been terribly abused.

Actually, I've never had a CD that had trouble with scratches on the
"playing" surface. One of the first CDs I owned, back when they really
new, sprang out of my hand when I was extracting it from the case. I
searched high and low for it, but couldn't find it--I finally decided
that it had migrated to another dimension. About two0 months later, it
fell out of a reclining chair, where it had nestled down in the works.
It looked like it had been in a torrid affair with a chainsaw, but I
decided to try to play it before trashing it. Lo and behold! it played
with nary a problem, and still does 20 years or so later. On one
occasion, I was in a Half Price Books store in Seattle where I found an
OP disc that I had been looking for; I looked at it and it was almost in
as bad condition as the one that had a sojourn in the recliner. I showed
it to the cashier, who asked me if I wanted to gamble a dollar on it. (I
was 2000 miles from home and not interested in making a round trip to
return it). I gave him a buck and brought it back to Texas--no problem
with it. I could go on and on, but every story would be the same.

Now, scratches on the label side--that's a different species of animal.
If they are deep enough to penetrate the thin coating on that side of
the disc, there is no hope. If you notice this on a disc but it will
still play, burn a copy ASAP, using something like EAC if necessary.

Allen

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