Scratch CDs

You can help out these guys:

Spoiler

There are putty-and-oil solutions out there to fill in the few scratches on the underside of the CD that prevent some skipping, but you won't get your CD's back to 100% PLAYA-bility.

 

Get a soft damp cloth and add a little bit of regular toothpaste to it. Rub the cloth over the scratched area in a smooth circular motion. Rinse under the sink with water and dry with a soft cloth. Repeat as necessary until the disc doesn't skip. The way it works is the toothpaste has a slight coarseness to it that when rubbed against the scratches acts as a very fine grain sandpaper. It will leave small swirl marks over the polished area, but these do not cause any problems to the disc. I've fixed Xbox games, CDs, and DVDs using this method and it always works. Hope this helps.

 

Theres this thing you can buy that can turn them into playable records, similar to a vinyl record.

 

Also, I forgot to mention that I've fixed a few CD's using a lighter, but it can be tough to do.

 

Creamy peanut butter and a coffee filter.


Use the filter to rub the pb from center to outer edge in a straight line, radiating outward all the way around the disc, in a buffing fashion.

Do NOT use a swirling motion, as this could scratch the disc further and put grooves in it that a laser cannot read.

Do NOT apply anything to the painted side, as this is the side the information is burned to as well.


If you hold the disc to the light and see any light coming through in "pin holes" you cannot repair the disc as the information is literally missing, not just scratched.


I'm not kidding about the pb and coffee filters either. The fine texture of the filters acts as a fine sanding agent, and the oils in the pb fills the grooves and helps the abrasion not go too deep.

Rinse the disc under warm water until all excess pb is off.






Then rip it to a hard drive... but make sure all the excess pb is off first.

 

I clicked in this thread to say the same thing. I've done this before with success. Don't think it has ever failed me, unless the disc was too deeply scratched.

 

i just knew you were BSin till i saw that youre not kidding part.
interesting. i might have to try that.

 

That's funny, I had one of those hand crank gadgets you're talking about and it worked 9 out of 10 times. I believe it was called Game Doctor or something like that.

 

Yeah, I used to have an automatic one like they use in the video game stores but i don't know where it is right now.

 

I hear human urine will restore the disc as well as anything. Try it out!

 

I use Windex on my daughter's CDs all the time because she likes to play with them. I just spray it on and wipe it off. If that doesn't work you can buy some stuff from Gamestop for around $7.99 , I bought it when we scratched our guitar hero.