Remove Scratches on Al PowerBook

[michaelrjohnson]

Greetings MR!

I'm wondering if there is a product that anyone knows of that would remove/minimize the appearance of scuffs/light scratches on the Aluminum PowerBooks? I'm not looking for a paint product, but if you've used one with good results, I'd love to know about it.

Thank you all very much in advance!

(Below is a sample of the scuffing. I'm not looking to remove the deep scratches, unless you know how! ;) )

[EGT]

But ... but ... ... HOW!? WHY!?!? :eek: *Cringe*

There might be something useful here (http://www.tipaint.com/)

Edit: More specifically, here (http://www.buyconceal.com/)

[michaelrjohnson]

lol... :D

This isn't my PowerBook (not yet, anyway). Isn't "Conceal" just a paint? I'm hoping to fill/buff out the scuffs.

Perhaps a polish of sorts?

[michaelrjohnson]

I just looked at iCleaner (the iPodlounge reccomended cleaner/polish for iPods both front and back, as well as iBooks). But then I got to thinking, that's plastic and mirror-finish metal. Not quite the same. But I looked at their online "how-to" that includes all iPod models.

How to Polish the iPod mini (http://www.ipodcleaner.com/how_to_instructions/minimetal/1.html)

How about using thier polish for the iPod mini? It is the same material, and about the same finish as the Al PB. What do you think?

[macapple]

i think a company called color ware does it but you would get a completely different color back but it would get ridof the scratches.

[michaelrjohnson]

Good thought, but to paint a customer's laptop (not a new one from them) costs $400.

I was hoping for a cheaper option. ;)

[macapple]

try doing it yourself it may work well

[michaelrjohnson]

try doing it yourself it may work well

I'm not sure I trust my skills enough to do that! :eek: :D

[ITASOR]

May I ask why it matters. The scratches make it "look loved". It's not like it makes it look BAD or anything, theres just some scratches...everything gets scratched.

[michaelrjohnson]

May I ask why it matters. The scratches make it "look loved". It's not like it makes it look BAD or anything, theres just some scratches...everything gets scratched.

No, I understand, the scratches have no affect on the performance of the machine. I'd love for it to look perfect again, but who wouldn't?

That's why I was looking for low-cost options that might buff out the scuffs. I'm not looking for a miracle product, just something to help bring it back to its original beauty! :)

[macbaseball]

I don't know how deep/tough those scratches are, but iKlear (http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/B00078COKE/qid=1118779476/sr=8-1/ref=pd_csp_1/102-9626258-4472947?v=glance&s=electronics&n=507846) might work. I had good luck with it. It won't remove that huge scratch, but it will most likely remove all the dirt.

[michaelrjohnson]

I don't know how deep/tough those scratches are, but iKlear (http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/B00078COKE/qid=1118779476/sr=8-1/ref=pd_csp_1/102-9626258-4472947?v=glance&s=electronics&n=507846) might work. I had good luck with it. It won't remove that huge scratch, but it will most likely remove all the dirt.

I'm not sure how well iKlear would work to remove scuffs, but I bet it's great at cleaning.

Perhaps I'll give it a shot sometime!

[MacHarne]

iKlear works well, but won't fully remove the scratches and whatnot. But after a dose of iKlear, an iBook or PB will look gorgeous.

You could also follow suit with a friend of mine who wanted to get rid of the scratches on his 1st generation iPod. He took some steel wool and polished the back surface evenly. It actually looked kind of interesting once he was done with it, and it certainly got rid of the scars.

I'm actually not recommending that you use steel wool on the PB, though. But I won't keep you from trying and posting very funny pictures.

[michaelrjohnson]

It actually looked kind of interesting.

I'm sure it did! :eek:

At this point, I'm thinking my best options would be iCleaner polish and/or iKlear cleaner. Can anyone else vouch for either of these products?

[tsk]

This is an area where I have some knowledge, and it's mostly the what not to do knowledge.

Basically, unless you plan on removing the lid and having someone sandblast it and re-annodize it, just leave it alone.

If you polish to hard, you can break through the clear annodizing and it'll look like crap. The scratches in all likelyhood have gone through the annodizing so in order to polish them out, you 'd ruin the finish and it would look worse.

It's possible there is something that could fill in the scratch, but I think that is largely dreaming.

You can go and get a new lid for $100 and it's pretty easy to install (sometimes they show up on eBay as well but most of the time they have the LCD attached). Aside from that, my suggestion is pony up the $100 or leave it alone. I can show you some pics of what it looks like when you rub through the finish.

[ericssonboi]

I was in the same situation..
I bought a Powerbook that was already scratched up..

I priced everything out...
Taking it apart by an Apple tech (wasn't cheap)
Professional painting by a body shop (~100)

in the end.. i just sold it and bought a brand new one.
The Apple tech was going to charge me $65 per hour and like 8 hrs of labour..

Use it as is.. and just save your money if you plan on repainting it... unless your getting it for dirt cheap..

[macapple]

so just keep it the way it is

P.S. Mabey Brasso will work it works well with ipods

[michaelrjohnson]

I can show you some pics of what it looks like when you rub through the finish.

I would love to see some pictures, perhaps you could post them to this thread.

Thanks for the input!

[Counterfit]

This is an area where I have some knowledge, and it's mostly the what not to do knowledge.

Basically, unless you plan on removing the lid and having someone sandblast it and re-annodize it, just leave it alone.

If you polish to hard, you can break through the clear annodizing and it'll look like crap. The scratches in all likelyhood have gone through the annodizing so in order to polish them out, you 'd ruin the finish and it would look worse.

It's possible there is something that could fill in the scratch, but I think that is largely dreaming.

You can go and get a new lid for $100 and it's pretty easy to install (sometimes they show up on eBay as well but most of the time they have the LCD attached). Aside from that, my suggestion is pony up the $100 or leave it alone. I can show you some pics of what it looks like when you rub through the finish. I'm going to echo all this. And add one thing: NO BRASSO OR ABRASIVES OF ANY KIND! Abrasion removes the thicker than normal layer of aluminum oxide which is what makes anodized aluminum so special. That's a bad thing, mmmkay?

[michaelrjohnson]

I'm going to echo all this. And add one thing: NO BRASSO OR ABRASIVES OF ANY KIND! Abrasion removes the thicker than normal layer of aluminum oxide which is what makes anodized aluminum so special. That's a bad thing, mmmkay?

What about iCleaner? They sell a paste for use on iPod minis, made of anodized aluminum, similar to the PowerBooks. Wouldn't that make it safe?

iCleaner being used on iPod mini (http://www.ipodcleaner.com/how_to_instructions/minimetal/1.html)

[ericssonboi]

If you love your powerbook enough... just buy a new top casing. If not.. just leave it as it...

[michaelrjohnson]

If you love your powerbook enough... just buy a new top casing. If not.. just leave it as it...

It's not my PowerBook.

[mad jew]

You could try this michaelrjohnson. A good investment IMO. :)

See how much thinner than 1-inch you can get these beasts.

[michaelrjohnson]

You could try this michaelrjohnson. A good investment IMO. :)

See how much thinner than 1-inch you can get these beasts.

lol... thanks mad jew

[erickkoch]

If nicks and scuffs are a problem maybe it would be better to just get a skin covering.

www.skinit.com

Enter "Powerbook" in the search field and select the design you want.

They sell Powerbook skins to cover the outer case and they have interesting designs. I ordered one to protect my new 12' Powerbook because I know that once I get my first few scratches it'll ruin my day.

[michaelrjohnson]

Thanks Eric.

As it turned out, I didn't end up purchasing the aforementioned computer, so I will not be needing to use any of these scratch-removal methods. But I think it's still valuable as a resource.