Magic Mouse black residue

[XNorth]

I am wondering what fixes people have come up with for this problem.

Recently I noticed a blackish coloring of my fingers after working on my Mac. Curious, I ran my fingers across the the mouse pad, a smooth aluminum surface, and found it was covered with a black residue. I tried the Magic Mouse on a bright cardboard, I was surprised to discover that the residue came from the two tracks on the bottom of the mouse. Whatever material Apple used for the tracks, they don't seem durable. They are rubbing off and leaving this dark powder. It rubs off easier and noticeable if you use a hard surface for the Magic Mouse like I do.

I haven't heard of anyone having this problem with the Magic Mouse. I'm sure it's not an isolated issue given the complaints about discolored mouse pads. It's probably isn't a health hazard, but I'd rather not risk inhaling this stuff.

 

[AZhappyjack]

I am wondering what fixes people have come up with for this problem.

Recently I noticed a blackish coloring of my fingers after working on my Mac. Curious, I ran my fingers across the the mouse pad, a smooth aluminum surface, and found it was covered with a black residue. I tried the Magic Mouse on a bright cardboard, I was surprised to discover that the residue came from the two tracks on the bottom of the mouse. Whatever material Apple used for the tracks, they don't seem durable. They are rubbing off and leaving this dark powder. It rubs off easier and noticeable if you use a hard surface for the Magic Mouse like I do.

I haven't heard of anyone having this problem with the Magic Mouse. I'm sure it's not an isolated issue given the complaints about discolored mouse pads. It's probably isn't a health hazard, but I'd rather not risk inhaling this stuff.

Are you sure it's not cruft and buildup from dust and whatever that is attaching itself TO the the little black tracks? I have to constantly scrape that crap off of my MM - using my fingernail... otherwise, I have NO issue with anything related to "black residue".

BTW, the issue is MUCH IMPROVED (read: less of an issue) since I switched to a leather deskpad/mouse pad.

 

[pmiles]

I have a Logitech mouse with similar glide pads... they too slough off. My mouse is a few years old now. Basically it's natural wear and tear. The pads are designed to wear down over time... as such the older the device gets, the worse the residue from wear gets.

The outgassing from the computer is far worse than the stuff wearing off your mouse.

The only way to fix it is to get a new mouse, or replace the strips. Something like this (random internet search):

Magic Mouse Protective Velvet Rails Replacement Glides, No More Scratched Desk. Set of 6 - Etsy

This Keyboards & Mice item by UnitedKingdomOfDecal has 210 favorites from Etsy shoppers. Ships from Poland. Listed on Oct 21, 2024

www.etsy.com

 

[Erehy Dobon]

Replace the glide strips with new ones. Maybe some company markets replaces; for sure Apple does not sell replacements on their store.

If you are crafty, you might be able to fashion your own from some PTFE (recognized more commonly by its trade name: Teflon). You could switch to white material instead of black. Teflon's natural color is actually white. It's dyed black for things like non-stick frying pans to hide unsightly discoloration but Teflon pipe tape is the natural color.

My Mountain Makala 67 mouse has white PTFE pads (and came with a set of replacement pads).

Since the Magic Mouse glide pads are straight it would be a fairly simple project. You'll have to research on your own on which adhesives work with PTFE but this is an ideal use for an Internet search engine.

 

[XNorth]

Are you sure it's not cruft and buildup from dust and whatever that is attaching itself TO the the little black tracks? I have to constantly scrape that crap off of my MM - using my fingernail... otherwise, I have NO issue with anything related to "black residue".

BTW, the issue is MUCH IMPROVED (read: less of an issue) since I switched to a leather deskpad/mouse pad.

Definitely not buildup. I will replace the tracks with Teflon strips I already have. doesn’t look like a difficult project.

 

[AZhappyjack]

Definitely not buildup. I will replace the tracks with Teflon strips I already have. doesn’t look like a difficult project.

I don’t mean to be argumentative... but I’ve been using the Magic Mouse (v1 and v2) since it’s release, c.2009, and never seen any of them shed any black dust, powder or residue. I have probably owned and used 7 or 8 of them in the past 10+ years. The only thing I have seen is the cruft and buildup that I mentioned above.