Restoring Front Panels

[@dosgos]

Great video. I have restored some older plastic electronics. I always start plastics blowing off the dust then gentle water shower, then a bit of mild soap and maybe a microfibre towel. These are surprisingly effective and not so harsh on the environment. Bring out the bigger guns in moderation. EDIT- As John Coops noted, test all chemicals and methods beforehand! I might use some ultra fine sandpaper with lots of water flowing (that reduces friction and washes particles that can scratch). I use some auto polishes but many state on the bottles they are NOT for plastics. I use some auto waxes/finishes but some of these can stain plastics. So overall, use extreme caution with automobile finishing chemicals. The stickers look great. Other alternatives are to visit the local sign shop and have them print up on their higher quality printers & materials. Or visit the local hobby-model store for scale ideas.

[@RichardKinch]

Keep your old plastic credit cards to use as scrapers for removing stubborn things with solvent, like adhesive stickers. Cut them with scissors to get a fresh square edge, to shape for reaching into corners. Sharpen the edge on a grinding wheel or sandpaper to get a knife edge or feather edge.

[@JohnJones-oy3md]

Great tips - thank you. If I might share some of my own favorite products..... For polishing clears I like the NOVUS 1-2-3 multi-step system. I've saved a lot of LCD's with that over the years. For light cleaning of plastics and giving them that satin 'fresh out of the injection mold' look, I've settled on a product meant for automotive interiors, Meguiar's G4116 Natural Shine Protectant. I'm going try to get hold of the Surface 95. While googling the datasheet I found that Kontakt Chemie is a subsidiary(?) of CRC Industries, which is widely distributed in the US. I'll have to see if they have an equivalent product under the CRC brand.

[@KainkaLabs]

Thanks for additional hints

[@starrlucky6549]

Thank you for sharing your experience.

[@johncoops6897]

I cannot stress how important it is to test the plastic and painted surfaces before using solvents! A simple example - many modern plastic front panels use a spray painted surface layer to provide a high gloss, matt, satin, fake anodized metal or even a "rubber-like" feel and finish. These finishes will not be applied to the rear side, only the front (visible) face.... so you cannot just test on the back side! You can easily destroy these special surfaces even with Isopropanol. This can be used to your advantage too - if the rubber/matt coating is sticky or worn, you can remove it completely! ... Acetone will DESTROY most plastics, however you can use it to melt and restore gloss and sun damage. This is NOT easy and takes a lot of skill to get a smooth, even surface. I've seen some people placing the plastic inside a sealed enclosure with Acetone fumes, but once again it takes special care and skill. ... For polishing, buy a Headlight Restoration Kit from the Auto stores. You can use Metal Polish at the beginning to make the process quicker, but then you have to use Acrylic Polish to remove the scratches afterwards. Do not use the same polishing cloth, and make sure to remove all metal polish before the final polishing steps.

[@KainkaLabs]

I agree 100%

[@dosgos]

Good tips! What are generally good materials to remove sticky rubber coatings? Instrument case is labeled PC+ABS-FR(40). Does the FR mean fire resistance or fibre-reinforced?

[@RichardKinch]

Agree that ethanol is unsuitable. In the US it is denatured, typically with denatonium which is an awful residue (let some dry on a fingertip and taste, to test if it is present). May also be denatured with acetone which attacks plastics, or methanol which is toxic. In some places you can get 75/25 percent pure ethanol/water not denatured/contaminated, as an expensive taxed product in the liquor store. Agree that isopropanol is useful as it is supplied as pure with water, no denaturants. Also useful is hexane, available as "white gas" fuel for camp stoves. Petroleum solvents are typically inert on plastics but aggressive against adhesives or oily residues. Don't use silicone on or around precision optical surfaces like lenses or instruments, it bonds to glass and won't clean off. Acrylic floor polish is an acrylic coating that cures to a fresh optically-polished surface to renew scuffed acrylic surfaces.

[@KainkaLabs]

Thanks for additional tips

[@uwepolifka4583]

I often use Kontakt WL Spray and VISS scouring milk. In most cases it works great but you have to be allways carefull. I tried VISS on Plexiglas and it works without scratches but no warranty

[@stusoldcars4248]

Excellent 👍