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Restoring Plexi Crystals

foxindebox

You're Saying I Can Sell?
26/8/12
72
2
8
Hi Everyone,


I just thought I would post a quick guide as to how I restore my scratched Plexi Crystals, I use 4 different materials to do this and they are: -


Wet and Dry Sandpaper (Four different grades ranging from Medium Coarse to Fine which I pre cut into squares and staple together for ease of use).
Water (Lots and lots)
Cotton Wool
And most importantly, a great product called Polywatch (Available online, eBay, and Amazon etc).


So here is an old Smiths watch I am going to restore. As you can see, the Crystal looks pretty bad with scratches and some deep gouges.


E40B7589-2329-46D6-9D56-5709C6F8EBAC_zpsb3cafqzl.jpg



Firstly I use the coarsest grade paper and PLENTY of water and rub the crystal down until it is smooth and there are no deep gouges left. It will look scratched and cloudy, but DONT panic!


72D7D5F1-BF9C-4C28-B62A-B1C32D9490FB_zpswwvaaenf.jpg



92F0727F-2244-4298-8B78-3FAAD8565F4C_zpsgqeyg9cd.jpg



So onto the next grade down. The crystal will feel a lot smoother after this pass and the clouding will look less "scratchy".


A58BF0D4-42FE-49AB-9D6B-95B856E921CA_zpsv1pexdrm.jpg



OK, so now onto the next grade down. Again, the clouding will remain but look a bit less "scratchy".


0730B972-DBBA-451B-AF8D-EE1CE1A04DB6_zpsbv43fby9.jpg



Now onto the final grade paper. This is just to smooth things out further.


E3B8E4D0-7F22-41A5-B2EC-7FDEA4BF51A6_zps4ln8fplg.jpg



Looks even worse than when we started eh? Not to worry, now we grab our Cotton Wool and Polywatch.


62BF054D-A0CD-45AC-B03C-BC11105F3DB8_zpsntvtvzxm.jpg



All we need to do now is put a small drop onto the Crystal and work it round and round for a minute using a little pressure as we go.


1A84CDFA-08BA-4872-9AE5-B1785613138C_zpsxfyom54f.jpg



We can do this a couple of times until finally, the Crystal looks clear and shiny.


F478A6D1-9A94-4347-BC0B-D57F34256A07_zpsrwqkkfj0.jpg



I hope you find this helpful and spend a lot less on new Plexi's ;)
 

foxindebox

You're Saying I Can Sell?
26/8/12
72
2
8
Another quick picture that may illustrate the result a little more clearly.

925AE818-6644-4611-B4FF-095BBB66BD81_zps7afepbsi.jpg
 

trailboss99

Head Honcho - Cat Herder
Staff member
Administrator
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30/3/08
42,572
13,089
113
Yup, elbow grease, wet and dry paper and a bit of Polywatch will fix almost any plexi as long as care is taken.
 

rolexwatchfan

Put Some Respect On My Name
17/8/13
4,224
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Great tutorial! Brave attempt sir!I would need a guinea pig crystal before trying it on my already scratched 372 plexi. Rep points added.
 

Nikoteen

I'm Pretty Popular
12/5/12
2,604
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Yep agree...great info here...I'm sure that most people are told 'Poly watch will get out scratches from any plexi crystal'....what they are not told is the steps of using the grades of 'wet and dry' paper....which of course is a pretty key part of the process. so well done for putting those steps in. Have some Rep.