Restoring discs

[jbrown287]

How do most people go about restoring/cleaning old discs? I bought a bag from a guy yesterday and it has a first fun puma, KC 8X cheetah, eagle and a few other goodies but they are all thrown and old. I would like to clean them up and get them looking good again.

 

[sisyphus]

Personally, I wash them in the sink just like dishes. For stubborn stuff, I carefully wipe with acetone (but be careful: it will take off disc stamps, and some - not all - ink). Sometimes, it will brighten the grunge off of there. Rinse & let dry.
Other folks might have much better ideas though.

 

[BirdieMachine]

Acetone works well for old dirt/pond stains. Don't wipe the stamp. Take some small grit sandpaper to any outward gouges or scrapes.

 

[Jay Dub]

All I would do is clean any dirt off and sand down any rough spots.

 

[Terry 44]

Magic eraser, but soap wash before and after.

 

[kerplunk]

Soap and hot water and a good scrub works well for general griminess, but again be careful because even that can damage a stamp.

 

[DISCenchanted]

Magic Erasers are your friend. But go lightly, they are abrasive and can remove plastic and stamps.

 

[Curtis_Valk]

I've put mine in the dishwasher before. My used discs brightened up a bit but it doesn't take deep stains or ink off (which is a good thing for discs which have MY ink). Be sure to turn off the heat dry cycle if you try this.

Curtis

 

[jbrown287]

Thanks for the replies. Will acetone make the plastic soft?

 

[MarkDSM]

Thanks for the replies. Will acetone make the plastic soft?

NO. acetone is only working the very top surface and will not permeate into the type of plastic that discs are made of.

 

[mdwamp]

Has anyone tried Simple Green as a general cleaner? I know it won't touch ink, just thinking about normal dirt.

I've tried everything I can think of to remove ink...nothing seems to get it all.

 

[Grungedude42]

Has anyone tried Simple Green as a general cleaner? I know it won't touch ink, just thinking about normal dirt.

I've tried everything I can think of to remove ink...nothing seems to get it all.

Ink soaks into the plastic. You can't remove it once it begins to penetrate. All you can do is wait for it to fade and blur as it continues to soak in.

Simple green works great on discs. I once dropped a white Gold Line disc into a bucket of used motor oil, and Simple Green cleaned it up very nicely.