Suggestions to restore plastic casing?

[c0ldb33r]

My PCE Duo looks dull and has light scratches all over the top. I'd love for it to look new again.

Any suggestions to make it look new? Wax? Wipes? Something else?

[turboswimbz]

Off the top of my head I have had favorable results on plastics with the following:

Armor-all or similar product
Car - plastic/headlight restorer

depending on the issue:
Retro Bright might help too.

[c0ldb33r]

My concern is that it will be sticky, attract dust, or damage the plastic. You've never had issues with Armor All?

[turboswimbz]

My concern is that it will be sticky, attract dust, or damage the plastic. You've never had issues with Armor All?

IN small amounts no.  but I've never tried more than spray to a clean rag on my TG/PCE stuff.

[xelement5x]

I'm not sure what the finish on the Duo is, but I'm going to assume it's not textured or else most polishes won't work.  I've used Novus 123 to restore some game gear screens before so maybe give that a try?  People also use Novus for repairing scratches in laserdiscs since you can have varying levels of abrasiveness depending on which solution (1, 2, or 3) you use.

[c0ldb33r]

Novus is a plastic polish right? That's a neat idea. The finish on a duo is smooth, albeit mime is a little scratched.
Thanks:)

[FiftyQuid]

Novus is a plastic polish right? That's a neat idea. The finish on a duo is smooth, albeit mime is a little scratched.
Thanks:)

Is the PCE Duo black?  I'm too lazy to look it up.

If so, I use this stuff on my TG-16;


You can use as much as you want, but I only use a little.  It looks wet when you are done, but the product absorbs into the plastic.  Even gives it a nice smell.

[c0ldb33r]

The PCE Duo is dark grey. Neat idea for the tg16. Does it make the system sticky or attract dust?

[Keith Courage]

Mr clean magic eraser. The only issue with it is you will want to scrub the entire system with it. If you do just one small part it will be obvious that it looks different. So I go right to left across the system so it all looks even. Also, don't rub too hard cause it can leave spots that look way too clean than others. I've done it enough to where I get a nice smooth finish on the whole thing when I am done.  Makes horrible looking systems look 85% better. Some scratches are still visible but you have to look very hard to see them.


Before









After

[FiftyQuid]

The PCE Duo is dark grey. Neat idea for the tg16. Does it make the system sticky or attract dust?

It will work with any colour of plastic.  It is originally intended for automotive trim so it's most definitely safe to use on your Duo.  It does not make the system sticky, but I would not put it on your controllers as it would make them slick (similar to Armour All).  It actually repels dust.  It's also save for clear plastic like on the CD-ROM cover.

[HercTNT]

Only drawback to the magic eraser is all the fine particles of melamine it leaves in the cracks and possibly the cd lense. Otherwise it does work very well. I usually go back with some qtips to clean out the cracks after i use the magic eraser. The novus polish is fantastic stuff as well. have had very good luck with it.

Keith, nice working on making that duo look swanky. very impressive results.

[Keith Courage]

Yeah, I prefer to take the case apart when using the magic eraser to make it easier on cleaning all the white particles out afterwards. I then use an old toothbrush and water on all the cracks and crevices.

[xelement5x]

I might grab some of that back to black as well, it looks kind of nifty.  I've got an xeye that might benefit from that.