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Replies: 25 / Views: 4,324 |
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Pillar of the Community
United States
4468 Posts |
I have this 1883 dime in a NGC holder that has distracting holder scratches. In the photo the black lines are shadows from holder scratches. I have tried about 5 applications of PlastX without making any impact on the scratches. Any one have any other solution to remove the scratches short of getting the holder replaced?  
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Pillar of the Community
United States
2403 Posts |
I picked up this stuff called Z Clear for my glasses. Says is safely removes scratches and cleans any lens. It works great for my glasses and I sometimes use it on my Air tites. I picked mine up at Street Vibrations (Huge Biker Rally) in Reno last year. They do have a website. http://www.z-clear.com. There is a spray and a gel. Get the gel. If the scratches are too deep nothing will fix except new slab.
Edited by MontCollector 05/13/2016 1:16 pm
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Rest in Peace
United States
17900 Posts |
I've had some luck with car window scratch filler, but it takes 3 or 4 applications on the NGC.
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Rest in Peace
United States
4078 Posts |
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Moderator
 United States
187702 Posts |
Ouch.  My solution is to just free the coin, but I know that does not help you. Whatever you try, it might be best to test it on something less important first.
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Pillar of the Community
United States
1119 Posts |
Try a kit made for car headlights or very fine grit sand paper. Start with 800 or 1000 move to finer grit and wet sanding as you progress. finish with a buffing compound and high speed buffe in a cordless drill. be very very VERY careful not to let grit get inside the holder. maybe tape the seam before you begin
Edited by Steele 05/14/2016 01:08 am
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Bedrock of the Community
Australia
21786 Posts |
Experiment with toothpaste or car paint cutting compound on a less conspicuous area.
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Pillar of the Community
 United States
4468 Posts |
I am going to try using Meguiar's PlastX (headlight cleaner) as a buffing compound with a high speed drill. I wll let you know how it goes.
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Bedrock of the Community
United States
20753 Posts |
Quote: I am going to try using Meguiar's PlastX (headlight cleaner) as a buffing compound with a high speed drill. I wll let you know how it goes. Great stuff. I use it all the time on plastics. Let us know how it works.
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Bedrock of the Community
United States
17884 Posts |
I don't know about a high speed drill. Generate too much friction/heat and it could just make matters worse.
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Pillar of the Community
 United States
4588 Posts |
At coin club last year one of the local dealers did a preso using PlastX but said he only uses it on PCGS holders. No drill, just hand polishing.
He said he doesn't touch NGC however as it will more likely do more damage.
? the melting point of the holders is lower ?
-----Burton 50+ year / Life / Emeritus ANA member (joined 12/1/1973) Life member: Numismatics International, CONECA Member: TNA, FtWCC, NETCC, EveryCountry (online) coin club Owned by three cats and a wife of 40+ years (joined 1983) Author: 3rd Edition of the Sample Slabs book, https://www.sampleslabs.info/
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Pillar of the Community
 United States
4468 Posts |
This holder looked like someone had taken it and rub it across asphalt on both sides. I bought the coin knowing what I was getting into. I will give you my lessons learned from using PlastX. I did about 7 or 8 application by hand until my fingers were sore. There was some improvement, but I could still see distracting holder scratches. Today I use a cotton buffer attached to a high speed drill and using the PlastX as a buffing compound. I again made some more improvement as I am no longer getting shadows onto the coin from the scratches. I still have some fine hairline scratches on the holder. Buffing the holder with the drill did no damage to the plastic, but I did touch the NGC sticker and rubed off a section as shown in the photo below. My conclusion is if the holder has deep scratches, do not buy the coin unless you are willing to change the holder or are OK with some scratches. I improved the coin about 90%, but the method that I used still left some hairline scratches. I had better success using the drill with the cotton buffer, than the hand method. If the holder has light scratches, the PlastX works great and can remove these scratches close to 100%. Here is the photo of damage I did to the NGC sticker when buffing:  Here is the cotton buffer I used attached to a drill. The blue substance on the buffer is the PlastX:  Here is a photo of the coin after buffing and there are still some holder hairline white scratches showing:  
Edited by Slider23 05/14/2016 6:02 pm
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Pillar of the Community
United States
824 Posts |
Is that called whizzing the holder?
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Bedrock of the Community
Australia
21786 Posts |
Don't use high speed buff; use LOW speed, it is possible to overheat the plastic.
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Pillar of the Community
United States
7375 Posts |
You are on the right track. Use low speed, and if possible don't let it dry out. Keep it wet and the scratches will come out. In my noob insanity, I used a rotary tool on a holder with a 1909 S VDB MS63 inside. My ignorance was bliss though, and took my time, and the scratches came out and the holder is nice and clear.
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Valued Member
United States
430 Posts |
I use something called NOVUS Plastic Polish. Its available on Amazon for $17. It is a 3 step scratch remover. First use the heavy scratch remover, then fine then cleaner. Elbow grease and a fine gauze. I usually don't even need the heavy step. I'll try a buffer on low speed though. This stuff helps a lot. I think the abrasive in it gets finer the more you work it.
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Replies: 25 / Views: 4,324 |