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Scratched dashboard.

Posted: Tue Nov 29, 2022 5:23 am
by Willo
Hi All, Some lowlife has used a key to scratch the perspex (or whatever it is) cover over my Tacho. Has anyone has any success cleaning up / polishing the perspex. Needless to say I'm not happy.

Re: Scratched dashboard.

Posted: Tue Nov 29, 2022 5:21 pm
by paso750
Can you post a picture? You can fix scratched plastic surfaces but the result will depend on the depth of the scratches. You can find polish for plexi- and acrylic glas and you can find complete sets to fix scratched or dull headlights. Typically you'll start blocksanding wet by hand with a 1.500-2.000 grit sanding paper. I wouldn't go lower than 1.000 grit as that may cause fine scratches that won't polish out afterwards. In the second step repeat the process with 3-4.000 grit. At last clean and dry everything thorougly and apply the polish using a soft non-abrasive mircofiber cloth. The finer the sandpaper you start with is, the longer it will take to remove scratches of course, but the endresult will be better.

Re: Scratched dashboard.

Posted: Wed Nov 30, 2022 6:09 am
by higgy
Flame polishing works very well but it takes a keen eye and practice :truck:

Re: Scratched dashboard.

Posted: Wed Nov 30, 2022 3:12 pm
by randtcastell
Sorry for your misfortune. The important thin is not to take it personally. The culprit is deranged or mentally unfit. Two techniques that I've had success with restoring clear plastic like acrylic:

1. Wet sand with 1200 grit sandpaper, then buff/cut with an ultra-cut compound like "MEGUIARE'S MIRROR GLAZE 105" to remove fine sanding swirls
2. if the scratch is too deep after buff/cutting, clean the plastic with alcohol and spray with a coat or 2 of clear acrylic in a can. Any clear coat that won't yellow under UV and adheres to plastic will do. Result will be satisfactory.

Goof luck! :^)

Re: Scratched dashboard.

Posted: Fri Dec 02, 2022 2:20 am
by Willo
Thank you everybody for the fine advice. I have moved on but it's very hard to see something you have loved and well kept for 32 years, suddenly desecrated .