Remove Scratches from CD/DVDs

mvasu22

Member
Joined
Aug 25, 2010
Messages
71
Points
8
Location
chennai
I have a huge collection of Audio CDs and movie DVDs and would treat them like GOD and kept them with lot of respect, but then when I had kids these CDs became their play toys. Although I was under supervision while they played with it, they caught a lot of surface scratches and some deep ones too.

So I looked into the internet and found some videos on how to clean it. I used them. Here are my ratings of each method that I tried.

1. Colgate tooth paste: (Not the gel) it worked well but still it was able to remove only the surface scratches. The deep ones still remained. By deep ones I mean those which make the player either skip tracks or Movies to freeze.

Result: 3/10

2. Car Liquid Wax polishes: This one worked well for a little time (2 days). The scratches came back. The wax polish only lasted for 2 days. My car wax does not need water for cleaning, hence just wiped it over the CD and removed the excess via cotton balls/soft cloth. When the polish was there the CD worked much better, but after 2 days it came back to the old state.

Result: 5/10

3. Chewing gum: (Not making this up) Found one video but had to watch it 2/3 times to understand how and make sure I did not screw up the CD. (The same method, use Banana Peel instead of Gum). Both these methods did not work at all, my guess is that the movie was well edited since, after the treatment the CDs in the movie were almost spotless and scratch free.

Result: 2/10

4. Finally I found one which worked wonders, its the Brasso technique. The only thing which we have to remember is to wipe it from the centre to the rim in a straight line rather than circular motion.

I guess that Brasso works well on old Brass/Bronze items, I tried it (Saw the video, not claiming my idea). It worked wonders, I tried it with an almost unplayable CD and it returned to playable state. The polish also stays for a long time.

Result: 7/10.

Having said this I would also advice not to use those which are brand new CD with single scratches, I lost one using the toothpaste method. All the above works well with little old and badly scratched CDs since it doesnt hurt us if we lose the medium completely. Also I found that too much of water is also not good for CD/DVD.

NOTE: Do not use air/air blowers to dry the medium, it has to be left in a cool place to dry. Not even reflective sun-light.

So my question now, Is there any other better method for me to remove those scratches from for those CD/DVD which have miniscule scratches (say 85% good) .

Folks do let me know, I have a few lined up in my collection for repair which have few not so deep scratches.

Thanks
 
Thanks for the info mate....very useful post....I have personally used liquid soap (handwash) on scratched DVDs and found it effective for one use after the wash !
 
Although I was under supervision while they played with it, they caught a lot of surface scratches and some deep ones too.

You were under your kid's supervision? No wonder your kids had lots of fun. Just wonder - a father who will take orders from his own kids. I want to be your kid in my next birth. :)

Cheers
 
Last edited:
You were under your kid's supervision? No wonder your kids had lots of fun. Just wonder - a father who will take orders from his own kids. I want to be your kid in my next birth. :)

Cheers

no venkatcr -

the wife was supervising entire proceedings - fathers can (suddenly) loose their cool, and run amuck?

hehe! - i am always under supervision when i am allowed to be near destructive children who come within 10 feet of my loudspeakers.
 
no venkatcr -

the wife was supervising entire proceedings - fathers can (suddenly) loose their cool, and run amuck?

hehe! - i am always under supervision when i am allowed to be near destructive children who come within 10 feet of my loudspeakers.

@Venkatcr: my kids demand myself under their supervision, there is no way out for me.

@Suri: you hit the nail on the head, I will suddenly burst which ruins the day for everyone, hence I have been requested to be under kids domination.

Guess you folks are lucky.
 
i distinctly remember venkatcr saying that the best way to deal with a scratched CD was to break it into pieces and throw it away.

@mvasu - my wife supervises me very carefully, because if i see/anticipate little children approaching my loudspeakers with intent to do harm, it is quite likely that the children will burst:lol:
 
i distinctly remember venkatcr saying that the best way to deal with a scratched CD was to break it into pieces and throw it away.

If I really love an album, I usually buy two copies. I have now started ripping all my CDs. I have not had even one CD scratched till now, as I do not allow anyone else to touch my CDs.

Cheers
 
that's a good idea venkat....

i do the exact same... no lending etc... also i NEVER use my cd's for listening in the car audio.... make a copy and use that... those sliding transports in cdp's used in cars really screw it up!
 
Repair kit at 15.95...CD/DVD Repair Kit
lrg-ter-cdDiskRepairer.jpg


one more
SkipDr_Premier_Cleaner-m200.jpg



SkipDr Premier Disc Cleaner :: Digital Innovations
long back i created a thread on the same ...
 
Sure. I will charge Rs.30 per CD plus courier charges. :):)

Cheers

that should be a done deal for all of us -

seeing that new cds go for 500 - 1000 INR /

and that some (old and rare) cds are not available for sale.
 
I tried brasso & toothpaste earlier tonight and unfortunately they didn't do the trick for a CD with mild scratches. I'm dumbfounded as the CD plays perfectly in wmp/dbp without skipping /errors. When I attempt ripping in dbp it rips fine upto a certain track beyond which it goes through pass 1, 2 and then 7000+ frames of re-rip only to end up with an insecure rip. With wmp it rips all tracks and starts skipping right at the problematic track on playback obviously due to the insecure wmp rip. I also tried EAC hoping for a miracle but didn't happen and froze at the problem track hence had to abort ripping. Can fms please suggest what should I do next to try and salvage my precious music from audio CDs that play perfectly but don't rip?
 
Last edited:
I would not attempt to repair or restore a disc , usually the layer or coating wears off over age and it's not just scratches that render the CDs unusable .
I usually use IPA with a micro fiber cloth to clean the CD, this method doesn't remove the scratches but keeps the surface clean .

When buying second hand CDs pay for good quality CDs with no holes (CD rot) and minimal scratches in them .
Deep scratches in a CD would also throw an error when you do a secure rip.

Do a burst rip for this particular track alone and see if it helps .
 
I tried brasso & toothpaste earlier tonight and unfortunately they didn't do the trick for a CD with mild scratches. I'm dumbfounded as the CD plays perfectly in wmp/dbp without skipping /errors. When I attempt ripping in dbp it rips fine upto a certain track beyond which it goes through pass 1, 2 and then 7000+ frames of re-rip only to end up with an insecure rip. With wmp it rips all tracks and starts skipping right at the problematic track on playback obviously due to the insecure wmp rip. I also tried EAC hoping for a miracle but didn't happen and froze at the problem track hence had to abort ripping. Can fms please suggest what should I do next to try and salvage my precious music from audio CDs that play perfectly but don't rip?
Try this:
Windows Media Player->Organize->Options->Devices->Select your CD drive->Properties->Check the use error correction
 
I would not attempt to repair or restore a disc , usually the layer or coating wears off over age and it's not just scratches that render the CDs unusable .
I usually use IPA with a micro fiber cloth to clean the CD, this method doesn't remove the scratches but keeps the surface clean .

When buying second hand CDs pay for good quality CDs with no holes (CD rot) and minimal scratches in them .
Deep scratches in a CD would also throw an error when you do a secure rip.

Do a burst rip for this particular track alone and see if it helps .

burst rip in dbp is first pass after which it goes to pass 2 (secure rip) but due to the scratches / erroneous frames invariably ends up as an insecure rip which is frustrating.

Try this:
Windows Media Player->Organize->Options->Devices->Select your CD drive->Properties->Check the use error correction

are you referring to enabling of C2 error correction for the drive? I think I read somewhere that dbp discourages enabling C2 as it usually adds fuel to an already fiery "secure" rip. just my two cents. please correct me if i'm wrong.
 
burst rip in dbp is first pass after which it goes to pass 2 (secure rip) but due to the scratches / erroneous frames invariably ends up as an insecure rip which is frustrating.



are you referring to enabling of C2 error correction for the drive? I think I read somewhere that dbp discourages enabling C2 as it usually adds fuel to an already fiery "secure" rip. just my two cents. please correct me if i'm wrong.
In DBP set ripping option to burst then it won't rip the track second time.
C2 Error recovery to be enabled only if it is supported by your drive.
The track will be insecure if you a do a burst rip but is playable.
I get problems wherein i rip the track though secure mode and some times if there are too many frame errors the track is not playable at all. It would play for few seconds then stop completely
 
In DBP set ripping option to burst then it won't rip the track second time.
tried that option and failed as burst rip went through albeit slowly and eventually ended up with an insecure unplayable rip.

C2 Error recovery to be enabled only if it is supported by your drive.
tried this too and it only makes things worse in my experience. ymmv

The track will be insecure if you a do a burst rip but is playable.
The track(s) are unplayable as mentioned.

I get problems wherein i rip the track though secure mode and some times if there are too many frame errors the track is not playable at all. It would play for few seconds then stop completely
precisely whats happening here as well!
 
Back
Top