Removing scratches from glass

[Phil K]

Removing scratches from glass - can it be done?

Not sure if it is possible but the Mrs used the LCR the other morning and when clearing the frost from the glass she has managed to put a couple scratches in the back window and a few on the front...

I doubt much can be done with the front as the glass is different to the back but I'm hoping something can be done for the rear screen? The front will be replaced at some point anyway after picking up yet another stone chip recently

I will also be writing to the company that make the ice scraper as in all the years I've used them I've never known one to scratch the bloody glass like this


TIA

 

[lc_allan]

Not ever heard of a scraper causing scratches, that is a weird one.
You could try this:

http://www.quicktest.co.uk/acatalog/CLEANERS_AND_OILS.html

be careful with it though

 

[Phil K]

Nice one Allan - could be worth a go!

This made me chuckle too:

it not only makes faces red, it makes EVERYTHING red, so this should not be used by anyone who is clumsy.

My other thought is - is this a service a windscreen company may offer? Might try calling Autoglass or someone to see what they say...

 

[lc_allan]

It's worth a phone call at least. Not sure if they would though. Post back the results

 

[siwel]

It is possible to do you'll be glad to hear, something I've done with a front windscreen of one of my cars before when it accidently got scratched (not saying how it got scratched as it was my fault!).

If the scratches are too deep you might be in trouble but mine were pretty deep, you could easily feel them when you run your finger nail over them and they still came out.

Right here's the hard part, what you need to do is find some cerium oxide, which is the stuff jewelers use to remove scratches from jewels, this might be hard to get hold of depending on where you are located. I work near hatton garden the main jewelers area of London and there are supply shops here, they sell a reasonable sized packet for 4 or 5 quid, I needed two packets when I did it but my winscreen was very scratched.

Next you need a buffer pad attachment for a drill I got mine from robert dyas, it's a circle of rubber with a metal bit sticking out of the center that you can put in a drill and then it comes with a wool pad that wraps around the rubber disk and you can tie it tight.

The basic info on the process I got from this web site:

http://www.bostonaquariumsociety.org/html/faqs/scratches.htm

You mix the cerium oxide with water to make a paste then using the pad on the drill you apply it to the scratched area and move it about a bit. I'd recommend using a mains powered drill, I had 2 cordless drills and they run out of steam long before the job was finished, also the mains powered drill made much lighter work of the job. It took me about 2 hours in total of messing about until it was all done but about 30% of the windscreen was scratched.

Hope this helps, no probs if you want to get in touch for more info. Hope you manage to track down a jewelers supply shop.

 

[lc_allan]

Some good info there!

 

[marshyc]

You could try this. Similar to as described above but all in one kit.

http://www.frost.co.uk/item_Detail.asp?productID=8109&frostProductName=Windscreen%20Scratch%20Repair%20Kit&catID=20&frostCat=Glass&frostSubCat=&subCatID=

 

[Phil K]

Cheers for the tips - loads of good info

Think that kit should do it just fine! Will post results!