I read somewhere that you can remove surface scratches in glass with ordinary paste wax.
I gave it a try on a few of my pins. It really does work. Doesn't seem to work on deeper scratches but the shallow ones are GONE.

I took the glass out and set it on a old cotton sheet. I cleaned it will a quality glass cleaner and then applied a paste wax with a 10" orbital buffer. Dry to haze, buff off the wax and polish. Repeated on the other side. It leaves the glass very smooth to the touch.

Anyone else try this with good results?

The down side is that if you have a cat that like to walk on the machine, they are likely to slip and slide a bit and in some cases, fall off. For older cats, this could be disasterous.

#2 11 years ago

MWB

mitchelwb

Inactive member

Lenexa, KS

11y 26,400 90 6

Now I want a cat.

#3 11 years ago

CWG

Chrizg

dsmpinball

Des Moines, IA

12y 93,550 2,084 5

I do my car windows when I wax, but that is for rain run off..

#4 11 years ago

marsgnu

Inactive member

MalmÃ¶

11y 25,400 81 1

I can hear PETA: Stop the inhuman waxing of pinball glass! 1 billion cats die in basement arcades alone!
Jokes aside, thats a great idea!

#5 11 years ago

BOY

vid1900

Pinside+ Member

Sana'a

12y 164K 40,198 18

I use Rain-X, the rain just beads right off.

#6 11 years ago

CIP

tonycip

T&T mods

11y 81,550 1,468 17 1

Quoted from vid1900:
I use Rain-X, the rain just beads right off.

+1 that stuff is amazing!

#7 11 years ago

LUC

luch

Pinside+ Frequent

Newmarket, ON

11y 109K 3,558 74

I tried it once but the hair kept growing back. Oh you said glass ! LOL

#8 11 years ago

YZF

yzfguy

Pinside+ Frequent

12y 146K 11,174 7

Quoted from mitchelwb:
Now I want a cat.

Lol!

#9 11 years ago

BUB

Bub

Inactive member

Little Elm, TX

11y 29,400 280 3

If you use Maquires swirl remover, DA sander w/ 2000 grit pad and spend some time working it, it will take out the heavier scratches as well.

#10 11 years ago

DEV

72Devilz

Pinside member

11y 81,550 1,090 27 8

Anytime I wax my machines I use whats left on the rags to wax both sides of the glass. It sure helps hide the small scratches on the glass. Since I've started using Carnauba on my playfields I use the Milwax on all exterior metal and to remove stubborn gunk on the glass.

#11 11 years ago

BOY

vid1900

Pinside+ Member

Sana'a

12y 164K 40,198 18

I though you guys were joking.

Glass is very hard. To polish out scratches you need an abrasive like Cerium Oxide.

#12 11 years ago

FRX

Frax

Pinside member

Conyers, GA

12y 103K 16,662 2 9

Quoted from vid1900:
I though you guys were joking.
Glass is very hard. To polish out scratches you need an abrasive like Cerium Oxide.

I don't think it necessarily polishes them out as much as it just fills it in, allows a little less "random" light transmission, and makes fine scratches a little less noticeable. Kind of like using oil on wood furniture.

#13 11 years ago

BOY

vid1900

Pinside+ Member

Sana'a

12y 164K 40,198 18

And, of course, at $25 a sheet for brand new glass, I would not spend a bunch of time trying to polish out scratches.....

#14 11 years ago

POP

Nevus

Pinside+ Frequent

12y 129K 6,681 1

Wax will fill in the defects and give an appearance of removal, but not actually remove them. That's still a cool trick.

#15 11 years ago

DEV

72Devilz

Pinside member

11y 81,550 1,090 27 8

Quoted from Nevus:
Wax will fill in the defects and give an appearance of removal, but not actually remove them. That's still a cool trick.

Thats what I go for, the wax does a great job filling and hiding those stubborn little scratches. I don't think I'd go to the time expense of trying to polish down the glass to "Remove" the scratches, seems like a lot of work but hey if it can be salvaged and you got the time go for it!

#16 11 years ago

GAB

WOLF

Pinside member

New Castle, PA

11y 43,650 1,602 2

Quoted from vid1900:
I use Rain-X, the rain just beads right off.

off the glass, or off the cat?

#17 11 years ago

DAV

PersonX99

GSP mods

Manchester, NH

11y 87,550 1,102 16 36 1

I have deeper scratches on my RFM. That glass is more expensive to replace. Fortunately, its not too bad why the game is on.

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