If you are a technology junkie then you no doubt have thousands of commercial CDs or DVDs, not to mention thousands more of your own archives. Even if you take care of your collection like a scientific laboratory, you are bound to scratch some of these discs. Replacing these discs may be very expensive (if not irreplaceable), so a good disc repair kit what every modern household needs.
While the methods in this article have worked well in testing, I cannot guarantee you will achieve the same results. Anything you do to your discs you do so at your own peril.
There are many consumer CD/DVD repair kits out on the market today (Disc Washer, Disc Doctor, Memorex OptiFix Pro, etc), and they are all pretty much the same devices. Whether electronic or hand-cranked, these devices consist of a mechanical spindle and two buffing/cleaning pads. So what makes an expensive one worth the extra money? I’ve used several that work decently, and others that don’t seem to help at all. The commercial disc cleaner at my neighborhood GameStop returns discs to a like-new finish in just a few minutes, but professional units like this cost over $500.
The only real difference are the compounds used in these consumer devices. Some only require water, but that’s because the chemicals are embedded within the pads themselves. Some compounds perform better than others, but how do you know which one to use, or which kit is the best?
Any of these CD repair kits can perform on a professional level if you have the right compound, so if you don’t have one, go out and buy a $20 motorized CD repair kit (go ahead and spend the extra $5 on an electronic one, your cranking arm with thank you).
Some kits perform better than others, but none of them have returned my discs back to their original scratchless state. It can be debated how one kit works better over another kit, or one kit is the best buy for the money… but we’re trying to reach scratchless perfection, not a slightly improved scratch. It doesn’t matter which consumer kit you buy, because only an expensive professional disc repair kit is intended to completely remove all scratches.
I’ve tested several household rubbing compounds, from toothpaste and automotive rubbing compound to Acetone and abrasive bathroom cleaners. Let me tell you right now.. Acetone will melt your disc, so don’t even try it. Many of these performed as well as (and in some cases better) than the rubbing compounds included with these consumer kits, but there’s one rubbing compound that was head-and-shoulders above all of them. This secret ingredient is…
Brasso.
Yes, Brasso, the same metal polishy stuff that will remove the laquer from your brass buttons, and used by band-nerds to clean their trumpets and trombones. This household compound can be found in nearly every grocery or drug store, and is very inexpensive ($4.99 for an 8 oz. bottle).
Professional repair kits use better compounds and more pressure, which is why they are “professional” kits. Your $20 consumer device is meant to be gentle, so it doesn’t put that much pressure on the disc. You will get much better results than the included compound on the first cycle, but you’re going to have to run the disc through 3 cycles before it is perfect. No matter how many times you buff a disc with the original solution, you will never completely fix the disc.
Cleaning
The included cleaning solution is nothing more than rubbing alcohol, as I’ve previously stated, and this works fine. If you are really a Cleaning Nazi, then you’ll want to use methanol (a wood-based alcohol used by professional photographers to clean their lenses). Methanol dries almost instantly, so there is absolutely no streaking. If you’re ever near a professional photography store, pickup a bottle of Eclipse. If your local store doesn’t even have Eclipse, then they’re not a “real” photography store (and be sure to tell the 18-year-old behind the counter that in a haughty “mightier-than-thou” tone).
Summary
Use Brasso instead of the included rubbing compound. The only way you’ll do better is to spend $500 on a professional cleaning system. You’re going to have to put your discs through 3 cycles. You should clean your discs after repair, else the compound will continue to do its work. Methanol is better if you have it, but rubbing alcohol works just fine.
Congratulate yourself… you’ve just saved $475.