I tried using an eraser to get rid of some scratches on my matte laptop, it ended up making the area a bit "shinier"

ShangWang

Respectable
Mar 26, 2021
616
2
1,885
I tried wiping the area with water, the shiny white-ish mark won't go away. I'm assuming at this point I've used too much abrasion and rubbed off the matte finish and I can't do anything about it. Maybe it'll go away with time/I need some soap, or is this probably permanent?

Is this just the effect you'll have after trying to get rid of scratches and it's unavoidable, or did I probably rub too much?

View: https://imgur.com/ILD5msN
 

ShangWang

Respectable
Mar 26, 2021
616
2
1,885
You put too much elbow grease into that cleanup. Should've stopped when you noticed that the issue was compounding. Yes the problem is permanent.
I thought so, I wasn't aware of how easily matte was damaged, I thought that was just eraser marking.

In the future is it advisable to use an eraser at all for scratches as long as it's shallow enough, or is it always a bad idea for matte? Is it usually better to leave scratches alone?

I plan on getting a sticker to cover up the area, if I ever decide to remove the sticker do you know if matte finishes usually stay on even if I peel the sticker off one day? Should the rest of my laptop have a matte finish under the pre-applied Intel and NVIDIA stickers?
 

ShangWang

Respectable
Mar 26, 2021
616
2
1,885
Peeling off stickers and then a gentle(!) clean to remove residue should leave the matte.
Do you also think sanding the polished area might bring back some kind of matte feeling, or does this require spraying/painting the area and then using sandpaper? Is it not a good idea and won't give the result you want?
 
D

Deleted member 14196

Guest
It’s much easier when you’re not so attached to things. I always think that family is the most important and things are not that important, so yeah for me, I would just ignore it it’s not hurting you at all.
 
  • Like
Reactions: ShangWang

ShangWang

Respectable
Mar 26, 2021
616
2
1,885
It’s much easier when you’re not so attached to things. I always think that family is the most important and things are not that important, so yeah for me, I would just ignore it it’s not hurting you at all.
I'm trying my best to think it doesn't matter and it doesn't, but I have an obsessive personality and it's difficult.
If there's the chance or idea that something can fix this issue, I want to know about it, otherwise I'll put find a nice sticker someday and move on.
 

USAFRet

Titan
Moderator
I'm trying my best to think it doesn't matter and it doesn't, but I have an obsessive personality and it's difficult.
If there's the chance or idea that something can fix this issue, I want to know about it, otherwise I'll put find a nice sticker someday and move on.
Sandpaper will almost certainly make it worse.
And you won't know until you start doing it.
Then, it is too late...lol
 
  • Like
Reactions: ShangWang

USAFRet

Titan
Moderator
I just saw some post about using sandpaper with some kind of paint which might work, but I don't have paint so I won't try it.
Yeah, that sounds like a one off thing, done with the perfect grit sandpaper, a particular type of paint, on a particular type of plastic and damage.
And after trying it 30 times.
29 fails making it worse, and then the final try of making it a teeny bit better.
 
  • Like
Reactions: ShangWang