Glass Scratch Removal???

[GLASSTIME]

Hey fellow WSR Techs,

Quick question. I have a local glass provider in my area. They offer a wide variety of glass in fact this is where i get all of my flat laminate and plate practice glass from. I was in there yesterday picking up some 4x4 flat and plate for my before and after marketing plan.

She asked me if i removed scratches from glass. When i told her No not at the moment she was shocked!

She has numerous calls per week of customers asking her if she removes scratches. Being she is a one women shop she cant due to being the cutter, installer, administrator, so on so forth. She is willing to pass them to me in exchange i am willing to send prospects to her.

I would like to knowif any of you do this thus far, what system do you use?
What are your results?

Thanks!

[Gbrad]

Give me a call I would love to give you some info.

[ChampionCHIP,wsr]

i use the ips system for the past month, it is a great system
paul

[Chips be-gone]

Look at the "Scratch Hog" Also. You can watch a video on You tube by searching under "Scratch Hog".
It has a on board water system to keep the dust down and glass cooler makes scene.

[jonnyques]

IPS. The scratch hog does work. From what I have been told its main problem is it can remove to much glass. This will cause distortion. If you were doing flat glass it may not be a concern. On a windshield, ya gotta be careful.
The MOST important thing is to get training on what ever system you buy. I tried to get started on my own, and believe me, training turned failures into success.

[adam@gtglass]

A reminder for those that don't know me, I do work for a manufacturer of scratch removal equipment. In the following note, I intend to address the following statement from jonnyques:

"From what I have been told its (the Scratch Hog) main problem is it can remove to much glass. This will cause distortion. If you were doing flat glass it may not be a concern. On a windshield, ya gotta be careful" (QUOTED from JONNYQUES).



The Scratch Hog underwent independent, third party testing in 2008. The results are posted on the GT website if you'd like the details from the results regarding distortion and structural integrity of repaired glass. Based on the guidelines, this forum is not the place to be revealing those test results.

Contrary to what jonnyques heard, The Scratch Hog system DOES NOT remove too much glass. How much glass is removed is up to the operator of the system. Think of glass scratch removal as if you were taking a gouge out of a piece of wood.

Hypothetical situation-- You have a wooden coffee table and you dropped a large heavy metal cube on it over the weekend. Now you have a gouged piece of wood with a small imperfection in the surface. The indent has created a spot on the wood where there is a piece of wood chipped off. If it's too deep, you would leave it as a "character" mark... or you can repair the damage if it is fixable.

You have two options right? Leave it, or sand it down. You probably aren't going to plane the whole table, so let's assume you decide to smooth it out with sandpaper.

Do you start with a 1000+ grit to get to the bottom of the depth of the damage?
No, of course not, this would take too much time. You would be sanding at the wood for hours to smooth out the surface with the very fine grit sanding paper.

You would more likely start with a piece of paper that is more course, then move up the grit scale to a fine grit for the finishing stage.

It's the same with glass, the void created by the scratch already has missing material. You can either "sand" it down to restore the surface, or you can leave it unrepaired (which unfortunately in some cases may mean that the only logical option is replacement).

The Scratch Hog itself does not remove too much material, but a technician using ANY scratch removal equipment that I have seen used can remove too much material if given enough time. There are a variety of steps of aggression available for use with the Scratch Hog system, and a technician that is using the Scratch Hog correctly will remove only enough glass to repair the damage. Another thing a skilled technician can do is evaluate whether or not a scratch is too deep to be repaired without distortion. It's like windshield repair, sometimes the damage is irreparable, but even in those cases an improvement can be made; and although you will never restore the glass to brand new--we try to get as close as possible.

It is a misconception to say that a system "removes too much glass." This is not the system, but the way the system is used and that is up to the technician; which is why many recommend proper training--including myself.

[Frank EU]

It is a misconception to say that a system "removes too much glass." This is not the system, but the way the system is used and that is up to the technician; which is why many recommend proper training--including myself.

Adam; are you dead serious on this post? You must be kidding right? I do certainly not want to attack you, why would I, there is no need and no gain in it for me, but what you are claiming is just not right. This sounds like a car dealer sales pitch advice: ‘’well mom, if you do not want any wear and damage, you better leave this fine vehicle in your garage’’. It is obvious that if a scratch repair system uses any kind of abrasive, like yours, that stock material (glass in this situation) is being removed. I believe that we all know that if you indeed remove glass stock, chances are very, very likely that distortion is what you are going to get. We agree here that the operator is very important, but do not blame the operator in this example, it is not only too random, it is also unfair. Avoid using abrasive materials on glass and the problem is solved.
Or is it your advice to purchase a system, any make, pay a lot of money, and than leave it in the box, because not using it will be the best method to prevent any further damage? Come on Adam!

You can bend things the way you like it, but when it comes to this it is black or white, there's no gray. If you indeed do want to be flexible, or economical with the truth, that's fine. But you won't be able to change my opinion on this; A system removes glass and creates distortion, or it does not.

[Frank EU]

Allow me to add some information and to rephrase some of the above:

If a glass scratch removal system, any kind, contains an abrasive material, of any kind, you are going to create distortion. No matter how it's been used, you are removing glass stock, be it just a little or ''too much''. Your system uses abrasives and it indeed does remove stock glass. It is up to the customer to agree with the result, but I would never accept it myself if I was that customer >because there is no need for distortion. Just avoid abrasive contents in the product.

[Brent Deines]

Frank, I've got no dog in this fight, but I can tell you that glass distributors buff out scratches on "new" windshields all the time before they are delivered to the glass shop, and most of the time they do a good enough job that the glass shop never knows it, and neither does the end user. I have seen some pretty deep scratches removed and when the job was complete you would never be able to tell where the scratch was.

Glass shops are sometimes asked by dealers to remove scratches from the windshield on a brand new car or RV. If the area where the scratch had been removed cannot be identified after the job is complete the vehicle is still sold as new.

You say you would never accept this yourself, but it is quite likely that you already have; you just didn't know it.

Again, I have no dog in this fight, but if GT did due diligence with third party testing and the conclusion was that there was no distortion, and has made the data to prove their case public, I think that we either need to give them the benefit of the doubt or show proof that the Scratch Hog cannot provide distortion free scratch removal.

[adam@gtglass]

Frank,

I can show you documents from a third party confirming my claims. Contact me directly if you are interested or doubtful.

I am not trying to be defensive here or sarcastic. I simply do not understand what you mean by a non abrasive scratch removal. Can you show me documented evidence that scratches can be removed from glass without removing glass stock? Or are you saying that all scratch removal processes remove glass stock, some more quickly than others?

If There is a non abrasive method, how does that work? I would like to know how a void in the glass (missing glass stock in the actual scratch) created by scratching can be removed without an abrasive process.