Does "professional refurbishing" ruin discs?

[floridaswamprat]

I have ordered from a retailer that advertises "Previewed, Professionally Refurbished" discs. However, my one experience with them was not a positive one. The disc that I received (Guardians of the Galaxy) would freeze in three spots. I have not had this problem with any other disc. Could this be a result of the "Professional Refurbishing?" I understand that such a process basically buffs down the protective coating to remove scratches. Does this compromise the integrity of the disc and create possible problems such as this?

[jscoggins]

Yes. BDs are not supposed to be resurfaced.

[slimdude]

Blu-ray discs are not supposed to be buffed manually, nor by a machine because it can remove the protected coating on the surface, and ruin the blu-ray completely. Blu-rays should be wiped clean only with a soft cloth (with no abrasives).

[TripleHBK]

As others have stated...

BD's = Don't resurface
DVD's however work pretty well with resurfacing.

[welcometothepartypal]

Originally Posted by TripleHBK

As others have stated...

BD's = Don't resurface
DVD's however work pretty well with resurfacing.

This should be printed in bold print somewhere on the Blu-ray case or somewhere obvious for the casual buyer. Imagine being used to sticking scratched dvd's in a "disc doctor" and having them work great, why would you not try it with a scratched Blu?
I'm not saying I did this.... but I had a .....friend........who did it with scratched discs from the library and, you guessed it, made them worse.

[rdodolak]

Originally Posted by welcometothepartypal

This should be printed in bold print somewhere on the Blu-ray case or somewhere obvious for the casual buyer. Imagine being used to sticking scratched dvd's in a "disc doctor" and having them work great, why would you not try it with a scratched Blu?
I'm not saying I did this.... but I had a .....friend........who did it with scratched discs from the library and, you guessed it, made them worse.

I'm sure his "disc doctor" stated it was only for use on CDs and DVDs so it comes down to operator error. But why would someone try resurfacing a disc that they do not own?

[floridaswamprat]

So, let me a little clearer - the online store is Family Video. However, I have been told that FV does not resurface blu-rays. Does anyone know if that is true or not? If they do not resurface, then how do they "professionally refurbish" a disc? Wiping it with a cloth is not "professional refurbishing." I am just trying to be fair to them and the process.

[floridaswamprat]

UPDATE: I have written Family Video to inquire as to their process for refurbishing blu-rays. I will post their reply whenever I hear from them (if I hear from them).

[rdodolak]

Originally Posted by floridaswamprat

So, let me a little clearer - the online store is Family Video. However, I have been told that FV does not resurface blu-rays. Does anyone know if that is true or not? If they do not resurface, then how do they "professionally refurbish" a disc? Wiping it with a cloth is not "professional refurbishing." I am just trying to be fair to them and the process.

You really can't refurbish a Blu-ray without risk of damaging the disc. First, BD has a protective hard coat, which would need to be removed, since the data layer is much closer to the surface of the disc. The hard coat exists to prevent scratches because of this. The data layer is only 0.1mm from the surface where as the DVD data layer is 0.6mm away. Any scratch deeper than 0.1mm has compromised the data layer and that data has effectively been destroyed.

[jscoggins]

Originally Posted by floridaswamprat

So, let me a little clearer - the online store is Family Video. However, I have been told that FV does not resurface blu-rays. Does anyone know if that is true or not? If they do not resurface, then how do they "professionally refurbish" a disc? Wiping it with a cloth is not "professional refurbishing." I am just trying to be fair to them and the process.

Relax, lol. That is something that they copy and paste for all of their online listings. They don't resurface BDs.

However, they might send you rental discs, which have fewer special features or none at all. Also, some rental discs have lossy instead of lossless audio.

[ElliesDad]

Originally Posted by floridaswamprat

I have ordered from a retailer that advertises "Previewed, Professionally Refurbished" discs. However, my one experience with them was not a positive one. The disc that I received (Guardians of the Galaxy) would freeze in three spots. I have not had this problem with any other disc. Could this be a result of the "Professional Refurbishing?" I understand that such a process basically buffs down the protective coating to remove scratches. Does this compromise the integrity of the disc and create possible problems such as this?

Caveat emptor. Inexpensive lesson~ avoid "previewed, professionally refurbished" discs, and avoid the on-line outlet where you were burned as well. And don't engage in conversations about 'bridges' with anyone you don't know really, really well.

[AnamorphicWidescreen]

Yeah, I would think that anyone that knew even a little about Blu's would know they shouldn't be refurbished due to the protective coating.

And, I never thought that regular DVD "refurbishing" worked that well anyway - I remember going to a video store that refurbished it's own disks that were scratched - when using the DVD's again, they still stopped in the same places. So I never thought refurbishing was a viable solution to scratches. IMHO, if a DVD (or Blu) is scratched that's it - it's done.

The only thing I will say is that some DVD players were better than others re: playing scratched Disks; the first player I had was very sensitive and would freeze at the slightest scratch. Whereas others I spoke to said their players would sometimes play DVD's that had a lot of scratches - it all depends, I guess.

[chip75]

Originally Posted by AnamorphicWidescreen

And, I never thought that regular DVD "refurbishing" worked that well anyway - I remember going to a video store that refurbished it's own disks that were scratched - when using the DVD's again, they still stopped in the same places. So I never thought refurbishing was a viable solution to scratches. IMHO, if a DVD (or Blu) is scratched that's it - it's done.

I think there's only so far you can go before the data is gone, the buffing is designed to smooth the surface so it's uniform, it's the scratches that cause the issue, as the laser is deflected by them. Once those scratches go too deep and the data is actually affected, the disc is toast.

The only thing I will say is that some DVD players were better than others re: playing scratched Disks; the first player I had was very sensitive and would freeze at the slightest scratch. Whereas others I spoke to said their players would sometimes play DVD's that had a lot of scratches - it all depends, I guess.

I've often found cheap players play damaged discs better than expensive models, on my PC I had a program that could manually adjust drive speed and this sometimes helped, as you could slow down the damaged parts. Not all drives are created equal and wear and tear can affect a drives reading abilities.

[floridaswamprat]

I got a reply from Family Video regarding the practice of machine refurbishing discs.

My original question to Family Video:

A discussion has been started on an internet forum site regarding the process as to how you "professionally refurbish" your blu-ray discs. Can you please give me some insights into the process? Is a machine used in this process?
Thank you for your quick reply.

Family Video's reply:

Hello,

Yes, a machine is used in this process. We run the discs through this disc
cleaning machine before shipping them out to our customers.

Thank you for choosing Family Video!

[AnamorphicWidescreen]

Originally Posted by floridaswamprat

Hello,

Yes, a machine is used in this process. We run the discs through this disc
cleaning machine before shipping them out to our customers.

Wow - this sounds like a great company! I'll be sure to be giving them a lot of business! They definitely know all of the ins & outs of how to care for Blu's!......NOT!

This reminds of the 200X's when I used to rent a lot of DVD's from Blockbuster. And, even though I have never worked in a home video store, I knew more about the DVD format than the people who worked there...

[glauconite]

Originally Posted by floridaswamprat

I got a reply from Family Video regarding the practice of machine refurbishing discs.

My original question to Family Video:

A discussion has been started on an internet forum site regarding the process as to how you "professionally refurbish" your blu-ray discs. Can you please give me some insights into the process? Is a machine used in this process?
Thank you for your quick reply.

Family Video's reply:

Hello,

Yes, a machine is used in this process. We run the discs through this disc
cleaning machine before shipping them out to our customers.

Thank you for choosing Family Video!

*********************************
THIS IS WHAT I WAS TOLD (October 2015):
FROM FV:

Yes, the manufacturer is VMI. The scratches will be removed as best as the
machine will allow. If for any reason your disc is still damaged, we will
replace it with no extra cost.

Your friends at FamilyVideo.com

*********************************
Quoting Customer:

What is the manufacturer of your Hybrid DVD/Bluray cleaner machine? Is it a Ven Mill Industries VMI or other? I am concerned about the removal of the
data, not to mention the removal of scratches.

Thanks,
*********************************
FROM FV:

Yes, we use a Hybrid DVD/Bluray cleaner. It cleans the top layer of the
disc.
********************************

[glauconite]

In purchasing used BD from 3ed party vendors on Amazon I notice that some specifically state that the disc is refurbished.

Does anyone know if 3ed Party vendors of used blu-ray discs are REQUIRED to state if refurbishing has been done?

Sometimes I wonder about the difference in the quality of the used disc I have purchased vs what is described in the Blu-rau review at Blu-ray.com. I watch a lot and I don't think it is my playback equipment but simply do not have a new original to compare with.

[AnamorphicWidescreen]

Any company that thinks it's a good idea to put scratched Blu's through some kind of machine to "refurbish" them is run by a gang of idiots.

[halloween5309]

Originally Posted by AnamorphicWidescreen

Any company that thinks it's a good idea to put scratched Blu's through some kind of machine to "refurbish" them is run by a gang of idiots.

I disagree, high quality machines can bring dead discs back to life
such as the machines blockbuster used to have
unless you are desperate dont try using a machine from walmart or elsewhere that cost less than $50

[AnamorphicWidescreen]

Originally Posted by halloween5309

I disagree, high quality machines can bring dead discs back to life
such as the machines blockbuster used to have
unless you are desperate dont try using a machine from walmart or elsewhere that cost less than $50

Maybe regular DVD's - possibly.

However, I completely disagree that using a machine like this on Blu's specifically is a good idea. Blu's have a protective coating on them - so, any attempt to "refurbish" them will ruin the disk. So, I stand by what I said in my last post - any company that thinks using a machine like this to refurbish Blu's is run by a bunch of stupid tools. I hate having to deal with sloppy, ignorant, incompetent companies like this.