My cleaning process for PS2 and Xbox/Gamecube ect... games is pretty simple and cheap but usually works fantastic for me
. These are the steps i usually take
. As for doing it by hand you will still have to. Running them through the dish washer will damage them and be hard to dry without leaving even more film on the inside. A tub soak will also be extremely difficult to dry because you can't just leave the water inside or it will get this film evaporated water type of look and make your cases way worst than before. By the time you get done drying all of them by hand you will have used more time than cleaning them 1 by 1. But if cleaning them by hand is not an option you will have to buy the new dvd cases in bulk like you said because removing the fine shelf wear isn't something that can be done with just water and it will be hard to clean all of them in one go
Supplies i use
Alcohol
Water
Lighter Fluid
Novus Plastic cleaner and scratch remover
Microfiber cloth
Paper towel
Total cost- Around 20 dollars but will work on hundreds of games
Stickers I first remove any pesky stickers unless they are neat stickers that i feel are cool like closeout sales from stores i remember as a kid or just stickers the game company themselves put. And i know you don't want just sticker removal but i have a cool trick i wanted to share for the nasty residue.
Recently my dad thought me a neat way to remove the residue the stickers leave even though i know your post is not for just that. Lighter fluid took the gunk from a typical gamestop sticker off like it was nothing and it dissipated so fast and left no smell. I always wipe it clean with water after so it doesn't remain some what flammable but in general i have seen great success with it. Far over goo gone. I dont quite like goo gone. It smells like a citrus patch instead of like a proper plastic and the smell is hard to dissipate. It's also greasy, runny and tends to run where you didn't want it to
. Goo Gone and me arent on speaking terms. We had a civil altercation may of last year.
. It gives me massive allergy flare ups and smells like someone sprayed to much air freshener to me. But many do like it.
Cleaning regular grime and dirtFor non sticker related issues i use 50 percent isopropyl rubbing alcohol deluted with 1 part water to every 3 parts alcohol.
I clean the whole case down by misting it with the solution and then i dry it off with a microfiber cloth in circular motions counter clock wise or clockwise depending on the wind direction allowing it to dry evenly and leave the least streaks.
Making it look shiny and newAs for the sheen new games have, regular cleaning and polishing won't ever remove the scratches and layer of shelf wear. For this you will need a plastic polish and many of them smell like death lol. Finding ones with no smell is trial and error. But if you can tolerate a scent to your game that lasts maybe a few days you can use a variety of the car polishes that are used on car plastics. For example Armor All, Mother's plastic polish. Armor All seems to have way less of a scent but it also works not as good. Mother's VLR or Mother's plastic polish works great and leaves such a nice non greasy sheen but it also smells like a car air freshener. The smells do go away and the sheen stays for quite some time but i usually get allergy flare ups with crazy potent fragrances like those.
What i use is this
http://www.ebay.com/itm/like/400082797682?lpid=82&chn=ps&ul_noapp=true It's called novus plastic cleaner scratch removal kit. It has 3 steps and it's fairly affordable. It is designed more for electronic purpose compared to the car ones that are designed for more plastic spoilers or headlights and such. Both will work but Novus always leaves a better less intrusive scent and it works great. These will leave your games looking nice and new for much less than 500 dollars.
