# Scratches on pen tablets

## Overview of surface wear on pen tablets

Scratches are a form of permanent damage. Depending on how deep the scratch is, it can affect your drawing experience. For more examples of surface wear and how to minimize it go here: [Surface wear on pen tablets](/drawtab/guides/maintain/surface-wear-pen-tablets.md).

Below is an example of some scratches that while ugly, do not interfere with the drawing experience. Small scratches are also hard to see sometime and greatly affected by the lighting conditions.

Some of what you see is also a false scratch. See: [False scratches](/drawtab/guides/maintain/false-scratches.md)

<figure><img src="/files/xPiiY100WAea7vz9Znsp" alt=""><figcaption></figcaption></figure>

As you can see the scratches can be very small. These kinds of scratches will not affect your drawing experience.

Here is a close up view through a microscope:

<figure><img src="/files/4bFialIOAqYgumfDL7kN" alt=""><figcaption></figcaption></figure>

<figure><img src="/files/AauyKMcyH1GOfy3QOFX0" alt=""><figcaption></figcaption></figure>

Deeper and larger scratches are also possible. This can definitely affect your drawing experience.

<figure><img src="/files/6hQP6cygqCDuHRshq2zu" alt=""><figcaption></figcaption></figure>

## Extreme damage

Dropping sharp objects onto the surface of a pen tablet can result in big changes. The crater below was formed by an accidental dropping of scissors from a height of about 6" above the pen tablet.

<figure><img src="/files/eGkvOCASsVxpAIqrFIPE" alt=""><figcaption></figcaption></figure>


---

# Agent Instructions: Querying This Documentation

If you need additional information that is not directly available in this page, you can query the documentation dynamically by asking a question.

Perform an HTTP GET request on the current page URL with the `ask` query parameter:

```
GET https://docs.sevenpens.com/drawtab/guides/maintain/scratches-pen-tablets.md?ask=<question>
```

The question should be specific, self-contained, and written in natural language.
The response will contain a direct answer to the question and relevant excerpts and sources from the documentation.

Use this mechanism when the answer is not explicitly present in the current page, you need clarification or additional context, or you want to retrieve related documentation sections.