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So here's the thing. I tend to keep my nails trimmed pretty short. I don't often have coins in my wallet. Those were always the top two ways to scratch off lottery tickets that I've been told.

Problem is, I find myself in possession of a scratch ticket, and I want to know if I've won the big money.

What are some things in my office I can use? I've tried a paperclip, and a pen lid. Neither were all that effective.

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  • 28
    @AshleyNunn: most of them.
    – Steve Jessop
    Feb 3, 2016 at 9:43
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    You can use coins, keys, shopping cart coins, a losing ticket, credit card (as suggested), rubbing your finger, scratch just the bottom-most part, wish the codebar (depends on the system)... There's tons!
    – Ismael Miguel
    Feb 3, 2016 at 16:52
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    Save your money and don't buy lottery tickets, problem solved.
    – Michael McGriff
    Feb 3, 2016 at 17:19
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    -1 Stop gambling!
    – k-l
    Feb 3, 2016 at 18:19
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    @KiranLinsuain We get scratch tickets as a cherry on top of the holiday bonus. There's really no need to downvote because of your personal preference. Also, given that OP does not have a host of card scratching tools, I think that it's safe to assume he/she doesn't often buy therm.
    – Carl
    Feb 3, 2016 at 21:13

13 Answers 13

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Any type of plastic card may work, you probably have one in your wallet, so fairly accessible. enter image description here

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  • The credit card totally worked.
    – user196
    Feb 2, 2016 at 23:36
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    Please limit your answer to just one solution. By having multiple solutions in one answer, if your answer is marked as accepted, the rest of us have no way to know which solution was the one that worked. Recommended reading: Lifehacks Manifesto
    – Adam Zuckerman
    Feb 3, 2016 at 0:27
  • @AdamZuckerman in this case, the asker said which worked. should i next time post 4 different answers?
    – Dragonrage
    Feb 3, 2016 at 0:30
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    Yes, please do that.
    – Adam Zuckerman
    Feb 3, 2016 at 0:32
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    Does anyone else see the irony in using a credit card to further your lottery pursuits?
    – Joel B
    Feb 4, 2016 at 3:18
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Also if you are a into music you may have one of these in your pocket that can do the trick. enter image description here

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10

You can use the edge of a key. Turn the key so that the sharpest edge along a flat edge is used to scrape the scratch area.

I couldn't find a picture, but it is the same technique you would use when using a coin to scratch a card.

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    a friend tried that once and it actually took off the ink too
    – Dragonrage
    Feb 3, 2016 at 17:45
  • Agreed with Dragon; you scratch it all right, but you have to be careful not to damage it
    – Shevliaskovic
    Feb 4, 2016 at 13:57
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You can use one of these scratch off tools. ![enter image description here

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  • I kinda feel like I need one of these. Wonder where I'd find one.
    – user196
    Feb 3, 2016 at 1:04
  • @AshleyNunn can probably find something similar to it on amazon. or possibly at like a gas station market or something
    – Dragonrage
    Feb 3, 2016 at 1:07
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    @AshleyNunn if you feel like you need one of these, you might wanna start going to meetings.
    – DickieBoy
    Feb 3, 2016 at 12:59
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    @KiranLinsuain isnt that localized to the united states?
    – Dragonrage
    Feb 3, 2016 at 18:48
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I carry one of these on my keychain.

enter image description here

I don't play the lottery, but it is great for scratching off the grey stuff on the backs of prepaid cards.

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  • Lottery tickets tend to be more fragile than hard plastic prepaid cards. I believe they will sometimes be voided if you accidentally puncture the ticket.
    – GodEmperorDoom
    Feb 3, 2016 at 18:02
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    You would have to be beasting it. This is pretty dull, nowhere near as sharp as a knife or a screwdriver.
    – Mike Vonn
    Feb 3, 2016 at 19:05
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also if you carry a nail file like this enter image description here
you can use the pointed tip or the edge to scratch it off.

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  • The idea is good, but it is not airplane safe, if I know correctly. Just saying :)
    – virolino
    Dec 26, 2022 at 5:35
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I thought the default that everyone used was a quarter. Or any coin with a rough edge.

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    In my question, I mention I rarely have coins.
    – user196
    Feb 3, 2016 at 22:06
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    @AshleyNunn sorry, I skimmed the question and missed that part
    – Kevin
    Feb 4, 2016 at 2:04
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    @Kevin No worries, it happens. :)
    – user196
    Feb 4, 2016 at 2:33
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You can use your pants' zipper or button.

Case in point, you are supposedly wearing some of these clothes when being outside. So you can immediately scratch your ticket in the store.

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    And just how am I supposed to angle myself to scratch particular areas of the card? This strikes me as a highly difficult and impractical solution.
    – user196
    Feb 3, 2016 at 6:19
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    @AshleyNunn Agreed that pants zipper is pretty impractical, it's a hard angle to use and even if you can it will look quite weird. However, a jacket zipper would probably work pretty well!
    – DasBeasto
    Feb 3, 2016 at 12:59
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Do you carry a penknife?

You could use the knife, or bottle opener parts pretty easily.

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  • I don't, but I keep thinking that I should. It feels like it might be useful.
    – user196
    Feb 3, 2016 at 18:01
  • @AshleyNunn I have a wallet ninja (google it) and it's awesome. Supprising how often I actually use it.
    – djsmiley2kStaysInside
    Feb 4, 2016 at 9:27
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Do you have hot drink making facilities? A teaspoon would work pretty well. A USB connector would work too, or a stapler if you can get it at the right angle. Other things in sight of my desk - ruler, coaster, bulldog clip and old cd/dvds

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  • Any reason for the downvote?
    – Dave
    Feb 11, 2016 at 15:51
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A metal collar stay! a few clean swipes and all of the scratching cratching is done

this is what i used
(source: josbank.com)

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Most of the time I used any parts of the ball pen like the bottom part of it. If you are lucky to have the cap of the ball pen it can effectively scratch your lottery ticket.

I suggest the pen because it is always available in almost every places, you can borrow one if you can't find any.

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I found this thing on eBay that works great on my bingo scratch off game's and also on big scratch area's on other ticket games. I think it's called ezscratch,under scratch tools.Its blade is different than most of those others and it came on A keychain. I actually use it for more then lottery tickets.You got to check it out.Hope I helped you. No more broken nails. 😂

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