Yes, as long as the scratches were on the underside of the CD and not on the "printed" side. The underside has a thick layer of plastic and usually you can buff out all but the most deep scratches. In contrast, the printed side has a very thin protective layer and is where the data is actually stored. I've saved dozens of CDs with the Skip Dr. Works on DVDs too.

It's neat (but time consuming) how Exact Audio Copy and the Skip Dr. work together. EAC will tell you were an exact error was found (say 1:12 into a song). After you run the Skip Dr. on the disk, it might get to 2:59 in the song. Some discs have required quite a few passes with the Skip Dr. to save the disc, so if I could do it over again, I'd get the motorized one.

Oh, and don't buy their "special" water. Tap water is fine.

But since he lost the original, this won't do him much good.