What could have caused this!?

[Han]

Check out this eBay link. Anyone have a guess as to what may have caused such corrosion on the bezel?

[Ron]

Can't really tell if the metal is corroded, or if the paint is just coming off. I'll guess the second, and say some kind of mild paint stripper got splattered on it.

[Namir]

Calculator looks like has some kind of sever skin desease!!! It might be detained by the CCDC once customs takes a look at this poor machine!

I say take it to a doctor first before putting out on eBay! I am not sure my other calculators would like to sit on the shelf next to it!!!

Namir

[Dia C. Tran]

I don't think it's corroded. I think someone tried to clean it with the wrong kind of solvent.

[Frank Boehm (Germany)]

It's a type of corrosion, called "Aluminium-Frass" in German (heck, cannot find it in English...), it's an autocatalytic reaction, so it will spread out (even below the printing), requiring H20. Feeding more water to it (or leaving it exposed to the air humidity) will eventually completely eat up the metal, leaving only a bit of white powder...

[Gerson W. Barbosa]

That's at least the second calculator from this seller showing this type of corrosion. Some months ago he auctioned a 10C that looked even worse. Perhaps something to do with the weather conditions in that region in Peru? :-)