Rubberized Plastic

 

the CF-reader that works on my Mac

If you bought that soft-touch rubberized plastic stuff, you probably know that it turns into a sticky mess over time. Somehow they made plastic worse. This coating is very difficult to remove, and nasty chems probably absorb into skin. Some of these devices were expensive and/or not being made anymore. I'm sure manufactures enjoy all this tech going into landfills. 

I've primed & painted several sticky items now, and this does seem to be one solution. For example, this USB-Card-Reader case does come apart, and I was able to test-spray this plastic about a year ago. While there is a possibility the paint may soften someday, it has remained non-sticky so far. I suspect non-toxic water-based acrylics wouldn't work as well, but I have not tried.

You get to pick a new color, but some cases are difficult to open and can be very sharp. I've cut myself extracting a hard-drive. Another idea is to 3D-print a custom case, if you're willing to sink even more time into it. 

Learned my lesson, I'm not buying rubberized plastic.