Stripped the rubberised finish off the lid - what now?

[tasman]

My T42 was suffering from a very tired and sticky lid, to the point it made me cringe every time I touched it. Completely fed up I decided to strip it all off and start again. Once I'd removed it all and cleaned it I used a 600 grit sandpaper and it's got a pretty decent finish now, far better than it was.
I only realised whilst sanding it that it's like a primer paint over aliminium I think, because I exposed a bit of metal in one corner which I was able to disguise with a black marker pen.
What I am wondering though is whether anyone has any tips on how to protect this painted surface from scratches or similar? I saw on AliExpress they sell stickers for ThinkPad lids but couldn't see any for these old ones. Am I just going to have to be very careful with it from here on?
https://imgur.com/a/pjyveNr

[kfzhu1229]

For ThinkPad T4x family, the 14.1" and 15" lids are TOTALLY different. 15" lid is made out of plastic while your 14.1" lid is actually made out of magnesium, which is naturally grey in colour when it oxidises (hence why Dells in that era have a grey lid so that any chipped off paint would just reveal more of the same colour).
I just personally tend to be careful with these ThinkPad lids when I put them to storage. For my older ThinkPad T23 with still intact paint, I put a sheet of paper on top so that it wouldn't be scratched by anything that I might put on top of it.
On a side note, I do have a spare ThinkPad T41 lid with paint in great shape but with snapped left hinge and antennae, I really do wish I can combine mine to yours and make one good lid out of the two

[tasman]

...

Thank you for your response, I never would have guessed it to be magnesium.
I was looking around pondering what I could use to darken it and remembered I had this black stove polish, so decided to try it just to see what happened since it's a type of metal. I know it is going to sound nuts but it has actually worked amazingly well.
I just followed the instructions of rubbing it into the surface, allowing it to dry for a few minutes and then (very) gently polished it off. It now has a beautifully black and glass-like surface. The black is not coming off on my hands, although it probably would if I were to start rubbing at it with any real effort. Fingerprints are hardly showing up on it either which it an added bonus. I figure I can just feed it with more of the polish if it becomes tarnished over time. I'll do as you do and put paper over it when not in use.
Here is what it looks like now. You can see the polish I used, the application of it and how black it now looks, also how glassy it is by the reflection in one of the pictures. Honestly couldn't be happier with it compared to how it was before.
https://imgur.com/a/uPMZaG6