Let's talk contact cleaner

[vvv]

... not for yer eyes-things (and how can you stand to put them in there?) but for electrical contacts.

My Caig DeOxit D5 is almost gone, altho' I still have a 1/2 can of PreserveIt P5.

So I bought some MG Electrosolve Contact Cleaner and also Supercontact cleaner; they both work aiight.

I love me some WD-40 at times, especially when I'm tryna lube "sealed pots" or pots I can't reach without dis-assembly; I'm not too concerned about damage from overspray. Eh, I hope I don't have to be ...

Anybody reco anything else?

What kind of pot lubes do you use?
_________________
vlayman; THD; blog; TFP

[Randyman...]

I also like the Caig Deoxit D5 as an all-purpose contact cleaner and optimizer.

They also have their MCL (Moving Contact Lube) for Faders & Pots. I'd probably stray away from WD-40 for such applications TBH.

Edit - just discovered they re-branded MCL as "DeoxIT FaderLube". Likely the same formula...

Never used anything but Caig myself...


_________________
Randy V.
Audio-Dude / Musician / PC Guru / Crazy Guy

[vvv]

Now I'm reading that WD-40 may cause a film build-up - YMMV.

I have a problem with - of all things - tubes getting contact corrosion.

I think it's my South-of-Lake-Michigan humdiditty.

Emery boards work best ...
_________________
vlayman; THD; blog; TFP

[kakumei47]

Home Depot has CRC contact cleaner. Comes in a big can about six times the size of the deoxit for about $10. Great stuff. Use it all the time. Don't buy the Lectraclean if they don't have the contact cleaner. Used tons of this stuff recapping my console. This and a toothbrush can clean the crap out of some circuit boards after doing a bunch of work... Also great on pots switches and edge connectors. No residue


Have to give credit to Brian Roth on the MCI forum for the CRC tip.
_________________
www.thisiscivildefense.com

[kakumei47]

That CRC contact cleaner has no lubricant in it, so it's great for cleaning. They have a lubricant too in a small can to use for things like that. That said I do use fader lube for all my faders...just trying to make sure I play it safe with that.
_________________
www.thisiscivildefense.com

[The Scum]

WD-40 can be problematic.

It's a solvent, not a lubricant.

If you've got something that's gummed up because it's full of old, dirty or degraded lubricant, then it initially seems to make a big difference, because it washes the grime out of the workings. But it doesn't relubricate anything.

The solvent is also particularly harmful to plastics...it continues to act on them over the long term. Long ago, I had a car with a sticky ventilation switch, so I hit it with WD40. Initially, it was fine, but over time it got worse and worse, as the nylon block that carried the contactor slowly dissolved, and started to stick to the metal switch frame. Eventually, the nylon was so far gone that it wouldn't move at all, and the metal actuator lever came off in my fingers. Lesson learned.
_________________
"What fer?"
"Cat fur, to make kitten britches."

[Brett Siler]

[vvv]

Thanx!

What is good for pots? I mean, lube-wise, also.
_________________
vlayman; THD; blog; TFP

[kakumei47]

Much better for drying time and unlike it better for cleaning circuit boards. But like I said it doesn't lubricate so you would have to use the lubricant too. But way way more cost effective than d5 for big jobs. I would have spent literally 150-200 more doing my console with deoxit, but that was a BIG job.
_________________
www.thisiscivildefense.com

[SoftSupply]

I use the CRC stuff for washing off whole circuit boards, or cleaning off connections before I solder them, any big picture stuff like that where I want things cleaned off. But for actuall connection points, like edge connectors, socketed ic's, the pins in an XLR or the contact points in the patch bay, its Caig D5 followed by Pro Gold. Pots and faders get Faderlube.

I resuscitated the horrendously complicated motorized sequential switch for the taillights on my old 65 Thunderbird using Caig Faderlube (Moving Contact Lube back then). It worked perfectly for many years after that.
_________________
SoftSupply

[vvv]

"Pots ... get Faderlube."

Cool info!
_________________
vlayman; THD; blog; TFP