[Elecraft] K2 Optical Encoder stiffness.

[Ron D'Eau Claire]

The optical encoder on mine stiffened up over time during the first
several months of use. I discovered that tiny threads from the felt
washer were getting caught in the bearing. I was able to remove most of
them, using a magnifier and a pair of tweezers to pull each one out
while 'unwrapping' as much of each thread as possible by turning the
shaft. That got the stiffness down to just about what I wanted, so I
left the washer off for the next few months. Over time, the bearing
loosened up more until I needed the friction again. So I cut the center
hole in the washer a little larger, then I put a thin ring of glue
around the inside edge to bind any loose threads together. Once the glue
dried I replaced the washer and all has been fine since.

Ron AC7AC
K2 # 1289

...The optical encoder on K2 #2681 has always seemed a little stiff to
me -...The tightness remains even when I remove the encoder's mounting
hardware, so does appear to be in the encoder itself rather than a
fixing problem. Anybody else had this problem? &, if so, did it clear
with time?... 73 de Mike, zl1mh.