[Heathkit] Stuck slugs in SB-101

[Donald Spoon]

Jack,

I can only tell you what worked for me... a drill and a set of 
increasing size bits from the hex hole size up to the diameter of the 
slug.  The slug is very soft and drills out quite easily.  In fact is 
comes out as a powder rather than metal filings.  It can get a little 
"dusty"....

  I could actually remove the slugs with the coils in place with this 
method.  Be sure to hold or otherwise immobilize the coil form or you 
might rip the wire leads loose.  After the slug was "disintegrated" I 
would clean the coil bore with moistened Q-Tips.  I used the Teflon lube 
spray to moisten them.  A little lube on the new slug before putting it 
in completed the process.  I suggest a practice run on an old TV core if 
one is available just to get the "feel"...  also make sure you have the 
replacement slugs on-hand, and they fit, before you go about destroying 
the old, fractured ones!

Getting to the "zen" of this process was most of the battle!  I finally 
realized that with a slug stuck the coil was worthless, so whatever is 
done to it can't hurt much more!  Once I had secured a back-up source of 
coil forms (Surplus Sales of Nebraska) and realized I could re-wind new 
ones if needed, I proceeded to experiment.   I tried WD-40, various 
spray lubricants, then the toothpick and glue route before finally 
deciding to "drill out" the slugs.    I even tried those tapered 
screw-extractors, but they only succeeded in fracturing the slug in 
large pieces.

Hope this helps... I had to swallow hard to do the first one.... <grin>  
It is routine now.

Observation:  Once I had a method to fix stuck slugs, they stopped 
sticking!  Perversity of Inanimate objects, I guess.  Maybe spraying all 
the rest with the Teflon Lube stuff, and working it in by retuning the 
other coils helped...

I only got my Ultra Sonic Screwdriver last Christmas... too late to help 
me.... <grin>

Cheers,
-Don Spoon-
K0APK

On 4/24/2012 10:51 PM, jack m wrote:
> Hi Don,
>
> What is a suggested method to "disintegrate" the slug without wiping 
> out the form?  I have plenty of old TV inductors and slugs of all 
> diameters.
>
> Jack
>
>