[R-390] Cleaning Potentiometers

[Barry Hauser]

Bruce wrote:

> I'm with Tim on the pot problem. We use to have a product available called 
> Quietrole that you used with an eye dropped that worked well but it seems 
> to be long gone.


Some say they use DeOxit in the pots, but that might be risky.  I read of 
one or two cases where it dissolved the carbon material.  Caig makes another 
product called CaiLube which is intended for pots.  I've used it with good 
results.  Of course, if the pot has drifted way off value, or if the wiper 
has worn a grove through the carbon, then it needs replacement.

However, I have had some success disassembling badly worn pots and 
adjusting/bending things to get the wiper to contact an unworn part of the 
carbon comp.  Sometimes it's not a matter of warn-through, but insufficient 
tension on the wiper.  You can test them out of the receiver on an analog 
ohmmeter, slowly rotating the shaft and watching the meter pointer for 
jumps, or use a signal tracer or audio siggen and speaker, etc.  Probably 
not worth the bother for an easily replaced pot, but for those more 
difficult to find, it's worth a try.

Anybody else ever do this, or am I the only one. It ain't the money ;-)

Barry