Electronic Lubricant Trick For difficult To Reach Potentiometers. See Warning In Info Section.

For safety reasons I generally prefer a straight electronic lubricant on variable resistors such as volume controls, and cleaner plus lubricants on metal contacts.

[gordslater]

This is gonna sound a bit wierd, but a 2 second squirt of freezer spray on a metal shaft (only the shaft, not the housing) before you lube them this way makes the shaft shrink just a fraction and it gets through the gap faster. You can also try a hot iron on the outer caseor the threaded section of a metal pot, which expands it and does much the same thing.
We lube mechanical shafts that way, though it doesn't work with thicker liquids, only thin ones so it's OK with cleaner/lubes. If you use a hot iron make sure it doesn't overheat - most lubes are very flammable

[Axldeziak]

Try cutting the needle off the end of a small syringe. (look close and you can see where the needle starts.) Use it to draw up a small amount of lubricant. Place a short piece of surgical or thin wall gas tubing over the end of the syringe. Thread the other end onto the pot. Use it to slowly inject the cleaner/lube into the pot. If it leaks use a small bandclamp or fuel line clip on the pot and needle. If either the syringe or pot shaft are smaller than the tubing use heatshrink to fill the gap. It's fussy, and messy, but it will work when all else (short of a complete disassembly) fails.

[GrumpyUnkMillions]

Wifey has about 50 different sized plastic straws on the shelf. I wonder if a shortened straw that fit the threads of the pot would work as well if it could be threaded onto the pot. Some of the 'cleaner/lubricants' seem to make the resistor 'sweep' get very crunchy rather than lubricating. I have used powdered graphite on some with varied success.(lock lube)

[electronicartis]

Hello happen new year. What kind of cleaner do you recommend to help clean an preserve the carbon in amplifier volume control.

[Duracellmumus]

If anybody want permanent solution they need to:
disassemble the pot-s/slide swicses,
clean it perfectly,
compress the cooper riverts, check the springines,
then aply a perfectly minimal amaunt graphite grease far away the contacts.
And check for the resistance linearity with shaft position and contact resistance BEFORE, get it assembled and put back the original position.

Is there an deoxit called magic stuf, what can conduct and get continius contact with old swich, and connectors.
But it not an solution, because the switch or connector is stay weared off, and had high contact resistance when gets loaded.

If u stll want to spray something inside thinking abaut these:
Get the old grease and carbon wear out.
After, have to degrease, but it have to not slove the carbon and plastic parts.
Have to apply and pump in something for shaft, to get some (fluid) mechanical resistance, but not so mutch.

I have lots off problem with new! encoders or pots, because it gets filled with grease at the shaft, and with time and rotate and heat it goes down to the contacts and feel as a BAD one. By 2 months after replace!
So if the shaft has a great amaunt of mechanical resistance i find practical to open the NEW one, and leave the 1/10th of grease at the shaft. And it works by years.

[surrepeight]

I have a Technics receiver from the early 1980s. My problems seem to have developed with the small, rectangular button switches that control things like speaker selection, tape monitors etc. For example, the right channels on both sets of speakers will cut out, or the left on both sets at another time. These buttons are the type that are pushed in by hand both to turn on or off, but are further out when they are "off", and settle further in when they're "on". Any tips about caring for these types of switches? Thank you ahead of time.

[ijontichy]

In this way, you will remove the slowing down lubricant and force dirt from the axis into the interior of potentiometer. I do not recomended it! vy 73 ! Matt

[micosmiljanic]

I would not give you my audio stuff to "repair'...super amateurish and wrong way of the pot cleaning. The way you spray from the top of the faceplate will wash out the shaft lubricant and lodge it right into the pot itself. Let alone using this sledge-hammer type of spray not made for the purpose. Taking off faceplate takes 15-20min, and gives you the right access to 99% of pots...

[tarun]

There is this WD-40 contact cleaner. How good is that?