Best Contact Cleaner for Zenith 19EC45 tuner

[jblmar]

Hi all,
The tuner on my parents Zenith 19EC45 is in need of a good cleaning. A few years ago I used Phillips tuner cleaner with great results.
To my regret, I bought only one can. since then the repair shop I used went out of business and I'm at a loss where to buy more.
Anyone have a particular preference of cleaner and know a good source to buy from?

Ron

[MRX37]

WD-40 would probably work. I've used it to fix scratchy volume knobs and other pots before.

[drh4683]

I use a product by MG chemicals called "Contact cleaner with silicones". Cat # 404B-340g. Its intended as a tuner cleaner/lube. It has an adjustable sprayer which is very handy for not making a mess of overspray. Its in a 12oz bottle, which is plenty for cleaning many tuners. Most tuner cleaners are in a small container and seem to be empty before you know it. This stuff cost only $8/can. I buy from Frys electronics. I dont think there are too many around but I happen to live near one. MG chemical makes a variety of products for the electronic service tech such as audio/video head cleaner, flux remover, component freeze spray etc. Go to mgchemicals.com to see everything they have Their products come in a very plain color coded container. Ive had great results with everything Ive tried from them.


Lets not get off on a tangent about WD-40 as a contact cleaner. Its not advisable to use, especially as a tuner cleaner.

[MRX37]

Originally Posted by drh4683

Lets not get off on a tangent about WD-40 as a contact cleaner. Its not advisable to use, especially as a tuner cleaner.

Really? Why is that? I've used it to fix scratchy pots and switches and it's never given me any trouble. In fact, an old TV repairman is the person who told me about how he used WD-40.

[Findm-Keepm]

Originally Posted by drh4683

I use a product by MG chemicals called "Contact cleaner with silicones". Cat # 404B-340g.
Lets not get off on a tangent about WD-40 as a contact cleaner. Its not advisable to use, especially as a tuner cleaner.

Just watch the silicone lubricants - most organic polymers aren't compatible with silicone - early plastics don't like silicone at all. Silicone will also destroy the butyl rubber elastic strip often used to keep ferrite tuning slugs snug in adjustable coils. As Andy mentioned, a good cleaning with Deoxit or denatured alcohol (in a pinch) to start, then sparingly apply tuner grease. (If you can still find it!) PTS made the best stuff, their green grease. Second choice would be General Cement's TunerLube - again, if you can find it.

My two cents, based on over 20 years experience:

NO: WD-40 (my reason: it attracts more dirt and dust), Tuner Cleaning Foam Inserts (they fall apart, thank God they are gone!), Blue Shower - remeber that stuff, anyone? I had a Magnavox tuner that was destroyed by that stuff.

MAYBE: Silicone (okay on Delrin and other modern polymers used in modern tuners)

YES: Deoxit (oleic acid based), some alcohols, Tuner Grease - a little goes a long way.

Anybody ever seen an MSDS for Tuner Grease, or GC's TunerLube?

Cheers

[andy]

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[zenithfan1]

Originally Posted by andy

I like to disassemble the tuner and use qtips with deoxit. After all these years, you really need to remove all the dried and dirty grease from the contacts.

That's what I do, I have deoxit and some cleaner with lube like Doug has but from a different company.

[kx250rider]

WD-40 (simply Diesel fuel in a can under pressure) is TERRIBLE on tuners... It's conductive just enough to swamp out a tuned circuit. However, you can use it on a soft cloth to wipe the contacts on older drum & strip tuners. It is also OK to use it slightly on pots, but it will reduce the value of the pot if the pot is high value such as 470K or more.

There are some electronic contact cleaners available that are OK, but the good ones were the ones with 1,1,1 trichloroethane or with 100% TF virgin freon. It's a felony now in California to have or sell those chemicals in spray cans, but maybe in less communist states you can still find it. Look for one that leaves no residue, and one that is non-conductive. These new ones will be flammable, while the good illegal ones are safe to use on powered equipment.

Charles

[kbmuri]

I tried WD-40 once on a tube radio with an open-plate tuning capacitor. '38 or '39 Crosley if I recall. The radio ceased to work altogether. Like kx just said, WD-40 will detune any open-air tuner completely. The oil in it must be conductive or insulative or dielectric or whatever. So I bought a can of NAPA carb and choke cleaner and gave it a shot. Radio worked perfectly after. Cool thing about it is it really "blasts" away debris. I don't think it leaves any lubrication though, so maybe a dab of non-conductive lithium grease afterwards.

I've been told that WD-40 is a bad idea on contacts that might spark. The residue is flammable. This from a pinball-machine restorer, second hand, but seemed like a reputable source.

Save the WD-40 for your squeaking door hinges.

[Findm-Keepm]

Originally Posted by kbmuri

I've been told that WD-40 is a bad idea on contacts that might spark. The residue is flammable. This from a pinball-machine restorer, second hand, but seemed like a reputable source.

Save the WD-40 for your squeaking door hinges.

Ah-yep! I've seen an air conditioner fan motor (biggie, 240AC, 2HP job) go up in flames after an all-too-inexperienced public works guy sprayed WD-40 in the lube holes in an attempt to stop a squeak. It got the base fire department to our building real quick.

(We later found it was the squirrel cage blower scraping that caused the squeak.)

I've got a buddy that works as a chemist for one of the local water works - he loves running WD-40 on their spectrometer and seeing that it is remarkably like kerosene/diesel fuel.

As an aside, WD-40 works great in cleaning grease pencil marks off of items I buy at the local thrift stores.

Cheers,

[Whirled One]

Originally Posted by Findm-Keepm

As an aside, WD-40 works great in cleaning grease pencil marks off of items I buy at the local thrift stores.

Lighter fluid (naptha) is great for this; and unlike WD-40, lighter fluid evaporates quickly without leaving significant residue. Lighter fluid also does an excellent job at dissolving old gummed-up lubricants in small motors and mechanisms. It does, however, attack *some* types of plastic, so you have to be careful.

[avionic]

This product has always worked fantastic for cleaning and lubricating strip and wafer tuners . The one and only "Blue Shower" http://www.techspray.com/newinfo/1667.pdf

[Chad Hauris]

I really like Deoxit because it removes oxidation from contacts...most of the other cleaners can remove dirt but they don't seem to remove the tarnish and oxides from contacts the way Deoxit does. Also Tech Spray "Rid-Ox" is a good deoxidizer too. We prefer Deoxit DN5 as it is non flammable (I think the Tech Spray and other Deoxit products may be flammable).

We have never had a can of WD40 at the shop! Always much preferred products like LPS-2 as penetrating oils.

CaiLube MCL is a good contact lubricant which is especially good for plastic sliding controls.

[Findm-Keepm]

Originally Posted by avionic

This product has always worked fantastic for cleaning and lubricating strip and wafer tuners . The one and only "Blue Shower" http://www.techspray.com/newinfo/1667.pdf

Perhaps for you, but the older version had Freon TF in it and would melt plastic.

One bit of thought about the "new" Blue Shower - it has no lubricating substance, and is sold as a degreaser/cleaner. Watch the flashpoint - it boils at a low 129 degrees Fahrenheit and decomposes if heated. It also contains good ol' HCFC 134a - acrylic plastic's arch enemy.

Cheers,

[MRX37]

Interesting.

When I use WD-40, I always unplug whatever I'm going to spray, and I use just a teensy spray and wipe away the excess. I let it sit for a few minutes before I plug it in.

I might look into something specifically designed to clean contacts though. I haven't had a problem yet, but ya never know I guess...