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  1. #1
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    Lubricating pots ?

    I was wondering what would happen if I sprayed some WD40 into a sliding pot ?
    Would it screw up the contacts ,, has anyone tried this ?

    I have a couple of sliding pots that just seem a bit sticky.

    Thanks.

  2. #2
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    They will get stickier! Use some electrical contact spray, "Electroclean" or similar. Oil based lubes will make them worse as it dries out. Or replace them, pots are cheaper than the spray probably!

    Gwyn

    737NG using Prosim737, Immersive Calibration Pro, Aerosim Solutions motorized TQ & cockpit hardware, CP Flight MCP & FDS SYS1X, SYS2X & SYS4X, FDS PRO FMCs, AFDS units & Glarewings, Matrix Orbital ELEC display, Pokeys Landing & Cruise alt display, Buttkicker Gamers, 3 x BenqMW811ST projectors with a Matrox Th2Go
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  3. #3
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    OK,, I have some electrical contact cleaner.

    I'll give that a try.

  4. #4
    75+ Posting Member Lezam's Avatar
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    In general, I dont think WD40 would screw up electronics if thats what your asking. I've sprayed some on various parts while they were off, with no immediate failures. Correct me if I'm wrong though.

  5. #5
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    I was also thinking of that white lithium grease .

    I wonder if that would mess up the contacts in the pot?

    I have some in a spray can.

    convair sim.jpgpot setup.jpg

    I attached a picture of the pot set up.
    I am using two pots per lever. One for power and one for reversers.The set up allows the tab to move the sliders forward and a spring to return the slider to neutral.
    The reason I am looking at lubricating the pots ,is sometimes the pot is slow to return to neutral ( a little slower than the lever movement) and I really don't want to use heavier springs, for fear of breaking the slider.

    Also attached a pic of the quadrant and pedestal so far.

    I will be posting lots of pictures in the near future of the Convair 580 project.

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    500+ This must be a daytime job 737NUT's Avatar
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    Toss the slide pots and string pots! No maintenance needed.

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    String pots ??

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    500+ This must be a daytime job 737NUT's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by spitfire9 View Post
    String pots ??
    http://www.geocities.com/raflyer/727...?1202355783531

  9. #9
    75+ Posting Member superconnie's Avatar
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    There is nothing wrong with spraying a pot with WD40. They will work again like new. The only problem is that WD40 evaporates and can become sticky. The best experience is to use WD40, move the pot until it works fine, spray it again and blow the excess WD40 away with compressed air.

    Or just take a good contact spray.

    STRING POTS.... Why has nobody told me about them earlier...??? They would have saved me a lot of time.
    I took slider pots and a long spring and attached a string to that. Works fine but I had to search for sliders that were long enough.

  10. #10
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    Spit:

    I don't recommend WD-40 as an electrical contact cleaner in critical applications because it gums up and while it may seem to prolong the life of a pot by spraying, it is usually a sign the pot is going south due to wear ... not unlike giving a dying patient a few full lungs of oxygen .. perks things up for a very short time but won't prevent the inevitable.

    An exception would be in radio restoration where the part has been sitting in a grungy basement for 40 years and just a film of corrosion needs to be removed on an otherwise low-cycle control.

    I'm suprised those new pots would be acting up after so few cycles on them.

    My favourite contact cleaner for restoring old radio equipment is "Deoxit." It is available by mail order from a distributor just south of YWG. http://www.backstageproaudio.com/

    I'll drive down and pick some up in the next day or so, as I'm down to my last quarter-can and have been using it like Scrooge handing out money to potential welfare recipients.

    In the meantime, hold your horses.

    Here's an EBaay link to String Pots ... interesting, didn't know they existed. http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Strin...mZ230217953451

    Yer buddy,
    VE4ANC

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