View Single Post
  #23   Report Post  
Posted to sci.electronics.repair
spamtrap1888 spamtrap1888 is offline
external usenet poster
 
Posts: 314
Default Potentiometer fix?

On Dec 20, 12:59*am, "N_Cook" wrote:
Rheilly Phoull wrote in message

... On 12/18/2011 12:32 AM, N_Cook wrote:
Ian *wrote in message
...


*wrote in message
...
*wrote in message


...









The volume control of the cheapie Sony "transistor" AM FM radio I
bought about a year ago does not operate smoothly at low volumes.
Could I try spraying it with something, and if so, what do people
recommend?


Even if not cost-effective, I hate to throw things away. Further, it
has the best FM performance of any small radio I have ever had.


Why does no one ever seem to mention desoldering the pot and taking it
apart. Then you can actually see whether it is wear,dirt, hardened
lubricant, weak wiper springing or misalgnment, bad paxolin rivets,
cracked
paxolin etc.


Because its best to look on the bright side till all else fails.


As something in excess of 95 percent of the "dirty" pots I come across

are
anything else but dirty, I've long since been in the habit of removing

and
dismantling rather than wasting time with various potions.


Absolutely, pots that don't get 'twiddled' much might be dirty but a
volume pot is prone to being worn 'out'. Sometimes a little bend of the
contact wiper to an unworn part of the track (on older pots) can extend
the life.


Rheilly P


This is my consensus view, assuming not due to being abused. Old pots tend
to be worn. Modern small ones as used in multichanel mixers - misalignment
of the flimsey wiper, plastic bodied ones - compacted grease under the
flimsy wiper. I don't remember coming across a worn failing modern pot,
probably swings and roundabouts of flimsey wiper metal. Stout and it wears
the track and light the wiper gets mispositioned too easily


So if this were a modern plastic bodied pot, would squirting it with,
say WD-40 be appropriate, because grease would be compacted under the
flimsy wiper?