On Fri, 20 May 2016 11:12:35 -0700, whit3rd wrote:

On Thursday, May 19, 2016 at 11:00:57 PM UTC-7, OG wrote:
Again ... AA leaked ...

Cleaned the contacts with a diamond tip rotary tool. Nice and clean and
shiny now.

But, wondering what might be a good way to protect the contacts.

I've tinned with tin/silver solder, but it's hard to get good coverage.
Sometimes takes acid flux, and you have to spend some time and effort
cleaning up aferward.

For coil springs, I've bent new ones from bronze music wire (about 0.020
to 0.030" diameter). And for leaf springs, you can buy springy bronze
sheet as a kind of shim stock

http://www.mcmaster.com/#9020k11/=12hu737

which, with some effort, can be formed appropriately.

And, once again, we spend ten bucks on material, fifty labour,
on the thing we got for $2 at a yard sale!