On Mon, 1 May 2017 22:48:40 +0100, Ian Jackson
wrote:

In message ,
" writes
A few things on WD-40.

Its name means Water Displacement - 40th try.
It is, essentially, stoddard solvent, that is highly refined kerosene
and a very small amount of very light mineral oil.
It is 100% volatile over time. Which is directly related to temperature.
Most gunks and goos are soluble in WD-40. But, what is not rinsed away
will be evenly distributed when the solvent evaporates. So beware!
It is a rather gentle solvent, and does not attack most plastics or
finishes. *MOST*, not all!

WD-40 is NOT a contact cleaner. What it does along those lines is by rinsing.
WD-40 is not a lubricant. It will (temporarily) reconstitute some
lubricants under some conditions.

The makers of WD40 might disagree with you.

Good luck with it, you could do worse.

Indeed. WE40 may be the perfect cure for every problem - but it IS a
good general-purpose cleaner/lubricant/anti-corrosion fluid. I've never
had any problems with it.

I've never had any problems with it either, but there are tw othings ti
does not do well. 1. Loosen rusted bolts. (I use PB Blaster for that,
it's a much better product). 2. Be used as a permanent lubricant. For
example, if the tailgate on my pickup is sticking, I will use WD 40 to
loosen that linkage, but once the linkage is loose, I apply an oil or
grease to that linkage for a permanent lube. I dont think the WD 40
totally evaporates, but there is little lube left. Thus I apply the oil
or whatever as a permanent lube for that linkage.

I have never used WD 40 for electronic switch contacts or
potentiometers. I always used contact cleaner. But I have used WD 40 on
auto connectors such as trailer light plugs, with corrosion on them. It
helps clean them, but I always clean them as best as possible too.

Overall, its top promotion seems to be to loosen rusted bolts, and I
find it near worthless for that purpose. But it does have some other
uses which are valuable. It's also works rather well to clean off
oxidation on old dull paint (on cars and other metal objects).

There are other generic replacements for WD 40 that are cheaper and work
just as well. I usually buy them.