What is the difference between tuner cleaner and contact cleaner?

A friend needs the connection between her earphones and her cell phone
cleaned. She gets intermittent loss of sound, and iiuc wiggliing the
plug affects this sound But I don't think the solder connections are
bad, sine she had it cleaned a year ago for the same problem and it
worked well until a month ago.

It's some sort of non-standard, proprietary plug.

I'm not sure what to use, and I've long wondered about the difference
between tuner cleaner and contact cleaner. When she went to the
cell phone store, he used Keyboard Cleaner. I think the plastic is
really clean now

Thanks

On Mon, 22 Aug 2011 12:54:32 -0400, micky
wrote:

What is the difference between tuner cleaner and contact cleaner?

Not much, since many vendors sell a product that does both. Sometimes
either one claims to "lubricate" the contacts, which means that it
leaves an oily residue.

A friend needs the connection between her earphones and her cell phone
cleaned.

Any particular cell phone? Not all EP connectors are the same. If in
doubt, use an air hose to remove the accumulated lint and filth. If
the contacts are exposed, sharpen a pencil eraser to a point and use
it to clean the contacts. Then use the air hose to remove the crud.

She gets intermittent loss of sound, and iiuc wiggliing the
plug affects this sound But I don't think the solder connections are
bad, sine she had it cleaned a year ago for the same problem and it
worked well until a month ago.

It's almost certainly the solder connection between the jack and the
PCB. Open her unspecified model cell phone, clean out the filth, and
resolder the connector. If the connector appears to be cracked,
replace the connector.

It's some sort of non-standard, proprietary plug.

Sorry, but I couldn't find anything under proprietary plug.

I'm not sure what to use, and I've long wondered about the difference
between tuner cleaner and contact cleaner. When she went to the
cell phone store, he used Keyboard Cleaner. I think the plastic is
really clean now

I wouldn't use either type of "cleaner". Some 90% alcohol to disolve
out any grease left by the previous attempt to use tuner/contact
cleaner. If that doesn't work, tear the phone apart.

--
Jeff Liebermann
150 Felker St #D http://www.LearnByDestroying.com
Santa Cruz CA 95060 http://802.11junk.com
Skype: JeffLiebermann AE6KS 831-336-2558

"Jeff Liebermann" wrote in message
...
On Mon, 22 Aug 2011 12:54:32 -0400, micky
wrote:

Any particular cell phone? Not all EP connectors are the same. If in
doubt, use an air hose to remove the accumulated lint and filth. If
the contacts are exposed, sharpen a pencil eraser to a point and use
it to clean the contacts. Then use the air hose to remove the crud.

I was taught many years ago NOT to use a rubber eraser to clean contacts.
The theory was that the rubber might leave a sulfur containing residue that
will encourage corrosion.

You may agree or disagree but prudence (a fine girl) dictates caution.

On Mon, 22 Aug 2011 14:29:58 -0700, Jeff Liebermann
wrote:

On Mon, 22 Aug 2011 12:54:32 -0400, micky
wrote:

What is the difference between tuner cleaner and contact cleaner?

Not much, since many vendors sell a product that does both. Sometimes
either one claims to "lubricate" the contacts, which means that it
leaves an oily residue.

A friend needs the connection between her earphones and her cell phone
cleaned.

Any particular cell phone?

Yeah. It's a Sony Ericson W580i.

Not all EP connectors are the same. If in
doubt, use an air hose to remove the accumulated lint and filth. If
the contacts are exposed, sharpen a pencil eraser to a point and use
it to clean the contacts. Then use the air hose to remove the crud.

Okay.

She gets intermittent loss of sound, and iiuc wiggliing the
plug affects this sound But I don't think the solder connections are
bad, sine she had it cleaned a year ago for the same problem and it
worked well until a month ago.

It's almost certainly the solder connection between the jack and the
PCB.

Okay. Although the first cleaning caused it to work fine for almost a
years.

Open her unspecified model cell phone, clean out the filth, and
resolder the connector.

Okay.

If the connector appears to be cracked,
replace the connector.

I'll be able to find one for sale? (Don't waste your time looking.
After all, I haven't said it's cracked yet.)

It's some sort of non-standard, proprietary plug.

Sorry, but I couldn't find anything under proprietary plug.

grin

I'm not sure what to use, and I've long wondered about the difference
between tuner cleaner and contact cleaner. When she went to the
cell phone store, he used Keyboard Cleaner. I think the plastic is
really clean now

I wouldn't use either type of "cleaner". Some 90% alcohol to disolve
out any grease left by the previous attempt to use tuner/contact
cleaner.

I don't know what was used the first time. I wasn't involved. Right
now I don't even remember if she did it herself or she went to a phone
store.

If that doesn't work, tear the phone apart.

I'd like that, but she may not trust me.

On Mon, 22 Aug 2011 20:34:51 -0400, micky
wrote:

Yeah. It's a Sony Ericson W580i.

http://www.sonyericsson.com/cws/products/mobilephones/overview/w580i?lc=en&cc=us

If the connector appears to be cracked,
replace the connector.

There are plenty of used cell phone dealers around.
http://www.recellular.com/find/
http://www.recellulartoo.com/
http://www.dotcells.com/
etc...

Plenty on eBay. New for $90. Used for $35 to $50. Some auctions at
low prices. Search for W580i.

I'll be able to find one for sale? (Don't waste your time looking.
After all, I haven't said it's cracked yet.)

In this case, probably not. Here's the connector:
http://i01.i.aliimg.com/img/pb/174/796/331/331796174_570.jpg
What's probably happening is that the gold contacts in the phone have
developed a layer of crud on them, and the sharp points on the plug
are not penetrating the crud. Solution... remove the crud. I have
several old phones with similar connectors. What I used was a tiny
screwdriver or plastic pick as a scraper. Some household cleaner
(i.e. 409), and a pair of overkill magnifying glasses so I can see
what I'm doing. The trick is to scrape off the crud until you see the
gold underneath, without scraping off the gold, or destroying the
plastic insulation between contacts. Start with a toothpick. Graduate
to a metal scraper if that doesn't work. You'll probably also find a
substantial amount of pocket lint inside the connector, which needs to
be removed BEFORE attacking.

I don't know what was used the first time. I wasn't involved. Right
now I don't even remember if she did it herself or she went to a phone
store.

The phone store usually has a spray can of something. I've never
bothered to check what they use.

If that doesn't work, tear the phone apart.

I'd like that, but she may not trust me.

I wouldn't trust you with my phone either.


--
Jeff Liebermann
150 Felker St #D http://www.LearnByDestroying.com
Santa Cruz CA 95060 http://802.11junk.com
Skype: JeffLiebermann AE6KS 831-336-2558

On Mon, 22 Aug 2011 20:33:41 -0400, "Charlie"
wrote:

"Jeff Liebermann" wrote in message
.. .
On Mon, 22 Aug 2011 12:54:32 -0400, micky
wrote:

Any particular cell phone? Not all EP connectors are the same. If in
doubt, use an air hose to remove the accumulated lint and filth. If
the contacts are exposed, sharpen a pencil eraser to a point and use
it to clean the contacts. Then use the air hose to remove the crud.

I was taught many years ago NOT to use a rubber eraser to clean contacts.
The theory was that the rubber might leave a sulfur containing residue that
will encourage corrosion.

You may agree or disagree but prudence (a fine girl) dictates caution.

I just googled for "contact cleaning eraser sulfur" and found no
warnings or horror stories. Sulfur is not going to attack the gold.
It might coat it, but then it has to leak out of the eraser in liquid
form, such as in the form of sulfuric acid. That's not going to
happen.

If the gold contacts develop a hard black coating, then some sulfur
was transfered. However, I've been using Pink Pearl erasers on gold
edge connectors for ummm... too many years, and have never seen the
problem. I wash off any residue with whatever solvent or cleaner
falls off the shelf (usually 409). I do NOT use an ink eraser, or
highly abrasive eraser that might rub off some of the gold plating
which is only 25-50 millionths thick.

There are those that favor DeOxit or Cramoline. I've had good luck
with both of those, but not when the contacts are exposed to a filthy
environment, as is typical for the exposed contacts on a cell phone.
The residue picks up the dust and lint, and turns them to crud. For
cell phones, I suggest using something that leaves no residue
(alcohol).

Connector cleaning by Apple Computah:
http://support.apple.com/kb/TA20318?viewlocale=en_US


--
Jeff Liebermann
150 Felker St #D http://www.LearnByDestroying.com
Santa Cruz CA 95060 http://802.11junk.com
Skype: JeffLiebermann AE6KS 831-336-2558

On Aug 22, 12:54*pm, micky wrote:
What is the difference between tuner cleaner and contact cleaner?



The only specific characteristic of "tuner cleaner" that I'm aware of
is that it's (was?) formulated to not be aggressive on plastics. Back
when mechanical tuners were made, they generally had phenolic wafers
to hold the contacts, but some used plastic or had plastic elsewhere
in the tuner. Tuner cleaners were generally pumped into various
openings in the tuner in order to flood and shotgun the whole assy,
rather than disassemble the tuner and apply the cleaner only to the
actual contacts. Other contact cleaners may or may not be tough on
plastics.

In article ,
micky wrote:

What is the difference between tuner cleaner and contact cleaner?

A friend needs the connection between her earphones and her cell phone
cleaned. She gets intermittent loss of sound, and iiuc wiggliing the
plug affects this sound But I don't think the solder connections are
bad, sine she had it cleaned a year ago for the same problem and it
worked well until a month ago.

It's some sort of non-standard, proprietary plug.

I'm not sure what to use, and I've long wondered about the difference
between tuner cleaner and contact cleaner. When she went to the
cell phone store, he used Keyboard Cleaner. I think the plastic is
really clean now

Thanks

DeOxIt is one of the best contact cleaners available. A shot of that in
the female followed by 30 seconds of gentle copulation should take care
of it.

Charlie wrote:


"Jeff Liebermann" wrote in message
...
On Mon, 22 Aug 2011 12:54:32 -0400, micky
wrote:

Any particular cell phone? Not all EP connectors are the same. If in
doubt, use an air hose to remove the accumulated lint and filth. If
the contacts are exposed, sharpen a pencil eraser to a point and use
it to clean the contacts. Then use the air hose to remove the crud.

I was taught many years ago NOT to use a rubber eraser to clean contacts.
The theory was that the rubber might leave a sulfur containing residue
that will encourage corrosion.

You may agree or disagree but prudence (a fine girl) dictates caution.

Use a plastic eraser (used for erasing marks from mylar sheets). These are
available at drafting and art supply stores.

--
Paul Hovnanian
------------------------------------------------------------------
There was a man who entered a local paper's pun contest. He sent in ten
different puns, in the hope that at least one of them would win.
Unfortunately, no pun in ten did.

WD-40 works as well.

On 24/08/2011 22:39, Charles wrote:
WD-40 works as well.

Uhho flame alert!

On Wed, 24 Aug 2011 17:39:06 -0400, Charles wrote:
WD-40 works as well.

A pretty shabby troll attempt.


[WD-40 should be relegated to cold war era Russian farm equipment alone.]

Allodoxaphobia wrote:
On Wed, 24 Aug 2011 17:39:06 -0400, Charles wrote:
WD-40 works as well.

A pretty shabby troll attempt.


[WD-40 should be relegated to cold war era Russian farm equipment alone.]

the russians lacked food in the cold war era.

On 26/08/2011 01:36, Cydrome Leader wrote:
wrote:
On Wed, 24 Aug 2011 17:39:06 -0400, Charles wrote:
WD-40 works as well.

A pretty shabby troll attempt.


[WD-40 should be relegated to cold war era Russian farm equipment alone.]

the russians lacked food in the cold war era.
That'd be because they didn't have any WD40

On Wed, 24 Aug 2011 17:39:06 -0400, "Charles"
wrote:

WD-40 works as well.

What; if I'd taken you seriously? Do you want me to damage my
friend's cellphone,, jackass?

Tuner cleaner might be designed to avoid damaging plastic parts in tuners,
whereas contact cleaner might be more "aggressive".

I would get some red Cramolin (that's not what it's called any more -- can't
think of the name) and thoroughly clean the plug. (You can also put a "wet"
plug in the jack. The cleaner will migrate and at least partially clean the
jack.) This removes the oxide, which might be what you need done.

In article ,
William Sommerwerck wrote:

Tuner cleaner might be designed to avoid damaging plastic parts in tuners,
whereas contact cleaner might be more "aggressive".

Some "tuner cleaner" I have used in years passed, also contained a
light lubricant (mineral oil, I think). Mechanical UHF television
tuners contained both rotary switches, and a whole bunch of tunable
reactive components (slug-tuned inductors?) which benefited by a bit
of lubrication.

I would get some red Cramolin (that's not what it's called any more -- can't
think of the name) and thoroughly clean the plug.

I understand that some Cramolin products are still available from the
original manufacturer in Germany.

Caig Labs used to import Cramolin into the U.S. and sell it under
their label. In more recent years, they've been selling DeOxIt, which
is a similar product (but not manufactured by the makers of Cramolin).

The makeup of Cramolin and DeOxIt products is, I believe, a trade
secret. I've read several reports which suggest that both types of
products contain oleic acid as the (or an) active ingredient, as this
has a long history of use as a metal and contact cleaner.

--
Dave Platt AE6EO
Friends of Jade Warrior home page: http://www.radagast.org/jade-warrior
I do _not_ wish to receive unsolicited commercial email, and I will
boycott any company which has the gall to send me such ads!

On Sat, 27 Aug 2011 21:49:49 -0700, (Dave Platt)
wrote:

I understand that some Cramolin products are still available from the
original manufacturer in Germany.

This explains the tangled history of Cramolin:
http://siber-sonic.com/electronics/caig.html

More useful info on Cramolin or whatever it's called this week:
http://bach.pgm.com/pipermail/proaudio/2009-November/008411.html

--
Jeff Liebermann
150 Felker St #D http://www.LearnByDestroying.com
Santa Cruz CA 95060 http://802.11junk.com
Skype: JeffLiebermann AE6KS 831-336-2558