[sdiy] Caig DeoxIT

[Oren Leavitt]

Tom Bugs wrote:
> Hi All,
> 
> I remember people recommending Caig Deoxit sprays (or droppers etc) for 
> improving old pots etc.
> But reading through the main products I'm a bit confused and perhaps 
> smell snake oil!
> 
> The ones I'm seeing are:
> DeoxIT D5 Contact Cleaner which claims to be a 'superior cleaner, 
> enhancer and lubricant for metal electrical connections' - so maybe 
> that's not so pot orientated?
> 
> It is the DeoxIT Gold G5 spray description that sounds so hifi-buff - 
> 'to my ears, the effect is a reduction in smearing and background grunge 
> across the whole frequency spectrum'
> !!! (ok, let's not get hung up on this now.. that's not the point of my 
> question)
> 
> The S5 spray sounds like it is for harsh environments - ruling that one out
> 
> And finally F5 Faderlube - now, I'm reading that this is for conductive 
> plastic pots/faders... Mostly I'm dealing with carbon pots.
> 
> Oh confusion!
> I actually bought a spraycan of D5 and a little tube of Faderlube last 
> month for an old Powertran Delay -- I applied D5 a bit, worked it around 
> and then applied a drop or two of faderlube. It certainly seemed to 
> improve things, but I haven't had much of a check since then.
> 
> So - please help me cut through the jargon!
> - for revitalising regular pots which would you recommend or do you 
> reckon that a combination like I did before would be a good approach?
> Of course, I'll probably keep a can of D5 around for things like old 
> sockets, but... help me out on the pots issues ---- thanks!
> 
> 
> Any comments appreciated!
> Cheers,
> Tom

Hi Tom,

I have had best results carefully cleaning contacts with good ol' 
isopropyl alcohol. This does not leave a dust-attracting residue.
Years ago, I've tried Caig DeoxIT/Faderlube. I've noticed quick results 
(that's what sells product!) but in the long run, the problem seems to 
return worse than ever.

For pots, either getting new replacements or, if they are hard to 
replace, carefully dismantling them and cleaning the dirt of the wiper 
and resistive element has worked best in the long run.
For contacts, esp keyboard contacts, cleaning with alcohol has worked 
best in the long run.

If you do use the spray product, take care to avoid getting it all over 
electronic components/circuit boards and wipe off excess. Probably best 
as a last resort if alcohol doesn't do the job.

My own 2-bits,
- Oren