01-28-2010, 05:53 PM
I agree with all that has been said. Even after a good vacuum job, and spray with deoxit, a variable capacitor will probably still be enough grease on the ball bearings to go around.
If you go the route of removing it entirely, you can soak it in paint thinner, carefully remove the slivers of mica on the trimmers clean them and set them aside, they are very fragile but still OK if split ; spray out all the crud and boil the D**n thing in water if it's really really nasty, and replace the micas when it is all done. Do this in a well ventilated room or outside. You have been warned.
A tiny dot of lithium grease is all that is needed to smooth out the ball bearings after this is done. Of course everything needs to be wiped down and dry out overnight before you put it together again. Only adjust the set screw in the back unless you absolutely have to, and back off the surrounding nut first. Unless there has been trauma to the shaft, this is uusually not necessary.
A little squirt of WD-40 should release any binding on the bushings after all this is done. A piece of paper will reveal any places where the rotor plates short the stationary plates. Usually on the ends you can correct this easily. Use an old fashioned VTVM ohmmeter to find shorts. A Digital meter will drive you nuts trying to find it.
Incidently some of the rotors may have two or three sub leaves which can be used to fine tune the tracking of the set, but this is a whole other matter. Somebody has gone there before, just can't recall who.
Pots, in general, blast away with Deoxit including the shaft bushing, rotate back and forth a few times and let it sit for a few hours. Same thing with band switches.
If you go the route of removing it entirely, you can soak it in paint thinner, carefully remove the slivers of mica on the trimmers clean them and set them aside, they are very fragile but still OK if split ; spray out all the crud and boil the D**n thing in water if it's really really nasty, and replace the micas when it is all done. Do this in a well ventilated room or outside. You have been warned.
A tiny dot of lithium grease is all that is needed to smooth out the ball bearings after this is done. Of course everything needs to be wiped down and dry out overnight before you put it together again. Only adjust the set screw in the back unless you absolutely have to, and back off the surrounding nut first. Unless there has been trauma to the shaft, this is uusually not necessary.
A little squirt of WD-40 should release any binding on the bushings after all this is done. A piece of paper will reveal any places where the rotor plates short the stationary plates. Usually on the ends you can correct this easily. Use an old fashioned VTVM ohmmeter to find shorts. A Digital meter will drive you nuts trying to find it.
Incidently some of the rotors may have two or three sub leaves which can be used to fine tune the tracking of the set, but this is a whole other matter. Somebody has gone there before, just can't recall who.
Pots, in general, blast away with Deoxit including the shaft bushing, rotate back and forth a few times and let it sit for a few hours. Same thing with band switches.
