Tube amp chassis cleaner

[jtrouter]

Hello, I have a bunch of old tube electronics. At this time i am going thru my stock of Radios and a couple of amps
that i need to clean the chassis, What is a safe way to clean up these items. First just general cleanup of 50 plus years
of dirt dust and crude, @nd i have a couple of items came from a smokers radio shack. What do i use and the years of
buildup of tar and nicotine? I do have a full can of CRC qd electronic spray cleaner and i also have 70% isopropyl
alcohol that i can put into a spray bottle. Thank you for reading and i wait to hear from you guys.

 

[Captain Kilowatt]

Spray-9 works wonders on nicotine and otherwise dirty parts. Much better than Windex IMHO.

 

[nomadradio]

QD is an old favorite. There are some kinds of schmoo it won't cut. We use 99% isopropyl from Amazon. Has the advantage that it will soak up and remove moisture if any is present. Takes longer to evaporate, but won't harm any plastics I have yet found.

Denatured alcohol from the local hardware store is a close second.

We have found that airborne tobacco tar can build up inside the hollows of a tube socket's plastic body. Got in the habit of soaking the empty socket with solvent, and then blowing it dry with compressed air and the blow gun. Any tiny brown particles that emerge with the expelled liquid are a hint that you're not done yet. Leaving that stuff inside the socket will cause it to migrate when heat softens it, creeping onto the metal surfaces inside the socket a week or so down the line.

Always best to do this outdoors. All the good solvents you can still get are flammable.

73

 

[jtrouter]

QD is an old favorite. There are some kinds of schmoo it won't cut. We use 99% isopropyl from Amazon. Has the advantage that it will soak up and remove moisture if any is present. Takes longer to evaporate, but won't harm any plastics I have yet found.

Denatured alcohol from the local hardware store is a close second.

We have found that airborne tobacco tar can build up inside the hollows of a tube socket's plastic body. Got in the habit of soaking the empty socket with solvent, and then blowing it dry with compressed air and the blow gun. Any tiny brown particles that emerge with the expelled liquid are a hint that you're not done yet. Leaving that stuff inside the socket will cause it to migrate when heat softens it, creeping onto the metal surfaces inside the socket a week or so down the line.
I will
Always best to do this outdoors. All the good solvents you can still get are flammable.

73

I will try that on the nasty tar and nicotine chassis, But the CRC QD is ok to spray all over the normally dirty chassis correct? I have used in often on car electronics and i use deoxIT on controls and pots its just that i was reading somewhere not to use electronic cleaners on old radios? I figured its smarter to ask before i do it than after and make a mistake. And i have dont that more than i care to say. As i have grown older i like to not only fix things but make them look good and work good.

 

[nomadradio]

There is one warning for QD and tube-type electronics.

Rotary switches. In particular, the mode selector in Browning tube-type SSB radios. In the beginning, the center hub of each rotating contact was made from the same brown thermoset resin as the outer insulating wafer that supports the fixed contact points. QD won't molest those. If the inner hub is the same color as the outer ring, you're okay.

But in the 70s, the center hub of the rotating contact became a thermoplastic resin. Most commonly either white or blue. In some 1970s products you'd see a warning that said "Clean only with Freon TF". That was a room-temp spray cleaner until the ozone treaty banned it. Big advantage of TF was that it was plastic safe. The only solvent you can buy now that's safe to use on those is alcohol, either isopropyl or denatured ethanol. Any solvent meaner than those is risky.

I suspect that De-ox-it may be safe, but I can't prove it.

73

 

[jtrouter]

There is one warning for QD and tube-type electronics.

Rotary switches. In particular, the mode selector in Browning tube-type SSB radios. In the beginning, the center hub of each rotating contact was made from the same brown thermoset resin as the outer insulating wafer that supports the fixed contact points. QD won't molest those. If the inner hub is the same color as the outer ring, you're okay.

But in the 70s, the center hub of the rotating contact became a thermoplastic resin. Most commonly either white or blue. In some 1970s products you'd see a warning that said "Clean only with Freon TF". That was a room-temp spray cleaner until the ozone treaty banned it. Big advantage of TF was that it was plastic safe. The only solvent you can buy now that's safe to use on those is alcohol, either isopropyl or denatured ethanol. Any solvent meaner than those is risky.

I suspect that De-ox-it may be safe, but I can't prove it.

73

 

[jtrouter]

Thank you as always, I used 99% isopropyl and it came out great!
You guys are such a great resource. Thanks Again.

 

[BJ radionut]

Now that it is clean. I would use some Stainless-Steel polish or even some pledge on Chassis only, no sockets or parts...This will help recoat the metal and keep it from tarnish and oxidizing quite so fast again (black crud!!!) I just spay a clean old T-shirt or cotton towel and give it a coating. my 2 cents

 

[jtrouter]

Now that it is clean. I would use some Stainless-Steel polish or even some pledge on Chassis only, no sockets or parts...This will help recoat the metal and keep it from tarnish and oxidizing quite so fast again (black crud!!!) I just spay a clean old T-shirt or cotton towel and give it a coating. my 2 cents

Ok that seems like a good idea, I just finished ordering all new Caps now the waiting starts. I was going to order some tubes also but just for giggles i am going to the local ham fest this weekend and just maybe will find what i need? And no matter how often i buy assorted Caps i never have the ones i need?
Thanks Again.