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Anyone use a Dremel tool for chassis cleanup or buffing ? What about for cleaning of tube sockets ? Which tool would you use to clean tube sockets ?Thinking about the cleanup of a dull ST-70 chassis. Which dremel attachment would be appropriate here ?
Any advice would be appreciated !
Thanks,
Ross
Follow Ups:
As a rule of thumb, I'd recommend against using the Dremel, hand cleaning gives you much better control. In fact I'd say save it for a last resort. I've used my Dremel on various chassis with mixed results. On chrome Dynas and others I've used the felt polishing wheels. They look like little white felt cylinders, about 1/2" high. Soak them in a can of NevrDull wadding polish overnight first so they get the cleaning solution in them. After Dremelling, buff residue off with a 100% cotton cloth (cotton diapers work great). But VERY IMPORTANT... before you go at a chassis with a dremel or other similar polisher, you need to make sure it is absolutely clean, no specks of dust or dirt anywhere, no big rust spots. If you don't, it'll grind the dust in and you'll get little swirly scratches that'll never come out. Also, depending on the finish and type of silkscreening, you could lose the silkscreening so test first on an inconspicuous area. Not sure how you'd clean tube sockets with a dremel. I do also occasionally work on old steel radio chassis. If it has a good amound of surface rust, as a last resort, I'll strip the parts off, soak the chassis in WD40 or Rust Eater, then go at it with the Dremel brass (not the steel one) cup brush. Very messy, but effective. But you will of course lose any labels or printing with this method. I WOULD NOT recommend this for chrome finishes though, the and rust residue and the brush would probably tear up a shiny finish.
Here's John Camille's recipe for clean tube pins (from CyberVALVE issue 1)
1 Select a new tube that checks way over good.
2 Wire brush pins until shiny with a gun bore brush chucked up in a drill motor or Dremel tool. Practice on an old tube until you figure it out.
3 Wash tube thoroughly with tooth brush and 409. Rinse and blow dry. Do not touch pins with fingers again. We’re talking clean room plastic gloves here (food handler gloves are cheaper)
4 Chuck one half of a Q-tip in a drill motor and add a small drop of Caig Pro-Gold to the cotton. Use this rotary buffer to polish tube pins. Repeat process with clean Q-tips until pins produce no more black deposits on cotton. Surprise, surprise, you thought they were clean."Source : John Camille in CyberVALVE issue 1, posted by Doc B. at the Audio Asylum"
Don't do it ! One slip and the valve could be toast . The gentle way is to use a fibreglass pencil then a cotton bud soaked in isoprop to clean the pins . Works a treat (especially with 1940's loctals) and keeps the pin plating intact :)
...FB
regards,
Bas
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