Licking headshell contacts, what's a good solution?
Licking headshell contacts, what's a good solution? Posted on: 11.09.2013 by Alton Bettiga So I always have trouble getting a calibration signal, until I lick the contacts of my headshell (I know I know, bad idea in the long run), at that point I get a nice clear signal and am good to go..both my headshell contacts and the contacts inside the tonearm's are nice and bright and super clean, golden beauty I must say.. but I'm not sure why it takes that bit of moisture to get a good clean contact going. I don't want to keep having to do this because I know how bad it is for your contact prongs... Thus leading me to this post... what's a good way to fix this situation? Any types of lubricants or cleaners, D.I.Y., or at home solutions to get these prongs transferring a good clean signal? | |
| Alton Bettiga 11.09.2013 | So I always have trouble getting a calibration signal, until I lick the contacts of my headshell (I know I know, bad idea in the long run), at that point I get a nice clear signal and am good to go.. both my headshell contacts and the contacts inside the tonearm's are nice and bright and super clean, golden beauty I must say.. but I'm not sure why it takes that bit of moisture to get a good clean contact going. I don't want to keep having to do this because I know how bad it is for your contact prongs... Thus leading me to this post... what's a good way to fix this situation? Any types of lubricants or cleaners, D.I.Y., or at home solutions to get these prongs transferring a good clean signal? |
| Darren Teboe 11.09.2013 | You guys are answering a question the OP never asked... what is going on in here? lol. Yes, a pencil is a good tool to clean off your contacts if they are dirty. He said his are clean though. As for improving your contacts, Deoxit will work good as someone mentioned earlier. Marine grade electrical contact sprays will work well too. |
| Yong Aptekar 11.09.2013 | In a pinch, pencil eraser. Got time, alcohol and a pencil eraser. Don't lick your contacts, it works for the time, but it's bad for your contacts. We have all done it, just dont. |
| Wynell Vastbinder 11.09.2013 | Deoxit Pen |
| Antonetta Wikel 11.09.2013 | |
| Vallie Pac 11.09.2013 | A new flat pencil eraser is what I use. |
| Iraida Linihan 11.09.2013 | Reminds me of using a pencil eraser on the contacts for the slot car tracks we had as kids |
| Lannie Kutay 11.09.2013 | sometimes you just gotta lick it before you can make contact... The old ways always get the job done. |
| Delila Vandommelen 11.09.2013 | Sometimes the springs behind the contacts just need a little flexing, and I've had reasonable success with an eraser pencil which just happens to fit right in the tonearm. Carbon fiber brush pens get a few votes here and there too, they're probably more efficient but harder to come by. I was wondering about getting a tiny spray like I have for carrying record cleaning fluid to gigs and filling it with WD40 for this (and also unlocking the height adjust) but I wouldn't feel too comfortable spraying stuff on venue/rented gear. Looking forward to reading what others have to add! |
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