Dirty Tube Socket Question

[Paleo Pete]

I have a quick, probably really simple question, I'd like some advice/opinions.

I have a 73 Super Reverb, works fine but has a frying bacon sound I narrowed down to a dirty tube socket. One of the tubes I think in the reverb section, I can wiggle it and the sizzling goes away, I'm thinking a dirty socket. Different tubes do the same thing, it's not the tube.

I'm thinking about squirting in a bit of contact cleaner and using a pipe cleaner to get inside and clean out any trash, will probably do all the tube sockets at the same time. If one is that dirty, what do the rest look like? Go ahead and do them all...I cleaned them 4 years ago when I first got the amp, but only squirted in a bit of contact cleaner, didn't even think about running a pipe cleaner through them too. Obviously they still need attention.

Would contact cleaner and a pipe cleaner be an acceptable method, or would you guys recommend something else? Seems to me it should work, but I definitely don't want to trash a socket...I plan to retension them all too, no reason not to spend an extra few minutes making sure everything is in good shape.

[stokes]

That will work fine,but be sure to retension after,the pipe cleaner may spread the contacts some.I usually just use the tube itself,just insert and remove the tube a couple times while the socket is wet.Get a contact cleaner that has no lubricant,and leaves little or no residue.

[bbartilson]

Would contact cleaner and a pipe cleaner be an acceptable method, or would you guys recommend something else?

I have a nice collection of brass and nylon brushes of many different sizes. I used to be pretty diligent regarding trying not to replace a part that wasn't actually bad, and that inlcluded cleaning tube sockets.

Then I found one of the bristles from my little brass brush inside an amp. Uh, right... Thus ended this practice entirely.

Yes, non residue contact cleaner is fine, as is using the pins of the tube as an abrasion tool. I wouldn't bother with pipe cleaners and re-tension. By the time you have that much labor in it, you could simply replace the socket.

Also, don't assume that tube sockets age at the same rate. If the tube is hotter (like the reverb drive tube) it's socket will corrode and degrade sooner than the other little tubes.

In other words, it's a perfectly good repair to replace one tube socket, and not to assume that all others are bad as well. They do not all live the same life while in service.

Of course, your time is your own. I don't see any harm in your method, presuming it yields a successful repair. 4 years between cleanings would certainly count if it continued to work.

Best,
Bill

[Paleo Pete]

Thanks guys, I was pretty sure a pipe cleaner wouldn't do any damage, but wanted some opinions and others' ideas. I hadn't even thought about a wire bristle anything, for the reason mentioned. I've used them cleaning guns and car parts, in machine shops, and so forth, they always lose bristles. So I've always thought metal bristles and electronics would probably be a bad combination.

I'm not worried about the time it takes, I'm not paying me by the hour to do it...

Your comments about socket aging make sense, I Hadn't thought about it really, but I can see how the heat involved would accelerate aging with a hotter tube.

No lubricant...that may be part of the problem, I didn't know that 4 years ago or so and the only contact cleaner I had did have lubricant so that's what I used. I have some now with no lubricant, I'll definitely grab it this time.

I doubt any tube sockets are bad, I'm not expecting to be replacing any, but do intend to retension them. This amp sat in a closet for at least 15 years, with a problem a local shop didn't fix, and never really saw all that much use before being stored. It's in excellent condition, better than any Super Reverb I've seen in guitar stores and pawn shops. When I last opened it up the sockets all looked very good. Little or no indications of heat, no traces of arcing, no discoloration. Arcing was the first thing I thought, pulled it a few days ago and looked at the problem tube socket. No black marks at all, but that's all I looked at...brushed out a little dust and put it back together. (camera brush)

Thanks for the info guys, I appreciate it.

[Mark Black]

Just wanted to add another possible handy tool for this job -

Tip cleaners for Oxy-Acetylene welding torches (like these: http://www.welders-direct.com/mercha...t_Code=STC-KTC)

These sets have many different sizes included and each cleaner is fashioned with a length of guide pin followed by the actual cleaning portion which is purposely a bit dull so as not to ream out the welding tip. This is also good for not scraping too much on the plating of a tube socket. You can cut off the guide portion so the cleaning section actually gets into the socket for a relatively mild abrasive cleaning.

Also makes a handy go/no-go gauge for whether the socket needs re-tensioning when the size is chosen appropriately...

[Paleo Pete]

Mark:

Thanks for the idea, I have one or two tip cleaner sets already, left over from my refinery hand days, and never even thought about them for this purpose. Didn't mean to take so long before I spotted your post but hadn't thought to check in a few days.

I think I'll probably stick with pipe cleaners, non-abrasive, but this might be workable too and might have other uses as well. I'll have to dig out a set.

[JJGross]

I would never shoot anything liquid directly into a socket or any other part of an amp including jacks. Too easy to get snot all over everything in there and if what you're blasting in there conducts electricity even a little, you're in trouble. A couple months ago I fixed a Fender SS amp that had only one single problem preventing it from working. The previous owner shot WD-40 into the input jacks to 'clean them up' and it quit working immediately. Good thing those things only really run on about 16v - he could have been killed if he'd done that with a tube amp. I don't mind, I ended up with a $25 Fender Champion 30 amp that works perfectly now and all I did was clean the PCB and everything else inside the amp. Once it was cleaned, it worked perfectly.

Get a can of 'DeOxit' made by a company called CAIG. It's not cheap, but a very little goes a long way and it works 1000% better than anything else I've ever tried including other brands of contact cleaner.

Squirt a little on a tube right on the pins and use the wet pins to do your cleaning. Same thing with input and output jacks using a plug you've shot DeOxit onto. Doing it this way keeps all the cleaner right where it does the most good and cleans the pins and plugs at the same time. You could use pipe cleaner if you're really in love with them, but who needs clean pipe cleaners? Clean tube pins are exactly 50% of good contact, might as well kill both those birds with one shot.

Cheers,
- JJ

[dai h.]

one idea is to use those little brushes (made of nylon) for cleaning your teeth

Squirt a little on a tube right on the pins and use the wet pins to do your cleaning.

I think this will be useful to remember (i.e. that tube pins can become oxidized causing problems)

[JJGross]

I think this will be useful to remember (i.e. that tube pins can become oxidized causing problems)

Bean-goh!

[Marc]

FWIW,
I've had real good results with the progold pen. It has a fiberglas tip that cuts into the oxidation on tube pins nicely. Lord valve used to give a 1" square cloth treated with the progold free with his orders, but the pen works way better.
Marc

[Paleo Pete]

JJ: Thanks, that's food for thought...I've never had any problems so far, but I've never squirted WD 40 into an amp either, just distributors in cars. Dries them out quick and you're up and running again. Water Displacement is what the WD means. It was the inventor's 40th attempt at a product that would displace water. I've never used it on anything electronic, never even thought about it really, I usually have good contact cleaner around for that.

I've seen DeOxit, but have never used it, didn't know if it was good or not. Soon as I can afford it I'll have to grab some. For now I'll have to settle for plain old contact cleaner since I already have it. I've used it on pots, input and output jacks for years, never had any problems, but I also always give it a few minutes to dry before powering up. Had to use it on one of my phones a few days ago, works great now but I let it dry for around 10 minutes before plugging in. Wet, I wouldn't think contact cleaner would be conductive, but I've always thought electricity and anything WET was a bad idea. So I let it dry.

Progold pen?? Never heard of that one...

EDIT: I'd be pulling the chassis and doing this from the inside anyway, I don't like blowing anything into the amp, which moves dust around, that kind of thing. First thing I did when I first opened it up was clean out the 30 year collection of dust bunnies. I try to open it up about once a year and keep it cleaned out. It's a hassle, but unless I'm onstage setting up I do in/output jacks the same way, from the inside. If it's an onstage necessity, I cross my fingers and let it dry as long as possible before poowering up, minimum 10 minutes. Never thought of spraying the jack instead...I'll remember it though...