z driver 88t

After reading through the Sharkskin's page and Clay's thread, both linked here:

https://rennlist.com/forums/928-foru...-cleaning.html

I have a few issues to resolve before tacling this job:

1. There is a common recommendation for Stabilant. There are several different variaties of Stabilant. I assume guys are using the the Stabilant 22A which is diluted with Isopropanol? Or some other dilution?

2. Dave and Clay mentioned using a small steel dremel brush to clean the connectors. Is there any concern that steel is too hard and may remove too much material? Would it be better to use brass? Clay posted that brass didn't work, but I'm not sure why it wouldn't.

3. Do not apply stabilant to the male termials on the relays, but it is OK to apply to the female relay receptacle at the CE panel, correct? Or not?

4. I found this file at Frys.com http://www.frys.com/product/2426280?...H:MAIN_RSLT_PG

Is this the type recommended for cleaning the female relay terminals at the panel? Or is there another that would be more appropriately sized?

Maleficio

I saturated my CE with WD-40. Scrubbed everything with a wire brush. Wiped it all down. Good to go.

Jadz928

THIS IS NOT GOOD ADVICE

z driver 88t

I just answered question 1 by rereading Dave's page. 22A is the correct Stabilant product.

Questions 2, 3, and 4 remain. For this particular project I'll follow the road map laid out by Dave and Clay. It seems extremely well documented and thoroughly discussed.

It would be great to have Scott (Syoo8) chime in as well since he seemed to follow the same process in 2010 to hear about his experience or pitfalls.

Maleficio

That's a damn shame, because it sure works good.

9two8

Quote-- ( Would it be better to use brass? Clay posted that brass didn't work, but I'm not sure why it wouldn't. )

I used a small brass wire wheel in my dremel and the finish was perfect when I did an r/r on my CE panel.

Ken
80 928 S
5 Speed

UK

Jadz928

Steel is good, brass is good too. The CE terminals are solid, not plated... so no concern about wearing thru any plating. You could used 800 grit sandpaper too.

Maleficio

Jadz, I really dig your avatar.

linderpat

Yikes
You are lucky it is still working.

Maleficio

I keep hearing that. I've done it that way for years, on all my cars, and it's always worked like a champ. Why do people think it's a bad idea?

bradartigue

WD-40 is a kerosene based product that is harmless to most plastics. I would venture to guess that no one has a great idea of what plastic Porsche used and bet most of us who've worked with Euro cars would agree the plastics aren't the strong point. WD-40 takes a long time to evaporate and attracts dust. A panel located behind carpet (and in many cases a piece of plywood and jute) sprayed with WD may be a mess in a few weeks.

A rapid drying, non-lubricant cleaner like QD is likely a better path to success, but then again, test its reaction to the plastics before spraying it everywhere and turning it into a gooey mess.

z driver 88t

From the official WD40 site, "Just want you to know that WD-40 is non-conductive and works well to displace moisture from electrical components. You should always make sure the power is off before using. You can find out more by searching "electric" or "electrical" in our 2000 uses list here. Thanks!"

However, Stabilant is conductive and uses alcohol as a carrier which evaporates nicely leaving a clean surface instead of oil which seems to me like it woudl just be messier to work with. So WD40 may be fine. For marginally more money - if I'm going to the time and effort of a CE panel refurbish I'll opt for Stabilant which for electrical applicaitons seems to be a better technology for this particular task. But it does seem that WD40 is not bad and may help keep out moisture which aids in preventing oxidation.

That said, thank you Ken for answering the post as asked. Questions 1 and 2 down, 3 and 4 to go.

Maleficio

WD-40 is non-conductive, but it certainly is not dialectric. It does not provide electrical insulation.

I like it because it eats corrosion, and prevents more corrosion from growing. If WD-40 had any sort of negative effect upon current, it wouldn't be the "go to" for maintaining old-school ignition distributors.

Alan

I think brass is fine - but brass brushes tend to be very soft and fall apart easily - steel will likely be faster - either way your goal is just to gently clean to bare metal - eliminating oxidation.

I see no reason not to use stabilant on both male & female (socket) terminals - however the males are easy to clean directly - use stabilant as a protectant - on the female socket terminals direct cleaning is difficult.

wrt to the terminal files - I would not use one unless the corrosion was quite bad, even then its not ideal because a significasnt amount of material will be removed => looser terminals. For terminals that are in good condition already don't risk losening them up (they are sprung). Just protect with stabilant - mating the relays again is mechanical cleaning enough for most conditions.

Alan

WallyP

What Alan said...