orange_hand Posted June 23, 2011 Report Share Posted June 23, 2011 Hi Guys, I would like to buy some grease for the knobs. I need to apply some grease between the knobs and the poti shaft in order to get them smoothly removed without a lot of pressure. Any recommendations are welcome ! Cheers orange Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nebula Posted June 23, 2011 Report Share Posted June 23, 2011 Be really careful with this. Grease has a way of spreading from parts to hands to surfaces, potentially leaving permanent stains on lovely panels. Even a tiny dab of grease into a knob will probably mostly ooze out once you put it on the shaft. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
orange_hand Posted June 23, 2011 Author Report Share Posted June 23, 2011 I think this should be possible. I think professional manufacturers of electronic devices apply a special grease on the knobs in order to be able to remove them some day if the device has to be serviced... I don't want to use oil :-) If nobody has an idea, I will start with industry vaseline, as I have no grease handy at the moment :-) .... Cheers orange Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nebula Posted June 23, 2011 Report Share Posted June 23, 2011 At work I use clear silicone grease for weatherproofing antenna connections, and that stuff is messy, so I wouldn't recommend it. Lithium grease is a little less annoying to work with, but it leaves nasty white residue behind. K-Y jelly might be good because it is water-based, but it may leak down the shaft into the pot or encoder, potentially breaking down its internal lubricants. And I think it dries up after a while. Vaseline is petroleum jelly, right? You may want to test a little on an inconspicuous bit of surface to make sure it cleans up easily. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
orange_hand Posted June 23, 2011 Author Report Share Posted June 23, 2011 Vaseline is petroleum jelly, right? that's correct. I will try it before I apply it to all encoders :-) Cheers orange Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hawkeye Posted June 23, 2011 Report Share Posted June 23, 2011 Don´t grease, use Smithies powerful knob removal tool. Hot! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
orange_hand Posted June 24, 2011 Author Report Share Posted June 24, 2011 Hi, where can I get this magic tool from ? Cheers orange Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hawkeye Posted June 24, 2011 Report Share Posted June 24, 2011 Smithy-express.com only 999USD. Or DIY :-) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Davo Posted June 28, 2011 Report Share Posted June 28, 2011 It looks like something you'd find holding a bag of bread closed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
orange_hand Posted June 28, 2011 Author Report Share Posted June 28, 2011 Hi, I think that won't work for the encoders and knobs I use. They really stick together like hell :-) I have to apply something ... Cheers orange Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Screaming_Rabbit Posted June 28, 2011 Report Share Posted June 28, 2011 Hi, I think that won't work for the encoders and knobs I use. They really stick together like hell :-) I have to apply something ... Cheers orange Why don't you try, what we call in Switzerland "Sewing machine oil" - It's some kind of "clean, transparent oil"? Apply a bit onto a cloth (just moisturize, not dripping) and rub the encoder/pot shaft with it. This leaves a thin, non dripping film of oil, which might just be enough but not too much loss of friction. - Looks like you have to experiment a bit :-) Greets, Roger Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hawkeye Posted June 29, 2011 Report Share Posted June 29, 2011 not too much though or the knobs will slip on the encoder axis while turning :-) ah no, d-shaft to the rescue :-) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
orange_hand Posted June 29, 2011 Author Report Share Posted June 29, 2011 Hi Guys, I could try this, although I am not sure where to buy this here in London…. Anyway I was more thinking about something not so liquid, that’s why I asked for some kind of grease rather than oil .. I think I will start with petroleum jelly (Vaseline), as it is not liquid. I will also consider to put a little bit of it on the surface of the knobs for a smoother feeling ïŠ I will let you know the result of my experiment. Cheers orange Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
julianf Posted July 1, 2011 Report Share Posted July 1, 2011 I use silicon greese. As you know, petroleum rots some things, but i dont know about pot shafts etc. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JRock Posted July 18, 2011 Report Share Posted July 18, 2011 I would use lithium grease. It's the stuff you grease Bushings on Power tools and lube the collet for an electric chipping gun with. It's white and like a paste. It wouldn't spread around as much as light machine oil, and it should (I haven't tried it though) clean right up with a little isopropyl. You could probably pick it up at any hardware store. I might try it myself :thumbsup: A little dab'll do ya' Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vortura Posted July 18, 2011 Report Share Posted July 18, 2011 I could try this, although I am not sure where to buy this here in London… Give John Lewis a try if you've got one near you. My wife bought a sewing machine there recently, so it's a reasonable bet that they'll have sewing machine oil. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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