Scratchy midweek

While playing this morning, there was a drop in signal from the amp then it went dead for a while, before coming back to life. The immediate reaction was: Darn! Tubes are dying. However, a quick peek revealed glowing, healthy tubes. 

A few moments later, it happened again & I messed with the Master volume control & the amp crackled rather fiercely. However, after switching to the clean channel, everything was working well; no issues with any of the controls. So the quick conclusion was the problematic Master volume control & we all know dead amp pots are a little challenging to swap out. I grabbed the contact cleaner which was nearby & gave the volume control a good spray. For a more effective result, the amp head was laid on its back to allow the cleaning fluid to flow down. That, folks, was the cure to this mess - dirty contacts. I'm wondering why this was the case considering I play almost every day so the Master volume control was always rotated. 

This Waxco Tech brand is, to my knowledge, the cheapest contact cleaner out there (less than $5 if prices remain true at Mustafa Center) but it's the least pleasant in terms of odour. If this bothers you, consider the Servisol, 3M & WD-40 brand instead.

Contact

Before you head to the stores in search of replacement parts, the first step in addressing connectivity issue is always cleaning. The 3-way toggle switch in my Fender Duo Sonic did not register any connection for the bridge pickup. I kept toggling while playing & after a few flicks, some contact took place but it crackled the signals, meaning, the switch is working but suffers from dirty contacts. A simple spray cured the problem but please use a dedicated contact cleaner for this purpose. Seen above- 3M contact cleaner. Effective but not a pleasant odour there.

The benevolent cleaner

Finally, something to put this issue to rest- Is WD-40 suitable for curing stuck pots/ cleaning the guitar's electronic contacts?

The malignant WD-40 that we know is the blue/ yellow can that lazy techs resort to when cleaning dirty contacts. Personally, I had negative experiences with that version but now we have the appropriate WD-40 for our guitar needs.This one is especially for contact cleaning so it won't treat your pots & switches like dead industrial parts that need to be dealt with. It's available at hardware stores for $15+/- & it's on my to-buy list.

Contact spray

I've finally used up my can of contact spray so here's a new one. Not particular to brand, as long as it's not WD40.