Controller Connectors / Difficulty Level Setting Switches have Brown Stuff?

[P!xel]

I opened my ATARI 2600 4-Switch Woodgrain to clean it, and found this brown stuff on the ports that connect to the controllers and also on the difficulty level setting switches... (Photo included)

Is this normal?

If not, how do I get rid of this?

Does it even matter? And also for clearance, the switches and controller ports do work fine so yeah.

[+DrVenkman]

That looks like rust - has the black paint been scraped off the outer housing of the switch? If it's not rust, it should clean up with isopropyl alcohol pretty easily. If it IS rust, so long as the switch itself is working, it's probably just as well to leave it alone. Cleaning off rust from small parts like that is hard to do in-place, and if you're going to remove the switch to clean it, might as well buy a new one to solder in its place.

[P!xel]

That looks like rust - has the black paint been scraped off the outer housing of the switch? If it's not rust, it should clean up with isopropyl alcohol pretty easily. If it IS rust, so long as the switch itself is working, it's probably just as well to leave it alone. Cleaning off rust from small parts like that is hard to do in-place, and if you're going to remove the switch to clean it, might as well buy a new one to solder in its place.

Thanks dude, I ended up rubbing it with alcohol and it helped a little bit but didn't really do that much. I guess I'm just gonna leave it.