How can I de-jitter my paddles?

[chrismiller75]

Basic tech question here, but I know this is a common problem--my one of my paddles works find but the other is all jittery. Is there a fix for this or do I have to shell out for a new set?

[Atari freak 1]

All I think you have to do Is open it up and spray the pot (round metal thing) with electical cleaner.

 

I'm not exactly sure if this is exactly what you do... mabye someone else here can give you a better discription of what you do.

[Chris++]

Remove the screws, take the controller apart really slowly, and then spray all of the round metal parts (especially the big one, the pot) with WD-40, available at any hardware store, Target, etc.

[Atarinvader]

The best thing is to replace the pot' which I think is a 1K (but could be 10K, it'll say on it). Failing that I'd get hold of some Servisol (I use it for my crossfader on my mixer) and spray it into the pots case.

[moycon]

Quit serving them coffee right before bedtime.

[Atarinvader]

avoid WD40, it'll corode the pot...

[Chris++]

You're thinking of the grease remover. WD-40 is a brand, not a particular type of substance. WD-40 sells an Electrical Cleaning Spray that you can get almost anywhere, even at some Radio Shacks. The kind I'm thinking of has a red square on the can that reads, "Guaranteed not to corrode." (Not joking.) Of course, the Radio Shack guy might recommend something else, which will probably work just as well -- you got the main point, which is to spray the big metal round thing.

[Atarinvader]

My bad. WD-40 do do an electrical contact spray which is the same as Servisol.

[chrisr]

Radio shack tuner spray right on the pot. Works great like new.

 

Chris

[JCroniger]

I use the same as Chrisr. You could also disassemble the pot and clean it with rubbung alcohol and a q tip. This works great too.

[chrismiller75]

Sweet. Thanks playas!

[Albert]

I was about to say, "Hey, this would be great for the Atari 2600 FAQ!" when I discovered it's already in there:

 

quote

Dirty paddles are a cause of great frustration. To clean them, buy a can of Cleaner/Degreaser (available at Radio Shack, catalog #64-4422), open up the paddles and spray directly into the  pot  area. Close them up, give them a few twists and they should be good as new. Silicon spray, WD40 and TV tuner can also be used, although there are warnings about possible gumming with WD40, and possible plastic rot with TV tuner.

 

..Al