28
Is there any way to restore sticky degraded rubber surfaces? (fedia.io)
submitted 6 hours ago by to c/asklemmy@lemmy.world
17 comments fedilink hide all child comments
 

I have a MIDI controller keyboard that I have cleaned in the past with disinfectant alcohol wipes, which I know is a bad idea because it degrades the rubber over time.

Well, the rubber on the pitch bend and modulation wheels has indeed degraded, and the surfaces texture is awful, uneven and sticky now. My fault... I know.

So does anyone know of any way to fix, or even improve, this kind of nasty rubber surface degradation once it occurs? Sanding? Applying oils? Is there any way I can even slightly restore these controls back to their original soft-touch rubbery glory?

you are viewing a single comment's thread
view the rest of the comments
[–] 17 points 5 hours ago* (3 children)

For degraded rubberized surfaces on computer peripherals (I'm looking at you, Logitech) I now use WD40.

I soak pretty much the entire device in it and leave it overnight in the open. Most of the WD40 will have evaporated, leaving behind a film of dissolved degraded rubber and other gunk. You then use alcohol-free wet wipes to rub all that off and leave the device to dry.

I found that this approach requires less rubbing and scrubbing, useful for bigger batches. Don't worry about the smell, it airs out in a couple of days.

  • permalink
  • fedilink
  • source
  • hideshow 3 child comments
    •
  • [–] 2 points 4 hours ago* (2 children)

    WD40 evaporates?
    Anyway, my go-to is paper towels, cotton swabs and isopropyl alcohol.

    Alternatively, if it's a flat surface I may just stick it over with some tape. The glue will make additional mess, but that's a problem of future me, and at least I won't have to care about it now.

  • permalink
  • fedilink
  • source
  • parent
  • hideshow 2 child comments
    •
  • [–] 1 point 59 minutes ago

    WD40 evaporates?

    A lot of compressed canned things are something suspended in a solvent, and when let out of the container the solvent evaporates leaving behind whatever stuff was dissolved in it. I can't speak if it's the solvent or something in the WD-40 that has the effect the previous poster is talking about.

  • permalink
  • fedilink
  • source
  • parent