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Vintage Telephony and Telecomms Vintage Telephones, Telephony and Telecomms Equipment |
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26th Jun 2015, 10:13 am | #1 |
Retired Dormant Member
Join Date: Jun 2015
Location: Chesterfield, Derbyshire, UK.
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Cleaning cords
Having restored my first couple of phones (thanks to the help from everyone on here) I've now acquired a box full! They look like they've been stored in someone's shed for years.
I've found 'Brasso' is good for buffing up the cases and even removes small scratches on the clear plastic parts. But I can't find anything that successfully cleans the cords. As you can see from the photos, these are absolutely filthy with a mixture of sticky grime and dust. I don't want to replace them if I can possibly help it as I want to keep everything as original as possible. Does anyone have any suggestions about how to clean the cords? Andy |
26th Jun 2015, 10:48 am | #2 |
Guest
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Re: Cleaning cords
Mr Muscle or any of the EDTA cleaners work well.
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26th Jun 2015, 11:53 am | #3 |
Octode
Join Date: Mar 2011
Location: Sheffield, South Yorkshire, UK.
Posts: 1,453
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Re: Cleaning cords
I soak them in a solution oxygenating crystals, Vanish Oxy-Action or Poundland's version thereof.
For the curly ones they can be wrapped 'round a half-inch bar and scrubbed with a nailbrush. - Joe |
29th Jun 2015, 3:56 pm | #4 |
Rest in Peace
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Re: Cleaning cords
Hi,
I use white kitchen roll or white cloth dampened with surgical spirit or white spirit and rub up and down. Paper or cloth with any colours should not be used as the colour can transfer and might be irremovable from the cable, as plastic is not glass and is slightly absorbent. Hence it is difficult to remove ballpoint pen ink from. Regards - Mike |
29th Jun 2015, 4:01 pm | #5 |
Dekatron
Join Date: Jan 2005
Location: Oxford, UK.
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Re: Cleaning cords
I find hot water and Flash or similar does the trick.
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29th Jun 2015, 4:27 pm | #6 |
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Join Date: Dec 2007
Location: Shropshire, UK.
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Re: Cleaning cords
I've very successfully used Swarfega on filthy leads, but can't guarantee there are no long-term adverse effects.
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29th Jun 2015, 6:14 pm | #7 |
Retired Dormant Member
Join Date: Jun 2015
Location: Chesterfield, Derbyshire, UK.
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Re: Cleaning cords
Thanks for all the suggestions. I'll try some and report back. These cords are VERY dirty, so anything that works on them will probably work on anything!
Andy |
29th Jun 2015, 8:21 pm | #8 |
Pentode
Join Date: Nov 2013
Location: Coventry, West Midlands, UK.
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Re: Cleaning cords
Try not to use bleach. it can end up making rubber stiff or hard. I have ran into that before. Use Fairy liquid in water. make it fairly strong and brush them off gently. I have a 746 that had the same grime and it worked a charm.
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29th Jun 2015, 10:03 pm | #9 |
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Location: Brentwood, Essex, UK.
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Re: Cleaning cords
I used to use Surgical Spirit for this sort of thing, but it seems to have been withdrawn from the retail market. A few months ago none of my local Pharmacies had any in stock, nor could they find any in their wholesalers' catalogues. White cream kitchen cleaner (CIF or the Wilco equivalent) on a kitchen sponge, pulling the cord through the folded sponge, usually works well.
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30th Jun 2015, 4:18 am | #10 |
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Re: Cleaning cords
Down here in Godzone we have a product called "Spray n' Wipe" which has an active ingredient called 'Lactic Acid' at 2.4%. This cleans almost anything plastic or bakelite, plus a wide range of other materials, it does not attack plastics or paint, and for cabinets, knobs, and miscellaneous bits it is simply amazing. About the only surfaces I might be wary of would be waxed or oiled (it is great at removing oils).
I can throw a batch of old knobs into a plastic container, wet them with the spray, leave them for a while then rinse, and they come out sparkling like new. Any gummy residuals can be dealt with using a fine nylon bristle tooth brush, but that is not often needed. It may not be sold in EU regions (it probably causes warts on bedbugs or deformed cockroaches etc, and consequently will need another 15 years of trials on African Elephants before it is banned) but it is the most efficient and gentle cleaner I have ever encountered, while killing 99.9% of germs including Salmonella, E.coli, Staphylococcus Aureus, Enterococcus, and any nearby Politicians. You can't ask for more than that! Cheers Billy |
30th Jun 2015, 8:24 am | #11 |
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Re: Cleaning cords
Some Australian bathroom cleaning products WERE obtainable in the UK and consisted of natural ingredients. They were bldy good too: in a squeezy aerosol bottle with a trigger on for tiles. Ozcleen Bathpower?
I think I used it on plastic once to good effect. I just use a mild industrial hand cleaning gel, warm water and a nail-brush: works a treat.
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30th Jun 2015, 12:48 pm | #12 |
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Re: Cleaning cords
Perhaps sour milk could be used instead?
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30th Jun 2015, 3:05 pm | #13 |
Rest in Peace
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Re: Cleaning cords
Hi Emeritus, i buy my Surgical Spirit at the Savers chemist store, which appear to have branches throughout the UK.
A 200ml bottle is around £1.39. Occasionally it can be found at cheapo stores such as The Pound Shop. Regards - Mike |
30th Jun 2015, 5:37 pm | #14 |
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Location: Brentwood, Essex, UK.
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Re: Cleaning cords
Thanks for the info, Mike. I had tried the local Boots, a couple of local in-house supermarket pharmacies, and a couple of local independents. Good to know it is still available.
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30th Jun 2015, 6:30 pm | #15 |
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Re: Cleaning cords
I should think meths would work in very much the same way.
If you're worried about staining, keep the bottle on a bright windowsill, and the colour will disappear. |
30th Jun 2015, 11:29 pm | #16 |
Tetrode
Join Date: May 2014
Location: Gloucester, Glos. UK.
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Re: Cleaning cords
Our telecoms engineer at work used to use meths on an old rag or paper towel to clean line cords. It worked well and as far as I know without any long term adverse effects.
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1st Jul 2015, 5:32 am | #17 | |
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Re: Cleaning cords
Quote:
It has exactly the same active additives as the coloured version, and is just as poisonous, but doesn't stain and is freely available from specialist shops, but not in supermarkets etc. I keep a bottle handy at all times, along with a range of other useful solvents like MEK, Acetone, Toluol, Toluene, Xylol, lacquer thinners, nail varnish thinners and celluloid film cement. Out of that menu I find that I can mend plastics of most types (other than polythene) and the bond is gap-less and permanent. Cheers Billy *Without Pyranine, the colouring agent |
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1st Jul 2015, 12:32 pm | #18 |
Dekatron
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Re: Cleaning cords
I used a product from Poundland called 'Wizz Oxi Fabric Stain Remover', which works superbly well on speaker fabric, just with hand hot water - 40C max. It even has a measuring scoop in the box.
Its main ingredient is sodium carbonate peroxyhydrate. 650g in a tub, and you use up to two 25ml scoops in a washing up bowl or bucket. You don't need to leave the item soaking for long - just swish it around for a minute or two, leave if for say 15 minutes and check progress. It makes sense to test an inconspicuous part of a fabric item to check for colour fastness, but in my case, if it's a choice between throwing away some shabby speaker cloth or giving it a new lease of life, there's nothing to be lost. (As an aside, it gets stains of other items, such as coffee machines and fruit juicers, grouting, wine, grass stains etc). Hope that helps.
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1st Jul 2015, 12:57 pm | #19 |
Octode
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Re: Cleaning cords
That's the same stuff I mentioned in Post 3.
As well as cords it's great for other plastic parts, not just on 'phones but things like control knobs and computer keys. - Joe |
2nd Jul 2015, 2:28 am | #20 | |
Hexode
Join Date: Sep 2007
Location: Derbyshire, UK.
Posts: 288
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Re: Cleaning cords
Quote:
I usually use meths to remove grime from PVC cables. Curly handset cables look a mess when they have stretched and got misshaped coils. A dip in hot water can revive the springiness and make the coils evenly spaced again. Untangle any knots and twists so that all the coils run in the same direction. Put the cable in a jug or similar vessel and pour in water just off the boil taking care to keep the internal wires and grommets above the water level. Leave in for a couple of minutes before taking the cable out and allowing it to cool on a flat surface. |
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