DeoxIT on tube pins

0000 steel wool works great on old tube pins.  Not as aggressive as grit but better than a magic eraser for me.  

I have only ever used a simple soft erarser to clean the pins. Simply push the pins into the eraser a couple times . You can see the black it leaves behind and inserting them back in snug sockets will finish a clean contact. Pencils with eraser tips work well on the smaller pins . No need for chemicals or especially risking sanding off, or through plating either. Seams more like seeking a problem or creating one than needing a solution. 

Deoxit is more than a cleaner. It “conditions” the metal surfaces. The problem is folks sometimes don’t wipe it off sufficiently after applying. Or are too aggressive in the application. Also, these cleaners and conditioners are nice but real contact enhances are head and shoulders above them, you know, the silver bearing stuff and graphene. The best bang for the buck is clean all contacts in the house with alcohol. Put your backs into, boys!

Some basic contact cleaner that quickly evaporates without residue (unlike DeOxit) should be safe. I’d spray it on the Magic Eraser pad and then dip the pins. Note that you don’t need a near-mirror finish on the pins like you find with new-production tubes. Just clean them until they no longer appear dull. The further abrasion from installation in the tube sockets will make for a very sufficient contact.

As stated in a post above, just plug in/out a few times.  The risk/reward of contact cleaners isn't worth any potential sonic improvement.

Another option...regarding magic eraser....the substance/product that florists use in their arrangements??

The main problem you see is contact enhancer getting onto the top surface of the socket, after it I squeezed out when the tube is inserted after too much enhancer was applied. Where it can possibly cause a short. The top of the socket should be cleaned if necessary.

Has anyone tried to clean enhancers from tube sockets? Tube sockets get hot. Really Hot!

I agree that one should not use excessive amounts of any enhancer.  Nor should one repeat the treatment over and over again. I have read warnings about using Walker SST on tube pins, because of the heat issue raised by Elizabeth.  But is there real evidence that ProGold bakes on and forms a non-conductive goop?  First of all, it seems to be a fairly dilute liquid.  Just the act of installing the tube after a single treatment, even assuming one does not wipe off the excess liquid a priori, would tend to re-distribute the suspension (or the solution) such that there is mostly metal to metal contact between pin and socket.

Isopropyl Alcohol.

Walker recommend using fine grit paper on the pins before applying their E-SST...

@helomech,

That's a clever trick my friend. I wonder how the magic eraser + a contact cleaner on the ME would work?

I use DeoxIT D50L for tube pins. Here is the kit that I use and works great:https://www.musicdirect.com/tubes/caig-vacuum-tube-survival-kit

What is “wrong” with using pro gold, once you have cleaned the pins with their solvent?

Personally, the mechanical movement of pulling out the "appliance" (plug, tube etc) will remove the oxidation at the the areas of contact and renew the new metals to each other. Of course there are other manual or chemical ways to clean the pins/sockets and also to "bind" the area of contact.

@stevecham  that's primarily why I asked - I too have fairly recently fitted NOS Telefunken tubes. I cleaned the slightly tarnished pins as good as I could (one tip I read was to use a very sharp craft nice & gently scrape the pins to expose a clean surface) wipe with a lint free cloth but not apply DeoxIT.

This is a good question. I have some original Telefunken smooth and ribbed plate 12AX7s that have tarnished pins. Does it help to remove that tarnish or just leave it alone? I have magic eraser and ProGold Deoxit.

@helomech - thanks, interesting tip.

@elizabeth  what if they are NOS tubes & the pins are slightly tarnished?

I use Magic Eraser. Stick the pins into a pad and work them in and out - quick and easy way to get the whole circumference of the pins.