Cleaning HP41C keys

[Rob Willett]

Hi,

This is my first post to this esteemed forum. I've been lurking for a while just trying to get a feel for the place.

I have been a fan of HP calcs since I got an HP16C, I needed to develop a large chunk of C code to handle 18 bit signed arithmetic. I could not have done the work without that calculator and still have it.

Since then I've got an HP17BII, an HP20S, an HP12C, an HP15C an HP48GX, an HP41CV and a rather grubby HP41C. I may have missed one or two out now I think back on this.

Anyway, most of them are in excellent condition but I've just got my hands on an HP41C and need to clean it up. It's physically in great shape but the keys seem to have a thin layer of grease and dirt on them. It means when you use the keys, you fingers stick ever so slightly to them.

Does anybody have any suggestions they have actively used and can recommend? I could use pure alcohol and cotton buds but am wary of doing any damage to such an old gem.

My intention is to use the HP41C for work, we have close to £10M of comp hardware in my dept but a good calculator is hard to come by :)

[Alexander Oestert]

I've had good results with

a) isopropyl alcohol and a Q-Tipp

b) immersing the whole keyboard in an ultra sonic cleanser at an optician's shop

c) tissues to clean plastic car dashboards

[Nick R]

I use Windex on a Q tip to clean dirt off keys and keyboard, followed by another Q tip moistened slightly with water. I never like using alcohol when I'm cleaning plastics (unless I'm drinking it)

[Rob Willett]

Thanks for the advice. Would never have thought of Windex.

[Randy]

Forget the cotton swabs, takes all day!

Windex, soft toothbrush. Wet lightly, scrub. Wipe with soft towel, blast with canned air to remove liquid that accumulates around keys, wipe again, blast again. Repeat if needed. If it is really dirty, allow the windex to soak while holding calculator upside down so it does not run willy-nilly into the keys.

This method is okay on the 41 *only*. Classics and others may not hold up to brushing. The construction of the 41 is quite different and is the most tolerant of aggressive cleaning.

Edited: 11 Sept 2011, 10:10 a.m.