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Batteries Leaked!

  • From: swarren@xxxxxxxx
  • Subject: Batteries Leaked!
  • Date: Sat, 27 Jan 1996 22:34:33 -0500
When I went to use my Focusing Viewmaster the other day, a funny white powder was peeking out from behind the tension screw on the bottom. "Gee, the light doesn't come on. Let's have a look-see..." 

Alas, it had been far too many months without changing batteries. In their attempt to force me back onto medication, they decided to leak all over the place. The inside was pretty ugly, but I got most of the debris out and now I'm faced with complete disassembly to get the rest out from behind the contacts.

After getting past the initial shock, I'm all cheered up and ready for the challenge. At least I've been down this road before - I had already taken it apart once when I bought it, to clean the lenses and so forth. 

Question: when dealing with battery corrosion on the brass electrical assembly, what is the best "magic bullet" compound for cleaning and restoring the metal? I figure I'll be using some emory paper at some point, but is there a solution that I can use for cleaning first? 

BTW, in a panic, I started ripping out D-cells from all of my other viewing toys, but none were leaking. Let this be a gentle reminder, folks! Change those batteries before they turn your $100 viewer into an acidic nightmare. 

Stephen in Roanoke



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