Cleaning old instrument

[jantb]

Hi
Last year my father died and left me a lot of instruments,components etc.
Among the instruments there was a Textronic 2225 oscilliscope.
Seems to be working ok but its clear,it have seen some heavy duty in unfreindly territory.
Its dirty,grimy,oilfingers..
What can I use to clean the outside,specially the front,knobs,bottums...

Jan

[SeanB]

Many things, but for the case use baby wipes, soft and gentle non alcohol based wipes work best at cleaning off the grime and grease. Careful around the knobs and screen, as the plastics there are both soft and the screen printed lettering is delicate. A damp lint free cloth works well.

[lemmegraphdat]

If it was my dad's I would not do a thing to it.

[CompElitePC]

If it was my dad's I would not do a thing to it.

+1

[kerrinal]

Just keep it.Do nothing.after all,it is your fathers oscilloscope and your memory of your father.

[jamesb]

While I agree that there may be sentimental value to the instrument itself, I find it hard to agree that there is any sentimental value in grime.

I personally would start with some warm water with a little bit of soap. Depending on the condition of the plastic, etc. you could scale the treatment up to something like spec. grade isopropyl-alcohol - just be sure to test it on an inconspicuous location first! And whatever you do, do NOT try acetone / nail polish remover unless you are willing to live with a marred finish.

Always start gentle, then work progressively more aggressive when cleaning. Test patches are highly under-rated also!

For any contacts - esp. gold plated ones, I've had some success with using spec grade IPA wetted writing paper (blank). The paper is very mildly abrasive and the IPA helps to remove any debris and does not leave any residue (hence using the decidedly more expensive spec. grade variety).

[jantb]

Hi
Thanks for your answers.
I will try with a mild soap first,stepping up the soap if needed,a last resort could be VINYLCLEANER for cars.

And offcourse I will clean it,cleaned or not it will always remind me of my father.
I intend to use it and have no nostalgia about this,its just a thing !

Jan