Re: malfunctioning IIe keyboard!

[rubywand@aol.com (RUBYWAND)]

In article <ntodd-2512952054370001@ntodd.dialup.emory.edu>,
ntodd@emory.edu (Norman Wendell Todd, Jr., MD) writes:

>My 13 year old IIe has worked faithfully, but this month has manifested
>two keys that won't respond.  The keys are the up and down arrow keys.
>
>I've tried spraying about the keys with electonic contact cleaner, to no
>avail.
>
>

   If it were the Left-Right arrow keys I'd figure the problem was too
many hours of Super Bunny and the keys were shot.

   As you suspect, the Up/Down keys may have gotten gunked up.
Unfortunately, some brands of contact cleaner are not especially good for
cleaning contacts. Try spraying a test spot on a plate. If it leaves a
greasy residue that will not evaporate, it may have acted to worsen your
key problems.

   Try pulling the key caps and cleaning the shaft and nearby area for
each key. If you've got some contact cleaner that leaves no residue,
squirt down into the key's innards and press the key rapidly. (Otherwise,
alcohol is a pretty fair contact cleaner. Use a dropper or rod to feed in
a drop or two and press the key rapidly.)

   If the above does not work, it may be possible to pop out the plunger
(using a tiny screwdriver) and give everything a real cleaning-- it
depends upon how the key switches on your KB are constructed. (If you try
this, be careful not to lose the spring or damage the cross-point wire
which may be resting at the bottom of the switch case. You can remove the
wire with tweezes and dip it in alcohol.)

   The ultimate solution is to replace the KB switches.
___________

   Darn! Just noticed David Chiu's post. I'll post the above, just in case
you feel adventuresome; but, just sending off for new switches looks like
a lot less bother, especially since David lists a price and supplier.