Tonefiend Forum

Pretty sure I saw feet for sale somewhere on the web ? I have a bag of old feet too from velcro attachments.You should probably use the same thing you use to clean any pot, contact cleaner with lube in it.I have recently upgraded to the Dimebag Wah and it is a very nice upgrade with many great features all around fantastic wah.

Quote from Double D on August 17, 2012, 23:27
Where on earth can one find replacement feet for old Dunlop pedals? The feet on Crybaby wahs inevitably tear off and leave you with the dreaded and unruly wonky-wah, and always at the worst possible times. I've been considering crafting some out of artificial cork. Any suggestions that are durable and CHEAP?
Also, what's the best thing to use to clean up the pots? My brother suggested WD40 and it seems to work quite well, but uh, coating a coil in silicon, is that a problem?
Do you prefer cheap carbon batteries or Duracells?
I haven't used mine live for years; they became a bit cliche, and I could never wrap my head around the basic care and feeding of this increasingly scritchy piece of gear. Advice?

Don't use WD40 it is not good for controls, it will remove any lubrication there and it doesn't really clean and protect contacts, as a repairman I always cringed when I could smell WD40 on an amp or pedal. The best contact cleaner is cramolin made by Caig industries it is available from many sources including:

https://www.music123.com/general-care-cleaning

I recommend the D-5 cleaner (5 means 5% in solvent) followed by either Gold G100 or Preservative P100 the 100 number means 100% without solvent to wash away lubrication of the control. Cramolin is magic it cleans oxidation off and leaves a single molecule thick layer to protrect the metal contacts from the air, this layer is displaced by the contact but stops the arcing of a make contact. I have used this stuff for over 30 years with no complaint. I have used it on my test equipment connections and seen a 10 fold drop distortion and noise in the internal loop test. I can't recommend it enough it takes a tiny amount to do the job and lasts for many years when properly applied. The slide switches on my 1968 were cleaned with it in 1982 and are still perfect 30 years later. I also treat new items with it for prolonged life. Also works on tube sockets, switches and plugs.

The instant I read the topic's title, I started hearing the unforgettable scratch scrunch scratch of pretty much every standard-treadle wah I've ever owned.

Quote from bear on August 25, 2012, 14:10
Well, in R.G. Keen's indispensable "The Technology of Wah Pedals" article (https://geofex.com/Article_Folders/wahpedl/wahped.htm) there's the suggestion of having the wah pot drive an LED with an LDR in the actual circuit. That is, wah sweep with old feel but without noise.

('Scuse me, that was a Craig Anderton idea, apparently.)

Cool idea — anyone know if it's ever been implemented by a manufacturer?

Quote from joe on August 30, 2012, 10:23

Quote from bear on August 25, 2012, 14:10
Well, in R.G. Keen's indispensable "The Technology of Wah Pedals" article (https://geofex.com/Article_Folders/wahpedl/wahped.htm) there's the suggestion of having the wah pot drive an LED with an LDR in the actual circuit. That is, wah sweep with old feel but without noise.

('Scuse me, that was a Craig Anderton idea, apparently.)

Cool idea — anyone know if it's ever been implemented by a manufacturer?

I used LDR's to control the depth of a tone control notch in a MIDI guitar preamp gain stage, back in the late 80's when I actually had a job in the music business. It worked OK, except there was a slight delay in response to the control voltage when the LDR was going from light to dark. I don't know if this would affect the wah application here, but it's something to keep in mind if you try it. It might even be just what you were looking for in case your feet are too twitchy.