For octals and pre-octals, I use a pipe cleaner with some solvent. A pipe cleaner won't fit into miniature tube sockets.

Any suggestions?
Doug

Brasso on a tooth pick?

T.

I go under the chassis and carefully tighten the pin holes with a needle-nose plier, then use a dead tube and some contact cleaner and push it in and out several times.
I've heard of people using de-ox-it, but for the money, is it really superior to other types? (I most often use QD Contact cleaner from CRC). A small, thin poorly-galvanized (hot dipped) chinese finishing nail may provide some actual abrasion if need be.

Doug,
I use stripped stranded wire of appropriate size and solvent of choice. Twist one end tightly and tin it with solder for easy entry into hole. Twist/untwist strands for size adjustment. Make it long enough to allow see-saw motion through the hole. If using tin/silver plated wire, some may be deposited on the inner surface after thorough cleaning. I also have wood dowels of various diameters and other strange shapes, on which I've glued (contact cement) #320 sandpaper for larger pins. These sanding sticks are primarily for wood projects, but serve double duty for radio repair.

marv

:For octals and pre-octals, I use a pipe cleaner with some solvent. A pipe cleaner won't fit into miniature tube sockets.
:
:Any suggestions?
:Doug

Doug, they have nozzle files for welding tips in a small tin case, about 10+ files staring from 26AWG to 14AWG. They are like miniature rat tail files. I think about $5 for the lot. PL

:Doug,
:I use stripped stranded wire of appropriate size and solvent of choice. Twist one end tightly and tin it with solder for easy entry into hole. Twist/untwist strands for size adjustment. Make it long enough to allow see-saw motion through the hole. If using tin/silver plated wire, some may be deposited on the inner surface after thorough cleaning. I also have wood dowels of various diameters and other strange shapes, on which I've glued (contact cement) #320 sandpaper for larger pins. These sanding sticks are primarily for wood projects, but serve double duty for radio repair.
:
:marv
:
::For octals and pre-octals, I use a pipe cleaner with some solvent. A pipe cleaner won't fit into miniature tube sockets.
::
::Any suggestions?
::Doug

PL,
I wouldn't suggest any tool that removes appreciable amounts of metal from an already thin socket receptacle. Using a size appropriate bit from a numbered drill index would do as well, and be less apt to remove anything other than surface plating.

marv

: Doug, they have nozzle files for welding tips in a small tin case, about 10+ files staring from 26AWG to 14AWG. They are like miniature rat tail files. I think about $5 for the lot. PL
:
:
::Doug,
::I use stripped stranded wire of appropriate size and solvent of choice. Twist one end tightly and tin it with solder for easy entry into hole. Twist/untwist strands for size adjustment. Make it long enough to allow see-saw motion through the hole. If using tin/silver plated wire, some may be deposited on the inner surface after thorough cleaning. I also have wood dowels of various diameters and other strange shapes, on which I've glued (contact cement) #320 sandpaper for larger pins. These sanding sticks are primarily for wood projects, but serve double duty for radio repair.
::
::marv
::
:::For octals and pre-octals, I use a pipe cleaner with some solvent. A pipe cleaner won't fit into miniature tube sockets.
:::
:::Any suggestions?
:::Doug

Marv, the "files" are not very coarse, they are used on copper welding tips and are designed more to clean then remove material as the hole size in the welding tips is not supposed to be enlarged. Each size tip has a certain size hole that should be maintained. PL

:PL,
:I wouldn't suggest any tool that removes appreciable amounts of metal from an already thin socket receptacle. Using a size appropriate bit from a numbered drill index would do as well, and be less apt to remove anything other than surface plating.
:
:marv
:
:: Doug, they have nozzle files for welding tips in a small tin case, about 10+ files staring from 26AWG to 14AWG. They are like miniature rat tail files. I think about $5 for the lot. PL
::
::
:::Doug,
:::I use stripped stranded wire of appropriate size and solvent of choice. Twist one end tightly and tin it with solder for easy entry into hole. Twist/untwist strands for size adjustment. Make it long enough to allow see-saw motion through the hole. If using tin/silver plated wire, some may be deposited on the inner surface after thorough cleaning. I also have wood dowels of various diameters and other strange shapes, on which I've glued (contact cement) #320 sandpaper for larger pins. These sanding sticks are primarily for wood projects, but serve double duty for radio repair.
:::
:::marv
:::
::::For octals and pre-octals, I use a pipe cleaner with some solvent. A pipe cleaner won't fit into miniature tube sockets.
::::
::::Any suggestions?
::::Doug

PL,
Sorry, thought these were literally "files" for removing metal, but instead are really reamers to remove oxidation, and return the orfice to its original state. Yea, I guess it wouldn't be too
smart to auger out a perfectly good welding tip
to a larger size.

marv

: Marv, the "files" are not very coarse, they are used on copper welding tips and are designed more to clean then remove material as the hole size in the welding tips is not supposed to be enlarged. Each size tip has a certain size hole that should be maintained. PL
:
:
::PL,
::I wouldn't suggest any tool that removes appreciable amounts of metal from an already thin socket receptacle. Using a size appropriate bit from a numbered drill index would do as well, and be less apt to remove anything other than surface plating.
::
::marv
::
::: Doug, they have nozzle files for welding tips in a small tin case, about 10+ files staring from 26AWG to 14AWG. They are like miniature rat tail files. I think about $5 for the lot. PL
:::
:::
::::Doug,
::::I use stripped stranded wire of appropriate size and solvent of choice. Twist one end tightly and tin it with solder for easy entry into hole. Twist/untwist strands for size adjustment. Make it long enough to allow see-saw motion through the hole. If using tin/silver plated wire, some may be deposited on the inner surface after thorough cleaning. I also have wood dowels of various diameters and other strange shapes, on which I've glued (contact cement) #320 sandpaper for larger pins. These sanding sticks are primarily for wood projects, but serve double duty for radio repair.
::::
::::marv
::::
:::::For octals and pre-octals, I use a pipe cleaner with some solvent. A pipe cleaner won't fit into miniature tube sockets.
:::::
:::::Any suggestions?
:::::Doug

Thanks for all of your excellent suggestions.

My situation involved four miniature tube sockets mounted on a printed ckt board (yuck). The problem seems to have been loose pin sockets, not dirty sockets. Because of the PCB, I couldn't tighten the pin sockets from beneath the socket, but I was able to tension the pin sockets from the top, using a very small-bladed screwdriver.

There was one socket in particular that caused the tube to be intermittent or the plate to glow red. It was the control grid pin that was most loose, so I guess the grid lost its bias and caused plate current to increase greatly?

Anyway, I retensioned all the pin sockets, and all is well.
Doug