I thought lubing stabilizers was a waste of time until my spacebar started rattling

For my first three builds, I just put the stabs in dry because it seemed like extra work. Then I built a board with a brass plate and the spacebar sounded like a tin can full of rocks. I finally tried the holee mod with some 205g0 on the wires and housings. The difference was huge, like night and day quiet. Now I spend the extra 20 minutes on every build. Has anyone found a faster method that works just as well?

3 comments

3 Comments

sarahf781mo ago

That "tin can full of rocks" sound is so real. I had the same thing happen on a board with an aluminum plate. I just use a thick dielectric grease on the wires now, which is way faster than the holee mod for me. It kills almost all the rattle and only takes a few minutes per stab. What kind of grease do you use?

lisa_carter311mo ago

Have you ever had that grease get all over your PCB? I tried it once and it was a huge mess that took forever to clean up. The holee mod is a bit more work upfront, but it's a dry fix that lasts forever. Grease can attract dust and gunk over time, making the stabs feel gross. I'd rather spend an extra ten minutes for a permanent solution.

paige_harris23d ago

Honestly I'm still using the same tub of dielectric grease from like three builds ago. It's probably half dust by now but it still works fine, even if it looks a little gross in the jar. My stabs are quiet and that's all I really care about.