Scratchy Pot in 105Q - How to Clean?

[98dvl]

I recently picked up a used 105Q on e-bay. It's a great pedal, and sounds good, except for the fact that there's a scratchy sound when the pedal is rocked back and forth. I assume it's because there is some debris trapped in the potentiometer - correct?

OK, I did some searching on how to clean pots that are scratchy...

But, most of my search turned up cleaning tone/volume pots... I couldn't find anything specific to cleaning a potentiometer on a wah pedal, (although, I imagine it's very similar).

Here's the dumb questions of the day... If I get the cleaner/lube spray, to clean this thing out, do I have to remove the pot from the rest of the unit before spraying? I don't want to damage something else, and I can imagine that if the spray makes its way onto other components in the housing, that something else will go wrong... Is that a valid assumption?

OR, can I just spray into whatever opening I can find, and hope for the best?

I haven't yet opened up the wah to see what sort of access I have to the pot... So, is there anything that I need to worry about??

If anyone's done this procedure before, I'd appreciate any tips/tricks!

[Sir Edward V]

I cleaned one of the pots on my bass before by taking it out, opening it up, physically wiping away any and all debris and putting it back together

it was good for a few months then got scratchy again...

[dulouz]

This is what I have done to fix the problem on volume/tone knobs. There should be an opening to the inside of the potentiometer next to where the wires are soldered. Spray your electronic cleaner (I use Caig Deoxit D5) in there and then move the pedal back and forth. Be careful not to spray too much, a little goes a long way. You will need to wait for it to evaporate before plugging it in again.

If this doesn't work you might need a new potentiometer. I have had that happen before.