JP1 Remotes

First, I would like to thank all the people on this forum for their hard work to make JP1 remotes so functional and make programming them a nice hobby. Thank you all.

I have a 9910, which has worked great for years. It is particularly good for my wife who has not much tech ability, and I’ve been able to name all the buttons for her in a logical fashion, so she can control all the devices she uses. It helps that it is RF, so that she doesn’t even have to know which way to point it!

The issue is that over the years the FF and play buttons have been failing gradually, and finally about a month ago both stopped working completely. I took the remote apart and cleaned the PCB board and the backs of the buttons. On inspection there was no obvious loss of conductive pain on the two non functioning buttons compared to the others. On re-assembly, though, it did not improve.

So, I bought “Bare Pain," a conductive black pain, at Radio Shack. I cleaned everything very thoroughly again, and I put a very thin layer on the two buttons, and they worked great, for about three days. Then the remote went crazy and stopped working completely. I took it apart, and the pain had flaked off the FF key and was stuck on one of the PCB contacts. I cleaned everything up well. Again, the two keys would not work. The next time I used scotch tape to try to make a sticky surface on the backs of the keys. I again put on a very thin layer of paint and this time used a hair dryer to bake it on. Again, it worked great for about a week, but then the remote would start sending out random “play” commands. Taking it apart this time, I did not really find any flakes on the PCB board, but I again cleaned everything off, and I’m back to where I started. The remote is functional, but those two keys don’t work.

So, my questions are, is there anything else the people here can recommend for cleaning or repairing the non working buttons? Is there another product that would adhere better? Is there some other way to make this paint adhere better? The other thing I was thinking of trying was paint deglosser which is a way to get paint to stick better to a glossy surface. Any other thoughts would be greatly appreciated.

There's only so much you can do with a remote this old. Either replace the button sheet or the remote. You could scarf parts from an 8910 since the buttons are identical. There are a couple 9910's for sale in the marketplace forum and probably more on ebay.

Thanks for the unfortunately bad news. I actually have an 8810 but not the same as the 8910 arrangement.

I will look for a used one and see what I can do to get things working again.

SMK

Sorry I misread that. You don't see those very often. Since it isn't RF, you can get a cheap, modern replacement. The Vizio VUR8 would be a good one.

I was surprised it didn't show up on "Search" but there is a 'sticky on the topic with more suggestions.

http://www.hifi-remote.com/forums/viewtopic.php?t=13043

Keep in mind that most repair solutions are more expensive than a new remote.

I'm still confused which remote you are trying to fix. Your subject and body of your post says 9910, then you later say 8810.

In any case, I think it's time for a new remote, either an 8910 or a modern replacement like the Vizio or an Xsight perhaps. The former is 8 device internally and the latter, 12-15 devices depending on the model. Of course all JP1 remotes can have unlimited devices if you use a multiplexer.

mdavej wrote:Sorry I misread that. You don't see those very often. Since it isn't RF, you can get a cheap, modern replacement. The Vizio VUR8 would be a good one.

Sorry, I could have made myself clearer. I have the 9910 which is not working. That's the one I've been repairing so that I can use its RF properties. I also happen to have an 8810, which was the remote I used before the 9910. I meant it was too bad that I also I don't have a 8910.

BTW, yesterday morning I cleaned off the non-working keys with liquid cleaner called "easy liquid sandpaper." It is a degreaser and deglosser. I cleaned the contacts again carefully as well. Then I dried everything with a hair dryer before again applying the conductive paint, again baking it on with the hair dryer.

So far it has worked fine, but it's only been a day and a half. I just took it apart again to see the status of the keys, and so far there is no flaking or cracking of the pain. We'll see what happens.

SMK