Pusher Seals

[Planet-LED]

The Pulsar P2/P3 pushers are a simple assembly: pusher magnet, spring and seal. When taking these apart to clean them, often times the seal is missing.

Do any of you know of a suitable replacement for this seal?

[gjlelec]

i assume the seal you refer to is similar as per fitted to the omegas. I was surprised to see a seal there in the first place They appear to be made of some type of butyl rubber and are easily melted in the unsoldering process (at least when i do it )

[retroleds]

Silicone won't stick to vaseline(learned this via mold making), so.......

Coat button with light layer of vaseline(warm button, drop in vaseline, pull out).
Stand up on a piece of paper or aluminum foil which also has very thin layer of vaseline on it and throw in freezer for 10-20 minutes - this will keep it from dancing around on you and freeze it to the paper/foil.
Using high-temp silicone(reddish/gold...often sold where double or triple wall chimmney piping for fireplaces, is sold), make a nice ring around it.
Let dry, trim to fit, it will easily survive 450-480 degrees farenheit, which is what it takes to melt solder.

You could try to grease both case and button to make a "custom fit", but it is more trouble than it is worth. A sharp razor and a steady hand can do quite a nice job of this... a little trial and error the first few times.

Myself, I lock a flat piece of steel(actually a tool steel for a lathe) sticking sideways out of the bench vise, stack the cap and other parts on it, heat the case with a butane pencil torch(take glass out, this is very easy) and push the case down on the button pack. Tip it gently to the side, flip over and you can push it a little more with something - use wood or something brass...a screwdriver tip can make a ding in the cap which will screw up the function.

Alternate methods would be great to hear about.
"There is more than one way to skin a cat?" 8)

[retroleds]

Someone wrote me that they got confused by this "suggestion". Finer points of this procedure.

You are using a thin layer of a petroleum based product only to keep the caulk from sticking to the button, especially after you have formed your new little gasket. You obviously need very little caulk.

The button lip is your guide for when you trim around the button exterior.

The paper or foil just saves you from scraping the bottom of the button - not a big deal, just looks nice and clean while drying, like you are making cookies or some such thing.

Lay your razorblade on it's side, on top of a very thin piece of cardboard or something else, so you can cut the gasket/seal to a uniform depth...this is the only trial and error aspect, as a seal that is to thick/tall won't allow the button to be pushed far enough away from the reed switch. Just rotate the button against the razor - essentially you are circumcising it. Oy Vey!

Chimmney/furnace high-temp silicone is rated for 740 degree Farenh., the red automotive is only rated for 600 f.

This works very well.