faceplate cleaning

I would say to first try something less aggressive. Try some mild soapy water and a sponge (with most of the liquid squeezed out). The thing to be careful about is the lettering on the faceplate. Then if there are spots that do not come clean you might try some 409 applying it with Q-tips in those spots, again being careful of lettering. Do not use excessive amounts of liquid, keep the sponge or the Q-tips dampened, but not causing running liquid on the surface while you work. That will help avoid getting liquid on the back-side of the faceplate and possibly the dial glass. You can remove the faceplate all together for cleaning by taking the knobs off and then removing the two brass nuts at two controls which releases the faceplate. Use the proper size nut driver or hex-socket to remove the brass nuts so that you do not scratch the faceplate (don't use pliers).

Joe
 
I don't know about the 100B, but I once used soapy water on an 80R and the lettering all came loose and floated away. Fisher uses decals for dial scales so I wouldn't touch it with any water. Just dust it clean gently with a microfiber cloth and you won't have any troubles.
 
ammonia and water in ratio of 1 part ammonia to 3 parts water on the Faceplate. Use a soft cloth and wipe (DO NOT SCRUB!). Rinse with cold water no more than 2 minutes after applying ammonia mix. Air DRY or PAT DRY with Soft Towel.

Qtip and water only on the dial back, and around the lettering ONLY. As matt e said, lettering on the dial glass is very fragile and doesn't hold up well to cleaning.
 
Poignant thread. My issue is that I've moved from the "ideal" desert climate of Southern California to the opposite extreme, where I'm living a block or two in each direction from the Gulf of Mexico on a barrier island amid constant high humidity and salty air. The deterioration in my Fisher faceplates--particularly my previously pristine TA-500--is noticeable after 6 years here now.

Short of selling them off and buying a boring system from the local box store, I don't think there's much I can do. The way I'm looking at it is I'm 50 years old now: if I can limp it to the proverbial finish line before my faceplates completely oxidize into nothing, then it will be somebody else's problem.
 
Clean it up the best you can, then clear coat it both sides. It'll seal the finish, and minimize future degradation.
 
Thanks for the inputs everyone. Insightful as always! Pulling the tuner from duty today.
 
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