With the right skills, you could design and 3D print replacements with flexible filament although they probably wouldn't look as good they would be functional.

Neil

Edited By Neil Wyatt on 17/04/2020 21:41:15

I found Aldi's "Mamia" baby wipes worked well on 30+ year old Minolta lenses, removing both the white deposit and the sticky residue from the "rubber" on the zoom rings. I don't know their effect on babies but they are my "Go To" degreaser and I use them to remove the shipping grease from machines and tools.

Brian G

I doubt there is any way of restoring or stabilising this material and the only option is to remove it completely.

In my opinion there are not many products that this soft covering actually improves (in terms of making it a better product) it might make something look more attractive but (especially) in the workshop soft coated handles on tools just pick up dirt.

Ian P

White spirit Neil. 👍 tried and tested. Works ok with a bit of elbow grease! 😋

My electric toothbrush suffered from this, only two years old. Got hands covered in sticky coating every time used it. It wasn't a cheap one either. New one I've bought is cheaper, quarter of the price. works just as well.

I had a pair of Clarks leather shoes with rubber soles. Discovered that the sole had parted form the upper whilst sitting at dinner on a cruise. Left a trail of rubber bits through the restaurant , most embarrassing. Had them re- soled by Clarks only to have this happen again just over eighteen months later. Result will not buy Clarks again and they should get their act together, as not fit for purpose.

Had similar problem with a pair of Clark’s shoes kept for best, out to lunch in a good restaurant and sole parted company with the upper on one shoe, rescued by a stout elastic band which looked very odd when I hobbled out to the car park. Glad to see it’s not a unique problem.
Dave W

Me too. Clark's, left on a day out with the sole flapping .also had a pair with rubber insets disintergrate also leaving a trail of plastic or rubber.

Frank

It's hydrolysis of the polyurethane – see here – and I've seen it happen with Hotter shoes and others, so not just a Clark's problem.

With the phasing out of lead and cadmium stabilisers and biodegradable plastics contaminating the recycling stream, we may just have to get used to the idea that plastics don't last like they used to. (Does anything?)

Brian G

I had Clarks as well and only used a few ties then fell apart.

Was looking a while ago at the materials used in shoes and one has to be worn regular or it degeades

Just to add something, this morning I was doing a bit of tidying up and found an old camera card backup drive which had the rubbery surface coating on the black plastic parts. Of course this had gone horribly sticky despite being stored in the dark. So with nothing to lose, I thought I'd give it a wipe with hand sanitiser (as it was the nearest available solvent-based substance). Just a few wipes with a paper towel and a small amount of sanitiser, it completely removed all stickiness down to shiny black plastic and – what was most impressive to me – did not affect the (screen-printed?) labels at all.

So I would recommend trying it to anyone plagued by the sticky syndrome. Mine was Enliven Hand Gel, the contents are listed as Alcohol Denat., Aqua (Water), Propylene Glycol, Carbomer, Triethanolamine, Parfum (Fragrance), Linalool. I'm assuming it's the alcohol that does the job, presumably the same as meths or similar, but it smells much nicer

Rob

Edit – just been reminded by SWMBO that this is the same stuff that removed the shine from an IKEA bookcase when some was split on it, so be careful

Edited By Grindstone Cowboy on 06/01/2021 11:39:55