A 'lame' mouse
24 messages in this thread
Hi out there,
I have slowly watched as my mouse has become increasingly more and more
'lame'. I mean by this the tendency to "drag" about in on direction (usually
laterally) when moved diagonally. It's movement is not as "flowing" as when it
was fresh from it's box! BTW, I opened the ball mechanism and cleaned the
rollers and the ball thoroughly. I even bought a new mousepad. I am slowly
turning anti-mouse because of this problem!
Does anyone have any other ideas?? Anyone ELSE out there notice t this
tendency in their mouse?? If it was dead I'd know that I need a replacement,
but this partial handicap has me more annoyed than anything else!
So, what do you think, should I put a splint on it or "shoot it!" (they
shoot mices, don't they?)!!!!!
-RSL-
Roy,
Look at the Rodent's feet…have they been worn off? I see you say you
bought a new mousepad…but I can't tell if that means you replaced an old one
or just got one.
Next, remove the rubber ball again and move the rollers by hand…
watch the mouse…does it move in the expected manner? If not, check the
interupter for that particular roller…is there lint or dirt in there? You
may have to remove the top of the mouse to get a good look. It won't hurt
anything to take the top off.
Don
Don,
I've even tried to clean off the four little mouse 'feet', t they're
finThis is my second mouse pad. I tried manually moving the small rollers and
it works fine. The rollers just don't always seem to 'catch' the rubber ball.
Perhaps the spring tension on the third roller (the one that doesn't actually
move the pointer) is off.
In trying to increase the friction, other than checking the spring
tension, I've totally run out of any more ideas.
Thanks for your suggestions! Have you ever heard any similar problems?
-RSL-
My mouse is also limping, Roy. I've been trying to find someplace that'll sell
me a second mouse. After all, Marble Madness supports dual mouse controls. I
know I could never play both marbles at once with joysticks, but with two mice?
OF COURSE!
Wait 'til the paint programs start appearing that'll handle two brushes at
once!
Hi Tom (long time, no speak),
I remember seeing "almost" identical mice for the C64 GEOS. I wonder if
they are compatible (either directly or with a quick "cable-transplant"). If
so that might be an option?
It's a good thing that FunKeys is available to de-mouse the Amiga OS!
-RSL-
Thomas, We have replacement mice in stock for the Amiga, you can email me if
your interested or call me voice at 313-348-4477 -Ralph
Ralph,
I'm interested in a replacement mouse. Where do I go?
Thomas Call us at 313-348-4477 and we'll take your info and get it right out to
you. -Ralph
Roy:
You might try cleaning the rollers and the ball with a solvent (alcohol
would probably be ok). Then if all else fails, a light rubbing with a Scotch
Brite pad should restore the friction coefficient. 73, bill
Bill,
Thanks for your reply. Exactly what IS a Scotch Brite Pad?
-RSL-
Roy:
Ask your wife! <grin> It is plastic pad that works like steel wool.
Although it is not the best variety you can usually locate the stuff in the
housewares section of the grocery store (right there with the mops, sponges,
chore girls, etc.). 73, bill
e~Bill,
Steel wool??? to my poor mouse!?
But seriously folks, another mystery solved! Apparently crud had
collected on the "passive" roller of my mouse. The deposit was so smooth and
old that I thought it was a rubber coating designed to be there and was very
worried about briskly trying to remove it!
Rick Rae's question finally tipped me over the edge, and after scraping
all of the black stuff off, it's AS GOOD AS NEW!
Moral of the story: Be Brave Or Be Lame (or "Silver or Nothing!")
-RSL-
Roy:
What is important about the Scotch Brite pad is that it is NOT metal or
otherwise conductive and for the use I was suggesting it won't leave any
residue. Glad to hear it is working. 73, bill
<Grin> Super news, Roy!
It's always nice to hear that I'm still useful for SOMETHING around this place.
8)
Rick
Forgive a very stupid question, but… are you SURE the rollers are clean?
I've talked to several people who THOUGHT their mice were clean; they even used
alcohol-soaked swabs to clean off the "little rubber tires". Huh? There AIN'T
no little rubber tires.
Apparently, due to the way dirt builds up on the rollers, it often forms a
little donut which looks remarkably like it's supposed to be there. All three
rollers should be continuous, shiny metal… with no other accessories.
Apologies if this is silliness, but the mistake has been made before.
Rick
No need to apologize! The two rollers that move the mouse are clean down to
the shiny metal. The third "pressure" roller is a different thing. It has an
EXTREMELY smooth rubber like coating and has been like that since the first
time I opened up the mouse YEARS ago. I have cleaned off crud-like material
from the other rollers, but have been very timid about scraping this off for
fear of REALLY SCREWING UP my poor little mouse. Perhaps this is the problem!
Does anyone know of C-A coating this third roller wirh a r rubber material
(even on a few marginal mice) or is this really junk disguised crud???????
-RSL-
Roy,
All 3 of the rollers on one of my mouses (meese?… mouse*2… Yeah, that's
the ticket!) are metal, and on the other one, they are nylon. I've never seen
one with rubbery coating.
Regards, Larry.
All metal rollers on mine, too. Original mouse 1st shipment of Amigas. s
Larry,
You're absolutely right! The third, "passive" roller was covered with
crud (disguised as black rubber-like material). Once scraped off, my mouse was
rejuvenated back to its previous good health!
It's a shame it isn't that easy with human beings ;->
-RSL-
Hello Roy!
I have my original mouse (2 years old) and have NO problems with it. All
the rollers in it are polished metal….no rubber coating. Is the coating on
yours uniform? If not then it's crud. If it is then, well…I still think
it's crud! <smiiiiiile>
GreG
Hi GreG,
You're right! It was VERY uniform, and it WAS crud! My mouse is back
to full function, now if I can teach it to write tight C code…
-RSL-
Roy,
If you give it enough booze, it will get 'tight'.
Re:Booze
The code may not get any tighter, but I sure will!!!!
-RSL-
Eureka! (I think you've got it) I was considering the possibility that the
third roller 'might' not have been designed with a thin "black rubber" friction
coating but was a bit scared of scraping it off and finding a truly useless
mouse as a result. But the way my mouse has been operating lately, and your
message caused me to throw all caution to the winds and scrape the crud off
back to the shiny metal. The results:
My poor little mouse is as good as new!
Much thanks to your (certainly not foolish) question (and answer!)!!!
-RSL-