How Do You Clean a Front-Loading Car CD Player?

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Dopey question, yes, but:

So I have a CD player in my car where you slide the CD between two pieces of foam, and it loads & plays and everything's fantastically wunderbar. EXCEPT - I noticed that these strips of foam (in place to "wipe" the CD clean before playing) are actually / probably getting dust on the CDs, making the player sporadically skip a lot. Sometimes it's fine, sometimes it's like Oval remixing Christian Marclay remixing Aphex Twin (or something). I'm just assuming it's a dust-related problem, though.

Anyone dealt w/ these sorts of things before? Anyone know of a good way to fix this problem (beside my solution, which involves a Louisville Slugger, a bottle of Jack, and a secluded patch of forest)?

― David R. (popshots75`), Wednesday, 2 June 2004 14:11 (twenty-one years ago)

You can't. You must go buy a new car now. Sorry.

― Alex in NYC (vassifer), Wednesday, 2 June 2004 14:29 (twenty-one years ago)

My coworker just peeked over the cube wall to see if I was okay because I started choking on my soda from laughing.

Thanks Alex.

― Johnny Fever (johnny fever), Wednesday, 2 June 2004 14:31 (twenty-one years ago)

May I suggest this car?

― TRON FIGHTS FOR THE USERS (ex machina), Wednesday, 2 June 2004 14:31 (twenty-one years ago)

Someone please answer David's question seriously, and then also tell me if it's possible to buy an adapter for front-loader cd players that'll let you play 3" cds.

― Colin Meeder (Mert), Wednesday, 2 June 2004 15:05 (twenty-one years ago)

Without being able to see David's CD player I don't know an answer to his question that doesn't involve dismantling the machine.

I'd have thought the easiesta dn most obvious way to play a 3" CD in your car would be to copy it onto a CDR, as long as the player in your car plays CDR's.

― Stewart Osborne (Stewart Osborne), Wednesday, 2 June 2004 15:29 (twenty-one years ago)

They used to sell adaptors for 3" CDs, I have a couple I got in the late 80s (first 3-inch I ever saw was Bruce Springsteen's "Chimes of Freedom" single). You just snap the small CD into the inside of a 5" ring.

― Mark (MarkR), Wednesday, 2 June 2004 15:32 (twenty-one years ago)

Bump! (Alex, you cheeky bastard.)

Stewart, it sorta looks like this (except not as fit) (sorta big pic): http://faaast-eddie.com/images/car/cd%20indash.jpg

If you Google images for "car cd player", you'll find a bunch of similar pics. Instead of a CD-Rom-type tray, you just sllllide the CD into the unit.

You'll also find one pic of some lass in a pink dress bending over while looking back at the camera - that's my gift to you for visiting this thread.

― David R. (popshots75`), Wednesday, 2 June 2004 19:16 (twenty-one years ago)

I don't think the foam's intended to clean the CD so much as it's to there to keep dirt and grit out of the mechanism (although I suppose if it does become too dirty it may well start to transfer that dirt to CD's as you insert them!).

Have you tried using one of those lens-cleaners that are actually a couple of rows of little brushes mounted on a CD?

― Stewart Osborne (Stewart Osborne), Thursday, 3 June 2004 07:44 (twenty-one years ago)

Yeah - I bought one that actually played music while cleaning (presumably to show the user, "Hey, listen, your player is clean now!"). When THAT started skipping, I figured there was something else wrong, and I guessed it was the foam because I've ejected CDs and seen all sorts of dusty bits on the bottom (including, sometimes, one thin line of dust cutting through the center of the disc).

― David R. (popshots75`), Thursday, 3 June 2004 13:57 (twenty-one years ago)

"one thin line of dust cutting through the center of the disc" sounds like the foam's removing the dust rather than putting it on.... I think you probably need to either get the player overhauled or (more likely) replaced.

― Stewart Osborne (Stewart Osborne), Thursday, 3 June 2004 14:13 (twenty-one years ago)

Are 3" adapters still made, or do I need to start haunting various seedy pawn shops?

― Colin Meeder (Mert), Thursday, 3 June 2004 15:24 (twenty-one years ago)

Are you looking for some sort of excuse to start haunting various seedy porn shops?

― Stewart Osborne (Stewart Osborne), Thursday, 3 June 2004 15:29 (twenty-one years ago)

I need no excuses.

― Colin Meeder (Mert), Thursday, 3 June 2004 15:55 (twenty-one years ago)

try a can of compressed air, stick the straw thing in there, and spray. if it's already fucked up this probably won't make anything worse and might make it better.

― kyle (akmonday), Thursday, 3 June 2004 15:57 (twenty-one years ago)

Kyle, I just thought of that this morning. Great minds etc. If that doesn't work, I think I'll try a little harDCore boot akshun (or a new car player, once the funds are willing). Thanks, folks.

― David R. (popshots75`), Friday, 4 June 2004 18:12 (twenty-one years ago)

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