Restoring Sansui Dynamic Oval Capacitors

Thread hijack.

PCBs were also used in a lot of military vehicle lubricants. When the government started selling surplus vehicles, many oil recycling companies got saddled with loads of used oils contaminated with PCB. Here in CA, recyclers now make you sign a form that states if any of your recycled oil contains PCBs, you are responsible for the disposal of the entire load, even if it gets mixed with others in a bulk truck.

Not to mention the thousands of barrels of surplus lubricants they sold at public auctions to farmers and industries back in the day.
 
Pete, while not oil capacitors (usually used in motor start/run applications) it appears that PCB's may have been used in some electrolytics prior to the early 70's. Since much of the gear being restored by members here it is a potential concern. Besides that, the electrolyte used in most e-caps is a skin irritant as it is corrosive. So precautions should be taken in any case, especially for the novice who may be gutting a cap for the first time.

I don't suspect these oval caps have any PCB's but there are likely some tube amps from the pre 1970 era that are so affected.
 
Yes that's it, these capacitors just 'resemble' some of the older type capacitors which do contain PCBs, and which we might encounter in vintage gear. As stated they'll very likely be motor start/run types from before the early 70's. And also having opened and worked on (re-stuffing) a few of these Sansui capacitors, I can say the only liquid remaining in them is dielectric, which should be kept off your skin, and tools and other spills should be cleaned up after coming into contact with it.

I used to have a couple of sealed 'Chokes' with ceramic insulated terminals, which you could hear (by gently handling them - 'gloopy noises' :)) were almost full of liquid of some sort with the feel of 'oil'. I forget where I got them, or where they eventually ended up, but I was always pretty sure they had PCBs in them.
 
Automotive ignition coils used to have PCBs. It's an oily liquid used as a coolant. These "can type" electrolytic are just that, large electrolytic caps in cans. No oil/PCBs. Yes, the electrolyte can be an irritant so gloves and glasses are prudent. Tube era and early solid state electronics used oil capacitors. Those may contain PCBs.

- Pete
 
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