Yes, another foam question

[Guest]

I am in the process of completely restoring a '69 B3. It was in pretty bad shape when I got it but it was cheap and by and large complete, so I decided to go for it. I gutted the entire organ, restored the cabinet and now I am re-assembling it, cleaning and repairing/replacing everything as I put it back in. Here is where I am interested in the opinion of the esteemed panel: The manuals are accessible, I am taking all the keys off so I can clean them, do I go the extra step and open the manuals up entirely to mess with the foam or do I leave it alone?
Pros:
- it's never going to be easier to do it (at least I won't be going back in there anytime soon)
- I won't have to worry about in the future
- resale value (even though I am planning on keeping it)

Cons:
- extra work, might be messy
- it's not broken (all the contacts seemed fine)
- I live in Colorado at high altitude, no moisture problems here

In general I tend to agree with the notion that one should only replace the foam when it is actually causing problems, but since I have the thing right there I am tempted to just do it.
Any thoughts?

Also, what is the best solution for cleaning the foam?
And what to replace it with?

[gtc]

In your situation, with the organ already "gutted", I would get rid of the foam on principle. Although it may not (yet) be doing any damage, it is not doing any useful good either and it is decomposing.

Replace it with nothing.

Here's a short clip. Language soon turns to English:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CDjA_1_uOZA

[sfp1954]

I would remove it.
If it has dried up (rather than expanded) you should just be able to scrape it off with a putty knife.
Here's a video of a worst case scenario.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hOKazQqr_6w
Here's the foam from my A-105, No tones lost but as you can see it was already attacking some of the wires.

[Guest]

Thanks Guys,
that's pretty much what I feel also, I guess I'll go ahead and clean it out.

[300lbLoveAffair]

The hardest part is getting the screws in/out from behind the preset panel. Remember to prime any metal you scrap bare. I found a small vacuum and a qtips with denatured alcohol to help in getting the stubborn parts, but I got 95% by hand and with the shop vac first. No need to put anything back in place of the foam.
mck