[deturney]

I have had my Curve for 3 days and I noticed last night that the trackball was a bit sluggish going right. Today it got continually worse until it took about a dozen irritating swipes to go from left side to right side. So on my lunch break today I googled the problem and found some possible solutions.

With 15 minutes left on lunch I convinced myself that I should get the trackball out and clean it. I found that I could pry the outer silver ring out pretty easily with one of my finger nails (they are short) and the trackball assembly easily plucks out after that. Then I blew through the assembly with my mouth to try and clear out any dirt or lint.

If you decide to do this be very careful and document the orientation of the silver ring's clips to the phone as you pull it up and out. The same applies even more so to the trackball assembly and it's tiny tab alignments. I was not very careful when I took it apart so the biggest problem for me was re-fitment. But I got it done!

When I got home tonight I ordered a new trackball assembly and ring from blackberrytrackball.com since this problem could potentially render my BB useless. I like to be prepared.

[skullgame45]

Yeah them trackballs can be little boogers! That's why I tend to buy in bulk from cnn.cn for myself and friends.

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[Tremortality]

I ordered a handful too. I had to clean mine within the first month and I am careful with my hands being clean - go figure. Now I have no worries since I have plenty on hand.

[aerophage]

Alcohol and q-tips are your friends... They work wonders cleaning your trackball.

Even better (if you have access to the, that is) are alcohol prep pads. Are you a nurse? Have a friend that is? Or a doctor? Or a medic? Or a corpsman? They can get them for you in bulk

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[Mandas]

I keep a few on hand as well that I ordered from cnn.cn. They are surprisingly easy to remove and install.

[periwinklemoon]

Here's a very helpful thread I found last night on how to remove and clean the trackball. Pics included!

[LazyStarGazer]

If you opt to clean them, have a magnifying glass ready. Those gears are incredibly tiny.

[core2core]

If you opt to clean them, have a magnifying glass ready. Those gears are incredibly tiny.

what he said.....super small!!