The mighty mouse scroll ball problem

[Craigtimms]

Hey guys i think my mighty mouse (wireless) is starting to suffer the inevitable scroll ball problem, as i cant scroll down as well anymore..

have any of you had any sucess getting a replacement or fixing it??

[TEG]

I have found getting the ball wet will fix it, or use a knife or towel to remove the oil from the wheel (which I feel is what is causing most of the problems).

TEG

[Craigtimms]

i just wetted the tip of my finger slighty and rolled the ball around, and now its completely stopped working!!!! all other functionality is fine


arg!!!

[kuebby]

I found holding the mouse upside down and while scrolling and pushing in the ball would usually fix the problem. But eventually my MM did die and was retired because of the same problem you're having.

[TEG]

i just wetted the tip of my finger slighty and rolled the ball around, and now its completely stopped working!!!! all other functionality is fine


arg!!!

It does take a little bit. Roll the ball around for a minute, then it should start working again.

TEG

[Craigtimms]

well its back working again.. im off too the apple shop to see what they say!

[Jayrod]

I'm curious as to how old your mighty mouse was or is before it started getting the symptoms that seem to be so wide spread. I have had my wired mighty mouse ever since the introduction of the new aluminum iMacs and the scroll bar still works fine.

[Craigtimms]

had mine since january really, used everyday id say! and my room is clean etc etc dont eat at computer -- i do wash my hands often! haha

well annoying, i love my mighty mouse!

[corey899]

I found an article online that describes how to clean the scroll ball in the mighty mouse to prevent it from sticking. I have a wireless mighty mouse and after performing this procedure my problems were solved. First wet the ball slightly with a little bit of water (be careful not to use too much as you could damage the mouse). Then grab a blank piece of printer paper, flip the mighty mouse upside down and press the ball to the paper. Move the mouse around the page so that the moisture will clean the ball extracting the dirt onto the paper. If it does not work the first time, try it again and it should work. Good luck.

[alebar14]

For me, I usually turn the MM upside down and just run its scroll ball along the slight wet towel and it works like charm.

[atluten]

I usually use a q-tip dipped in some rubbing alcohol and run it along the ball to get all the gunk out, which works quite well. Other times I just turn the mouse upside down and rub the ball with a wet tissue, but this solution does not seem to be quite as effective as the q-tip.

[thunderclap]

I just push down on the ball really hard and turn it a few times. That gets it working for me.

[iTattoo]

Realatively new to the Mac world after nearly 22 years plugging away in the PC world - I had just assumed I had screwed up some software setting along the way, and that's why my mouse would only scroll one way. Thanks for the tips!

Cheers.

[Craigtimms]

haha itattoo.. thats what the p.c's have done to you!!

I'd like to say cheers - it works again perfect infact i forgotten how precise the ball was.. it must of gunked up fast and to think i didnt have dirty hands..

i just turned it over onto a peice of paper and run it around untill it came clean, no water required for me this time.. :)

good job guys cheers

[BoingoBongo]

If you can't fix it, Apple is pretty good about replacing the Mighty Mouse. You just have to send your old one in and it wont cost you a thing. :)

[richard.mac]

haha itattoo.. thats what the p.c's have done to you!!

I'd like to say cheers - it works again perfect infact i forgotten how precise the ball was.. it must of gunked up fast and to think i didnt have dirty hands..

i just turned it over onto a peice of paper and run it around untill it came clean, no water required for me this time.. :)

good job guys cheers

yep rolling it for a while on a piece of paper or on your jeans always works for me. i usually do it every couple of months.

[pastrychef]

I open up mine completely and clean it the old fashioned way...

[Hyde244]

I too have lost all function of my scroll ball in my 5 month old Wireless Mighty Mouse.

I know all too well on the cleaning tricks and have done them numerous times, but the scroll ball has totally crapped out and is not functional. It is almost as if it has detached from inside the mouse, or so it feels when you try to scroll.

So is the advice to call Apple?

[rychencop]

clean it!! like any other mouse.
i do wish apple would design the MM to be more user "serviceable."

[rychencop]

I too have lost all function of my scroll ball in my 5 month old Wireless Mighty Mouse.

I know all too well on the cleaning tricks and have done them numerous times, but the scroll ball has totally crapped out and is not functional. It is almost as if it has detached from inside the mouse, or so it feels when you try to scroll.

So is the advice to call Apple?

call applecare...since it's less than a year old they will replace it or fix it. if there is an apple store close to you they will advise you to take it there.

[Hyde244]

Now I know that this is slightly off topic, but do I need any documentation on the mighty mouse should I take it to the Apple Store? (purchase receipts, etc.)

[geon]

I have found getting the ball wet will fix it, or use a knife or towel to remove the oil from the wheel (which I feel is what is causing most of the problems).

TEG

Thanks. Licked my tip of finger and it working again......was scrolless for a bit until I saw this thread. The paper trick wasn't working for me.

[ehtaft]

Hi all,
This has been happening to me too. Yesterday it reeeeally didn't want to scroll down and today it wouldn't scroll down at all!! But just the wet-finger trick worked fine for me. Thanks for saving my mouse.

[MacBoobsPro]

I got my original one replaced after it too stopped scrolling. My second one I decided to really look at ways to clean it so it will work again and I have found that if you spend a few minutes (and I mean minutes not seconds) with a damp cloth (after unplugging the mouse of course) and scrolling the ball in all directions and occasionally holding the mouse upside down to free any trapped particles it will eventually work perfectly again.

My exact process is unplug the mouse get a damp lint free cloth and work the scroll ball for a minute or two then check to see if there are any particles of crap on the ball. Move the ball around slowly because sometimes bits on the inside will stick to the ball and because they are damp will come around to the top so you can get rid of them. Then go at it again with the damp cloth. Keep doing this on and off for a good few minutes occasionally turning the mouse upside down as you do it. Once you think it might be clean let it dry (or dry the ball with a dry lint free cloth) and attempt to scroll around with it. If it doesnt work simply keep going at it and it WILL eventually come clean and work.

I was so frsutrated with mine once I pressed the ball down so hard I thought I had actually 'smoothed' out the bits inside and that it would never scroll again. Then (months later) I decided to see if I could get it to work again and I did the above tips and it works like it was brand new.

So in essence even the most knackered of mice can be cured but you have to work at it. I did mine while watching TV so I wasn't rushing to get it back in the computer and zapping aliens again.
:)

EDIT: If the ball is still wet it will feel like it hasn't worked. Let it dry before you try scrolling.

[bilbo--baggins]

Every Mighty Mouse that I've owned, or that friends or relatives have owned has had problems with the scroll ball. Usually they're easy to get going with a bit of cleaning, but sometimes nothing seems to work. But I would agree with the comment above about it taking minutes not seconds to get them working. I took one to bits once and it really didn't last any longer before it stopped working again than just giving a good clean with a damp cloth.

What an utterly terrible design from Apple. Mice moved over to optical sensors because of all of the problems with balls - and at least the balls could be removed and cleaned.

Apple really should have gone with a touch sensitive surface from the beginning - and I cannot believe they STILL haven't done that. :eek:

At least I now have AppleCare and an Apple retail store not too far away - so next time I cannot get it working I'll just go along for an exchange. Maybe they need to get lots of returns before they feel the incentive to improve the design.

[SlasherDuff]

I am sad to say that my Mighty Mouse has halfway died as well, unless someone can tell me how to get the middle button working again. If I have to disassemble the thing, I'm better off getting a new one.

*sigh*

[iShater]

I followed the instructions you guys have had hear to attempt to clean the ball to make it roll again. It has worked, I say it is at 95% performance.

I hate this thing, but glad it started working again.

Thank you :)

[gglockner]

I'm addicted to the Mighty Mouse. I found a way to fix the trackball that doesn't require disassembly. Get some double-stick tape, and put a piece of tape on your desk. Turn the Mighty Mouse upside-down and run the ball along the double-stick tape for a minute. Run it in all four directions (up/down, left/right) and try moving in circles. This fixes the problems every time.

[ANSWERGUY]

We have about 20 macs in our office and the balls often jam up. They can always be cleaned in seconds in my experience by spraying Foamclene onto the ball, leaving it for about 15 seconds and then wiping it all off with a lint free cloth - making sure that the ball is rotated a lot when the cloth is moved over it.

[geoffreak]

I second the "push down hard and roll" method. It works every time for me.

[HarvJH]

i usually take it apart, all the dirt and stuff that is inside the mouse it quite disturbing.

[InvalidUserID]

My first mighty mouse roller ball went out in less than six months of use. I simply took it into the store (went in on my lunch, only a block away), did the girly hair twirl and the guy just took a new one out of the box and swapped it out for me.

Alas, might mouse two is giving me connectivity issues. Grrr...

[tnfdude]

I just wanted to share a great experience replacing my mighty mouse, with the scroll ball problem. I tried to fix the problem with some of the advice offered in this thread, with no luck. Called AppleCare, and after a few minutes on the phone, the CSR sent me a new mouse overnight. Way to go Apple! New unit is working as it should.

[Salviotti]

Wow! The printer paper trick worked perfectly. I'd previously been cleaning it with a damp cloth and it still wouldn't scroll down. Now it works great. Thanks for the tip!

[macfanatic45]

I have had the problem with my mighty mouse that it would scroll every which way but down. All I did was rub it vigorously on a pair of jeans for about 1-2 minutes and it was working again like brand new.
:apple:

[technojeek]

Hey, Thanks for the Information ! it works.

I took two drops of after shave lotion and dropped it on the track ball and turned it upside down and rubbed it against a flat surface with a small piece of cloth beneath it.

1) moved left 10 times
2) moved right 10 times
3) moved Top 10 times
4) moved bottom 10 times
5) moved Clockwise 10 times
6) moved Anti Clockwise 10 times

During this process you will find some dirt coming out. That the culprit there, causing the problem.

Once again do it with plain water to remove the acid stain from your mouse.

Thats it !

Caution: Do it on your own risk !