I’d happily remove the coating entirely when it happens. Are there any products that will do a clean job at this?
I guess I’ll try to get replacements for all buttons from Elektron, or remove the coating from all buttons.
This happened to me after about 20 months in Thailand. Apparently the hot and humid weather accelerates the breaking down. Also, before noticing this I didn’t use the OT for about one month and the whole time I left the decksaver on… this might have contributed to the problem because of lack of ventilation in the buttons, I suppose.
isopropyl alcohol, elbow grease
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Fine grit sandpaper can work really well getting down to the base plastic.
This has happened to my Digitakt key caps. Im in Brazil so the humid hot weather has likely accelerated the process. I tried cleaning a few with rubbing alcohol with varied success. Some are much better, having removed just the residue, but you have to be really careful not to take the paint off too… which happened on a couple of buttons. It’s a fine line. Imo its a really bad decision to use this coating. I way prefer the hard caps on my Analog 4 mk1 which will never have this problem. Has put me off purchasing any mk2 version. I wish there was a way to remove all the coating and paint and get them repainted without this coating. Really bothers me.
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Some people online have reported goo gone can get rid of stickiness from this kind of coating breaking down although I have not tried it myself.
This air flow sensor cleaner perfectly removes gunk from rubberized cases (also glue from labels). Spray lightly, leave for a second or two (no longer, it evaporaters quickly), then gently rub off with a towel/rag/cotton pad/dishwashing sponge/grubby finger).
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Hi guys, fittest post albeit not elektron specific. I’ve noticed for s few years now that this rubberized coating breaks down and renders the item useless. I’ve got a pair of high end binoculars i stored away for a coupe of years. The rubber coating has turned into a tarry mess. Got it all over the case and hands and it stains. In the end i used nail varnish remover to get it all off. Binoculars look a mess but still usable. I don’t know why manufacturers use this coating but maybe to do with putting a shelf life on gear?
That’s awesome - thank you!
Nail varnish remover = acetone. It removes the gunk, but it can also damage plastic. The air flow meter sensor cleaner or the medical glue remover are probably safer.
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True mate, but this item was metal covered in the rubberized gunk. I thought they wetter jumbled so had nothing to lose. I wouldn’t use acetone on plastic 
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Hello,
Same thing here, i just bought a second hand DIGITONE (originally owner bought it in 2020) and some of the buttons are sticky as hell. The rubber coating has been removed on some of them, but this is very displeasing to use compared to my other elektron gears.
I have contacted the support to see if it’s possible to replace some of the buttons… we’ll see.
Warm water, washing up liquid and a sponge or brush. Worked for my Digitakt buttons, just be careful not to wear off the actual paint.
You could also order a new set of buttons from Elektron, they’re not expensive.
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Thank you,
I am waiting for a reply from the support team to order a new set of buttons, because I tried to remove the sticky substance with alcohol on one button (big mistake) , it removed the paint instantly 
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Did you get a replacement button kit? How much is it?
Use citrus based degreaser (commonly used for degreasing bicycle chains).
If the coating has turned into goo, it will just wipe right off with degreaser. Just used it on my Push 2 and it took just a few wipes to get the goop off but the coating that hadn’t degraded required scrubbing.
But make sure to use eye protection and well ventilated!
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Yes, I have bought a buttons kit from Elektron (via their support) it costed me 60€.
My Digitakt’s PTN key’s coating started to peel off and it got all ugly and sticky. I contacted Elektron and they’re sending me a replacement. For free 
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Denatured alcohol. I used it to remove the sticky coating from my Push 2. Now it’s shiny black plastic.
Remove the buttons first. We don’t want stuff leaking in to the machine.