Odd "fixed itself" problem

[AiboPet]

Okay....I know I've seen this on here before in different places.

I got me a little Sony S5-305 from an ebay seller. It's only in "okay" shape. Looks like it was stored outside for a bit, but came up playing...but with REAL dirty pots of course (ALL of 'em)

Weird thing is, I turned it on and noted several little things I was gonna have to tend to at some point (mostly linearity problems). I let the set run for several hours on my little desk at work really just for fun. I don't speak Spanish, so really was paying NO attention to it. I noticed after coming back from another office that the linearity issue I saw for well over an hour....went away.

NO amount of letting it sit and turning it back on....or fiddling with the (still dirty) pots will make that problem return.

Question is.....What exactly is at play when I see reference to electrolytics "coming back" after playing a set that has been sitting a LONG time? I suspect something somehow "fixed itself" just from giving the set some time running. This is a solid state set (one of the "tummy" TV sets)...so I don't suspect "just had to warm up" when it's been running SEVERAL hours...then OFF all night, and then does NOT have the problem in the morning.

Obviously the set has a few little TINY issues that still have to be addressed (I have not taken it home and put a crosshatch on it yet), but the GLARING problem seems to have completely gone away. It's a VERY cute but quite dirty little Sony I paid like thirty bucks for.