Solving an age old front loader NES problem
Mar 27, 2020 0:16:39 GMT
Cervantes, stratogustav, and 1 more like this
Post by dschult3 on Mar 27, 2020 0:16:39 GMT
Since we are on lock down, my family has been deep cleaning the house and garage over the week. In my wife's old box of memories from high school, her NES was wrapped in her old high school jacket with Super Mario Bros. (A 5 screw cart!) and a Zelda cartridge. Of course, once I hooked it up, the console just blinked at me, and much to the chagrin of my son, nothing would work. So, I started down the long path of DIY (Support the Right to Repair!). At first, I cleaned the contact pins. That didn't work. I then opened up the top of the system and tried to clean the 72 pin connector using the credit card method. That didn't work. Another website suggest that I re-align the spring loaded contraption so that the connectors fit better. That didn't work either. I began to think about cutting the 10 NES chip, but I don't like altering systems of the past. I was just about to give up and buy a new 72 pin connector, when a crazy video was suggested in my You Tube account. This video to me was just...crazy. This suggestion falls in line with the dark arts in Lord of the Rings. Only madness would drive me to even attempting it. However, as midnight waning and 1 AM drawing near, I went for it. I did the unthinkable.
I....
...boiled my 72 pin connector.
This was madness. However, I wanted OEM parts, not some cheap knockoff parts from other than reputable sources. This guy's video worked. Decades of dirt came off, AND the pins bent back to their original arcs! After allowing time for it to dry, I hooked it up. To say I was doubtful would overestimate my cynicism. I didn't even put the RF shield on with the lid. When all was together, I hit the button reluctantly. It worked immediately. Cynical, I turned it on and off multiple times. It worked 100% of the time. I then put in Zelda. It worked 100% of the time (who knows about that ancient battery...). I can't believe this is a thing. Ladies and gentlemen, I want to share this method with all of you, because it proved to be a miracle of miracles. I always thought the lock out chip was the bane to my existence years ago, but I truly believe it isn't as bad as everyone thought. If you have an NES that resets incessantly, definitely try this method.
