Fruktodlaren

Since last night GMT+2, there is an auction up on Ebay for a Vyrzon in a metal shell in a complete boxed bundle. It's a collaboration between Minsoft and Meek Wizard Machining and the proceedings will go to charity. We chose Marie Curie, UK's leading end of life charity. Lets just hope the Ebay bots doesn't shut the listing down because it does not use Ebay's own charity tools. Marie Curie was not listed in Ebays own charity tools, so the donation is going to be made manually instead. The winner will get a certificate of donation as proof of that we did what we say we will do. So go spend all your nerd budgets on it, please. https://www.ebay.com/itm/155831215589

Long overdue answer. They are all metric screws, Phillips cross heads (head diameter ~6,6mm). The four shorter screws are: M4x07 length 12mm. The Long one: M4x07 length 40mm. For those of you that does not speak metric fluently. M4 means that it is a metric thread and the major diameter of the thread is 4mm. The "x0,7" means that the pitch is 0,7mm between threads, which basically means that the screw will go in 0,7mm in one full turn of the screw. That in turn means that metric threads does not express pitch in TPI (threads per inch) as UN threads do.

I don't know how many hours, but it is a lot by now. It is my hobby after all. But it is only a bit over a thousand dollar for charity so far and NOT several thousands. I don't want people to go thinking I am nicer than I actually am in reality.

Apology accepted. Given the same circumstances, I too would probably think it was scalped if I saw an Ebay add for the sold out game pop up just after I missed out on buying it again. An honest mistake. Turns out that many people are unaware of who I am, as I am not keeping a high profile online.

Hello Blazing Lazers, it is me, the profiteering speculating scummy Ebay seller from Uppsala, Sweden. Nice to meet you too. However, you seem to have got some things wrong about me. So if you will allow me, I like to briefly explain the situation. First of all, I am sorry you have had trouble in purchasing Vyrzon. Minsoft is working on the next batch I've heard, so I am confident you should be able to buy a copy sooner or later. I can also understand that seeing an Ebay listing for the game when it is currently sold out, rubs you the wrong way. But there is more to it than meets the eye actually. I am that guy who needlessly makes retrogame related items in metal, regardless if it is prudent to do so or not. I collaborated with Minsoft to make a set of aluminium shells for Vyrzon. One of them has already surfaced as the "lucky #100" where the shell for the 100th Vyrzon sold, secretly was changed for an aluminium one, commemorating the milestone that 100 people in this very small hobby had got the game. I do recommend you to read the text in that ebay listing a little closer. I know I am a bit vague there, but if I right out write that the profit will be shared 50/50 between Minsoft and Meek Wizard Machining, Ebay would close the listing labeling it as fundraising against their rules. I do hope that listing sells for a ungodly tall sum of money. That particular one, serial #105, will be sold with hope to recoup some of the costs Minsoft and Meek Wizard Machining had when bringing the game to market. Granted, my part in the Vyrzon development was VERY VERY small, but I made that aluminium shell, so I offered to arrange the auction for it. Besides, it would look really strange if Minsoft put up an auction for his own game at the same time when it sells out again and again, don't you agree? Minsoft had all kinds of expenses ranging from getting the boxes, manuals and overlays professionally printed to bulk buying all the cartridge shells, PCBs and PROM ICs to be able to physically make Vyrzon available to be bought. My (as Meek Wizard Machining) part in the project was only making a number of aluminium shells. But even so, aluminium raw material and mill tooling for doing the engraving had to be bought. So yeah, there were expenses. Minsoft does not rely on preorders, so he had to fork out for all the material and services needed out of his own pocket. As for my part, I did not charge anything at all for making the aluminium shells. I proposed that we make a few more and sell them to recoup the money that way, and one additional copy to be sold for charity. I hope I by this reply can prove to you than I am indeed NOT a profiteering speculator and scummy ebay seller. At the very least, I try my best to not be those things. There is a not very up to date gallery of things I have made in the past over at: buymeacoffee.com/MeekWizard (you do not have to buy me a coffee to see the gallery) Best regards /Tony of Meek Wizard Machining

Greetings. Old forum lurker here in need of some part-specific information regarding the physical switch on the switched CX22 trak-ball. The following text is mostly a copy paste of an old post (edited to become shorter) I did in a FB group for trak-ball enthusiasts. I recently (Dec 2020) came into possession of a Pro-line CX22 Trak-ball in a mostly decomposed box. New as I am in the wonderful world of sphere-based XY position devices, I had no idea that I should have asked about the switch... Turns out it's one of those first units without the trackball/joystick option switch. That was a bummer for me to discover as I wanted to use it mainly as a trackball on my Vectrex. Edit: Then I was asking if there was a way to put that functionality back in. Someone pointed me in the direction of the CX22 schematic where the circuit with the switch is also showing. Link below. http://www.atarimuseum.com/ahs_archives/archives/files/videogames/consoles/7800/7800trakball/7800trakball-cx22-patch.gif Such a modification seems doable but is going to take some surgery to the PCB, but I'm not afraid of that. I ordered the missing components (that I didn't already had on hand in my parts box) from ebay. Mainly the inductor and the IC responsible for the switching of signals when the physical switch is flipped. Right now I am hung up on the actual switch. What kind and type of switch is it? Is it a four pole double throw switch? If anyone can shed some light on this trivial matter that somehow is holding me back from going ahead with the modification, I would appreciate it greatly.

I recently got my hands one a Proline Trak-Ball in a mostly decomposed box. I got it because I wanted to use it for my vectrex. But joystick mode only does not do me any good in the trackball games. Is there a way to hack the trackball functionality back into this one, or should I rather try to trade it for a regular white bottom CX22 trackball with someone?