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StickJock

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Posts posted by StickJock

  1. Posted

    4 hours ago, Colleton said:

    Nice.  Do you have a link for the plastic rivet you used?

    Sorry, I do not.  I found it in a sample box of assorted plastic fasteners that I had gotten about 15-20 years ago.  Yes, I am a bit of a packrat.  😀  It had several different sizes of the type used, and I found one that fit perfectly.

     

    IIRC, it was a free sample box that I had ordered from a post on FatWallet (RIP).

  2. Posted

    Final update:

    Got the new 3086 chips in from AliExpress (only 5 weeks!).  Plugged one in and booted it up.  Color & sound back to normal.  WooHoo!

     

    To summarize the repairs done:

    Bad 16Kx1 RAM chip replaced with the spare chip that I had purchased in the early 80s.

    Color & sound issues were due a faulty A104 (3086 transistor array).  Replacing chip fixed both issues.

    Keyboard issue was due to a stiff/sticky/stuck keyboard membrane.  Carefully peeling the membrane off of the PCB and then reassembling it all fixed the keyboard issues.

    PCBs all cleaned with electronics cleaning spray.

    Case cleaned & brightened in the sun.

    NOS OEM rubber feet installed.

    New plastic rivet installed holding the PS board bezel/trim in place.

     

    Joysticks & paddles work in all ports.  SIO works.  A/V & internal speaker works.  Basic cart works.  All keys work.  Looks like a successful resurrection.

     

    BTW:  I left the dodgy looking caps & resistors in place.  They don't seem to be causing any issues.  I also unplugged & wrapped up the RF cable and tucked it into the big void in the side of the 800 case.  I covered the ends with electrical tape, just in case, to prevent any potential of them migrating & shorting anything out.

     

    Anyway, the 800 is back in business.  Time to party like it's 1983!

     

    • Like 7

  3. Posted

    9 hours ago, DrVenkman said:

    I use a feature that is not necessarily obvious to someone who hasn’t used an oscilloscope for long - on most o-scope probes, the contact end is a little retractable micro-clip you can grab a wire or resistor leg with ... but you can usually pop the plastic end of the probe right off, exposing a slender metal pin for point measurements.

    It's a good idea to keep the adapter on the probe tip when not using the scope in order to protect the probe tip itself from getting damaged (like from knocking it off of the table to the floor).  For this reason, we always referred to the adapters as "probe condoms".  Safety first, right?!!  😀

     

    • Haha 2

  4. Posted

    Apparently, I unsuccessfully tried to open my CX22 back in the 80s.  All four screws are missing, and there is a small chip in the plastic in one of the corners where I must have tried prying it with a screwdriver.  I just found the Field Service manual online, and it says that you have to stick a screwdriver in the two middle holes, one at a time, and press down on the ball until the case separates.  I'll give that a shot soon.  I want to open it up to clean & lubricate the rollers.  it is pretty noisy when rolling the ball.

     

    Anyway, can anyone tell me what size screws I need to replace my missing ones with?

     

    Thanks.

     

  5. Posted

    Necro-bump!

     

    This is exactly what I needed to know to disassemble my old CX22 trackball for cleaning.  Apparently I tried to disassemble this in the 80s but never succeeded.  All 4 screws are missing and there is a bit of plastic missing at one of the corners where I assume I pried it with a screwdriver.  I tried again yesterday, but chickened out when it wasn't coming apart.  Who knew that you had to press out the fittings from those holes?

     

    Anyway, I'm still missing the screws.  Can someone tell me what size screws I need to replace them with?

     

    Thanks.

  6. Posted

    So I've been going crazy the past several weeks looking for my trackball & paddles.  I remembered seeing them in the past couple of years, prior to unpacking all of my 8-bit gear.  When I finally did get around to setting up a room with the 8-bits, I could not find the trackball or paddles.  I looked *everywhere*!

     

    Well, after going through closets & boxes again, I finally found them.  In a box labeled "ZX-81". 😀

     

    In the box, along with the ZX-81 (my first computer!), I found the CX22 trackball, a pair of paddle controllers and a pair of 12' DB9 extension cords.  Also, oddly enough, two rolls of 4" thermal paper.  I say oddly, because I have never had a thermal printer.

     

    So here's the kicker:  I just labeled the box "ZX-81" last week after looking to see what was in it.  Argh!!! 🤬

     

    • Haha 4

  13. Posted

    34 minutes ago, mozzwald said:

    The front looks boring now :D

    I think that has a very 800 flavor now.  You could always go crazy and start adding angled surfaces & bevels like the 800.  😀

     

    Maybe run the "racing stripes" down the front as well as an optional front shell?  Of course, on an 800, they would be mostly covered.

     

    If you add one more fin, then maybe the middle button would only block out two grooves instead of three?

     

    Is there a filament that matches the 800 case color, or would this need to be painted?  If painted, maybe an orange peel paint to give it some texture?

  14. Posted

    10 minutes ago, mozzwald said:

    I'll experiment a little more and see what looks ok. I think having them all the way down the back side would look goofy.

    Remove the sideways vents near the bottom and then have the fins down the back mostly blocked (like on the pic of the 800 above), and then a few open fins near the bottom to admit cool air for the convection cooling.  Maybe also leave a little bit more solid on the left & right before the fins start, like how the fins on the 800 don't go all the way to the edges.

     

    I suppose that the fins themselves, in addition to being a stylistic thing, could add some cooling via the additional surface area.

  15. Posted · Edited by StickJock

    I think that having the fins connect across the top so that they are continuous would give it more of an 800 feel.  Having just the edges is more like the XLs.

     

    Atari 800, PERITEL Version (for SECAM countries)

     

    Maybe just have them on the back shell, but going from the seam on top all the way down the back?

     

  18. Posted

    Back then, car manufacturers made changes every year.  For Mustangs, between 65 & 66, the main exterior changes were the grill (honeycomb changed to horizontal slats, the corral around the horse lost the bars surrounding it (horizontal bars in pic are due to the fog lights)), the gas cap & the side "scoop" trim.  67 & 68 were entirely new sheetmetal, but they did the same thing between models (grill, gas caps, scoops).  Oh, and the '68s got the rear side marking lights due to new regulations.  Then an all new car for 69.

     

  20. Posted

    1 hour ago, Mclaneinc said:

    Try and get right angled plug pins (many people call them the other bit a plug but its actually not) Old rule, plugs have pins, sockets have holes.. 

    While I tend to agree with this rule (plugs are male, sockets are female), I'll bet nobody ever called the connector on the end of an Atari joystick cable a "socket".  😀

    Likewise for SIO cables....  😀

     

    • Like 1
    • Haha 1

  25. Posted

    I don't think it looks that bad on the 800, especially if it was painted to match.  However, to make it even more 800ish, maybe instead of the XL-style corner cuts, maybe make it with the 800's fins?  The fins can wrap around the top & big sides, like how the fins on the slot cover wraps around to the back.  For the vents, some of the fins can have open slots between them.

     

    Or, for another idea, make it look like a fat game cartridge!  It doesn't look like it is too much bigger than a standard cart.

     

    • Like 2
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