Replacing 72pin cart conn in NES need some advice please

[CGQuarterly]

I am planning on writing a how-to article about refurbing the connector for my website, but in the mean time I don't remember the grit I used, but much higher than even 220. Maybe like 1000 grit. The black stuff. And you need to take your carts apart and clean them properly as well (I am going to write an article about that as well.). Tell the kid not to spit in them anymore.

 

Chris

[gdement]

Of course, now all of my games start up, but in replacing the connector, I uncovered another problem. There is a huge delay between pressing something on the controller and having say Mario jump or move on the screen. Either I broke something else, or uncovered another problem. Happens with both controllers. Oh well.. at least I have a new connector the next time I see a blinking unit at a thrift.

 

Try a different TV.

What you're describing sounds like "input lag" or "output lag" or whatever people prefer to call it. Most modern TVs don't display the image as soon as it's received, it goes through some buffering first. Some TVs have a more noticeable lag than others. Sometimes you can make it better by turning off some image enhancement settings on the TV.

A traditional CRT won't have lag, it displays what's received instantly.

 

I didn't notice the lag on an LCD I was using with my NES, except I discovered I suddenly was very bad at the SMB2 slot machine bonus game. I think it must have been very slight lag throwing off my timing. But next time I hook it up to a CRT I may find out my reflexes are just lousy.

[CGQuarterly]

I checked my sandpaper supply. I use 320-b grit paper by "GatorGrit". So my original grit estimate was way off.

 

Quickly, to clean the connector, do the following:

 

You will need the sandpaper mentioned above, a can of compressed air (preferred but not an absolute neccesity of you don't already have some), 1 piece of clean white paper, rubbing alcohol, 1 Q-Tip, and a phillips head screwdriver. Sandpaper costs about a dollar per sheet, and you should have everything else sitting around your house already.

 

1. Remove the cover on your NES.

2. Remove the RF Shield on the inside of the NES to expose the 72-pin connector.

3. Fold the sandpaper in half twice, to create 4 equally sized pieces. Cut the paper along the fold. fold one of the smaller pieces in half a couple of times to increase its thickness and to put an abrasive surface on both sides.

4. Gently move the sandpaper in and out of the connector at least 5-10 times along all of the pins. Always move the paper in and out, and NOT side-to-side. Be careful not to let it get caught on any of the pins. While doing this, alternate between applying gentle pressure to the top and bottom rows of pins. This will gently remove the corrosion and oxidation built up on the pins without bending them.

5. Spray the connector out with the can of air, and then spray out the entire inside of the NES, just in case some debris got in there.

6. Take the clean, white paper and cut it in half. Fold one piece in half enough times that it will apply gentle pressure to both rows of pins when inserted into the connector. It should apply pressure but not fit tightly. Use the Q-Tip to dampen both sides of one edge of the folded paper with the rubbing alcohol. The paper should be damp, but not wet enough to fall apart. Move the damp edge of the paper in and out of the connector. The pins will leave little black marks on the paper. This is OK. Just keep doing it, and periodically switch edges of the paper. I don't think you can ever get it so clean that the paper will come out white, but you don't need to. After a couple of minutes, you can stop.

7. Spray our the connector with the canned air again. This will dry it out and clean out any flecks of paper that might be in there.

8. This whole procedure should take about 15 minutes, max. Not much longer than installing a replacement connector.

9. Before you close the NES back up, test it with a few games, which you should clean before inserting them into your newly-cleaned connector. Clean them using the procedure below.

 

Procedure for properly cleaning NES games (or any openable cartridges, for that matter):

 

You will need only 2 items. The 3.8mm NES cartridge security bit (eBay), and a white plastic eraser. I buy the "Staedtler" eraser, which is the one with the little blue cardboard sleeve around it. These cost about a dollar. If you don't have a security bit, BUY ONE. Get both sizes (3.8mm and 4.5mm) so that you can clean NES, SNES, Genesis, and Game Boy carts. These bits are an essential part of any classic video gamer's set of tools. You can clean games with a Q-Top instead of opening them up, but it is a VASTLY inferior method. Trust me, I've been doing this for about 12 years and I've tried everything.

 

1. Open the cartridge using the security bit.

2. Make a mental note of which way the PCB is facing, so that you can put it back properly. In every cartridge I can think of, the chips are facing the front of the cart. SNES PCBs are notched in such a way that they will only go in one way, so that's nice.

3. The contacts will likely look dirty and/or oxidized, even if you cleaned them with a Q-Tip previously. All you have to do is rub the eraser on the contacts while applying a medium amount of pressure (you have to be pressing down hard enough that the rubber is being rubbed off of the eraser much as it would if you were erasing a piece of paper). It's easiest if you lay the PCB on top of a pad of paper or mouse pad or something to hold it still while you clean it. Be thorough and make sure that all of the contacts are clean.

4. Close the cart back up and stick it in your system.

 

Each side of the PCB should only take about 10 or so seconds to clean before it will magically look brand new. Every once in a while you will come across a cart that has been so badly treated that this method will not work, but it works at least 95% of the time. I have seen some pretty nasty contacts look like they were fresh from the factory after just rubbing them with an eraser.

 

They key to these methods working long term is that you MUST keep your games clean by never blowing into them. You should NEVER stick a game into your NES that you don't know is clean. When I bring new carts home (for any system), I always clean them before testing them, so that no game gets inserted into my NES that I have not cleaned personally. Beyond that, all I do is clean my NES with the cleaning kit every once in a while. My original NES has been ziffy for years since I refurbed it and then started properly cleaning everything. I have refurbished several NESes using this procedure and it has always worked fine.

 

The reason I am down on connector replacement is that it doesn't solve the problem long term (or even short term if you have gross games.) If you are still blowing into your carts and inserting dirty thrift store games into your system without cleaning them properly, you are going to end up with the same problems down the road. Why not fix it right and then learn how to keep your equipment running like new? Back in the day, we were inserting new games into new systems, and look how fast our NESes ended up with the blinkies. Now think about how much dirtier the games are now, being so much older, and ask yourself how long your replacement connector is going to last before it starts blinking, too. The first time you insert a game into your NES and it blinks, take 2 minutes and open the cart and clean the contacts with an eraser. Other than that just periodically hit your NES with the cleaning kit. Do it dry; don't use any alcohol or anything.

 

Even if you want to replace your connector, you should still follow my procedure for cleaning the games, so that your new connector will still stay in good working order into the future. They key to a long lasting NES is being anally retentive about cleaning the games.

 

Hope this helps someone.

 

Chris

[VectorGamer]

Alright - I'm going to follow your steps to a T and post an update

[gamerz]

Some questions since the answers provided here are not detailed:

 

What is "fine grit" sandpaper? Are we talking 220, 400, 120, 60?

 

Which 72 pin connector is the one that is "not tight?"

 

Where are these replacement connectors being bought from?

 

My NES has been blinking like crazy over the last month. My kid has been spitting all over the carts which got it to work but last night it went belly up for good. I cleaned that connector with space age alcohol, stuck the first two carts in and worked like a champ. After that, forget it.

 

<sarcasm> This comes at a great time </sarcasm> - I just hit a Craigslist score of 45 carts last night and haven't been able to test them out, obviously. There's a guy local that wants to buy/trade a bunch and I can't guarantee them but he's a collector and knows as much as I do that the carts just need cleaned and then they are good to go.

 

I found instructions here which does not make it seem like the installation is difficult at all:

http://www.jandar.net/nes72pin/

 

And I found the part here which is only $3.50:

http://www.nintendor...opexd.asp?id=63

 

The part is $8.49, marked down by $3.50.

[Warriorisabouttodie]

Some questions since the answers provided here are not detailed:

 

What is "fine grit" sandpaper? Are we talking 220, 400, 120, 60?

 

Which 72 pin connector is the one that is "not tight?"

 

Where are these replacement connectors being bought from?

 

My NES has been blinking like crazy over the last month. My kid has been spitting all over the carts which got it to work but last night it went belly up for good. I cleaned that connector with space age alcohol, stuck the first two carts in and worked like a champ. After that, forget it.

 

<sarcasm> This comes at a great time </sarcasm> - I just hit a Craigslist score of 45 carts last night and haven't been able to test them out, obviously. There's a guy local that wants to buy/trade a bunch and I can't guarantee them but he's a collector and knows as much as I do that the carts just need cleaned and then they are good to go.

 

I found instructions here which does not make it seem like the installation is difficult at all:

http://www.jandar.net/nes72pin/

 

And I found the part here which is only $3.50:

http://www.nintendor...opexd.asp?id=63

 

The part is $8.49, marked down by $3.50.

 

 

I looked all over the internet. The cheapest I found were slightly less than $6 shipped on eBay, so for 12 bucks I ordered two. They came last week. I still haven't had time to install them yet.

[VectorGamer]

 

 

The part is $8.49, marked down by $3.50.

 

That is correct...

 

My eyes are trained to see that the price is always located to the right of the price that has been struck through...pretty sneaky on their part