I bought a 1200XL today.....

[ryanr256]

and I feel real bad about it.

 

I saw the ad on our local Craigslist. 1200XL with a 410 recorder and three carts (Basic, Star Raiders, Millipede) for $150.00. Didn't know if worked, I offered $100 and the deal was done.

 

Today I go to pick it up and I ask the guy how long he has owned it. He tells me, "Since I was 12 years old and it was new." Oh man, you should have seen his face. I really thought he was going to cry. He tells me it's been in a box for a long, long time and his wife wanted to throw it away. He knew someone would want it and put it on Craigslist instead.

 

I told him it was going to a good home and I would clean it up, fix it if needed and use it. That seemed to cheer him up a bit. I told him I asked how long because I was actually looking for the one I sold a number of years ago. I also told him it will sit along side of my 400, 800, 800XL and 130XE and get used.

 

But boy, he sure didn't want to let go.

 

-Bob

[OldSchoolRetroGamer]

I hate hearing this and appreciate my understanding and supportive wife even more. She could care less about old computers, videogames etc, BUT she does not begrudge me such things, she might not be into it or understand but she knows I am interested in them and so leaves me alone with my hobby. I just do not "get" that type of making sacrifices mentality, OK if your spending too much time, money or taking up too much space that it is a problem then fine but why interfere with your spouses hobbies or pastimes otherwise? If it is not illegal or hurting anyone be thankful

[Bryan]

Did you tell him about AtariAge? Did you tell him he can run all the old games in an emulator? I always try to let people know there's still a scene.

[ryanr256]

Did you tell him about AtariAge? Did you tell him he can run all the old games in an emulator? I always try to let people know there's still a scene.

 

I don't think it was so much about the Atari as an Atari, but rather the object that has been with him since he was 12. I think it really could have been any item. It just happened to be a 1200XL.

 

-Bob

[miker]

Another wife-related problem? I think he should put her on Craiglist instead.

 

Or just throw away.

[suspicious_milk]

Right before I left for work the other day, I'd just open up a box from an eBay win containing several Atari's and other items. When I got home, the wife had already cleaned them for me. Too bad for him.

[yorgle]

I don't think it was so much about the Atari as an Atari, but rather the object that has been with him since he was 12. I think it really could have been any item. It just happened to be a 1200XL.

 

-Bob

I dunno, 1200xl's affect you more than most. It's weird.

[flashjazzcat]

I dunno, 1200xl's affect you more than most. It's weird.

 

They're the Rolls Royce of the Atari line, once tweaked a little.

[jacobus]

They're the Rolls Royce of the Atari line, once tweaked a little.

 

Yes, your "tweaks" deserve an AMG badge at the very least!

[ryanr256]

Well, I cleaned it up a little, plugged it in and got the animated "ATARI" logo. Turned it off and inserted a Basic cart. It boots w/Basic but the only keys that work are the 4, R, M and X.

 

Looks like I'm going to have to attempt a keyboard repair on this one.

 

-Bob

[adam242]

Pretty straightforward if a bit tedious repair that comes from long-term disuse. Another reason my 1200xl is my 'daily driver'.

 

Congratulations on your purchase!

[+bob1200xl]

Be very patient and precise... The silicone is stuck to the PCB at each screw location.

 

If the silicone rips, no problem - just keep it small. The silicone will fall back into place nicely. Heat will RUIN the silicone.

 

 

When you pull the mylar off the connector fingers, a lot of the conductor will come with it.

 

If the connector coating is still viable, you can just shift the mylar a little to restore continuity. If not, you may need to re-paint the contacts. I also use 1/32" map tape on each conductor to give it some extra compression. I leave the interposer (that paper thing between the contacts) off.

 

 

You may also clean the gold keypads with alcohol. Not a good idea to clean the carbon keypads, though. I have, but but very gently.

 

 

I haven't found any (done about 30 of these...) that could not be fixed. Some are just harder than others. Some need to be 'fixed' twice.

 

 

Good luck!

 

 

Bob

[yorgle]

I've had good results cleaning both the gold pads and the carbon pads with a soft pencil eraser- just rub the gold pads until they are shiny and the carbon pads until they are grey instead of black. Clean the eraser on a scrap of paper as you go and make sure you blow away any bits of eraser from between the mylar and the pc board before you put things back together. You can also avoid dealing with the connector issues by using a paper binding clamp over the connector and pulling the mylar back for cleaning one side at a time. When reassembling the keyboard, turn the tiny screws in until they stop and then maybe a quarter turn past that-- they don't need to be very tight at all or the pc board will warp.

[ryanr256]

Thanks for all the advice. I probably won't be able to effect the repair until this weekend. When I get to it I will refer to the info in the sticky and this thread.

 

Thanks again,

 

-Bob

[AtariGeezer]

You could also try hitting each key using the "Fast Repeating with your finger" trick, sometimes this works.

It made one of my 1200xl's work again...

[ryanr256]

You could also try hitting each key using the "Fast Repeating with your finger" trick, sometimes this works.

It made one of my 1200xl's work again...

 

That was my first attempt. Didn't work. I had some free time tonight so I disassembled the keyboard. I will pick up some conductive paint on the way home from work Thursday. With any luck I should have it repaired by the weekend.

 

 

-Bob

[ryanr256]

It works! I took it apart, using a piece of notebook paper to separate the mylar/silicone from the circuit board. I took my time and didn't pull the membrane or try to rush getting it off. Once it was off, I cleaned the contacts and then carefully cleaned the carbon dots. I used a "CircuitWriter" pen to redraw the contacts at the bottom edge of the mylar. I got the pen from Radio Shack. It wasn't cheap but I think I can use it for other projects.

 

Anyway, I let the conductive ink cure overnight and reassembled everything. With much trepidation I turned it on and all the keys register in the Self Test.

 

Woohoo!

 

Thanks to everyone for their advice. Without it I probably would have trashed the membrane.

 

-Bob

Edited December 22, 2012 by ryanr256