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Does anyone make new Atari 8-bit cartridge shells?


Albert

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On 5/3/2020 at 11:32 AM, ccwrc said:

'Army of Darkness' :D

 

Fred: black-green label, black case, green PCB

Star Riders: black label, black case, black PCB

 

a7dc6675e65134c4.jpg

 

85be9da18b5cd84a.jpg

Had to quote that again - those shells are absolutely gorgeous.

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  • 2 weeks later...
4 minutes ago, TheRaven81 said:

Would it be possible to make these with dust covers? like the Atari brown/black/silver label carts? 

Like this one for example:

http://www.atarimania.com/8bit/boxes/hi_res/Pengo_cart.jpg

I really am not a fan of Atari's various sliding dust-cover carts (2600, 5200, Atari 8-bit computers), so I'd never buy such a thing.

 

 ..Al

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Ah ok. I dunno, I've bought a few carts recently, and it kinda bothered me that they didn't all get made like this. It seems like having the PCB's slot connection exposed like that leaves it more susceptible for getting the connector dirty. Not like they are difficult to clean or anything, but still.

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9 minutes ago, TheRaven81 said:

Ah ok. I dunno, I've bought a few carts recently, and it kinda bothered me that they didn't all get made like this. It seems like having the PCB's slot connection exposed like that leaves it more susceptible for getting the connector dirty. Not like they are difficult to clean or anything, but still.

These carts are a big pain, the springs can bend or become detached from the rail they sit on (I see this on a regular basis, especially with 2600 shells), the dust cover doesn't always snap into place (I see this quite a bit with 8-bit carts), and it's just unnecessary complexity. If it's so useful, why did Atari abandon it with later 7800, Jaguar, and later 2600 carts (which used the same shell design as the 7800 at that point)?  And I don't think any (or at least very few) third-parties on any of these old systems copied Atari's lead with this overly complex cartridge design.  Some of them used a spring-loaded prong design, but they pretty much all left the PCB edge connector exposed.

 

 ..Al

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Hello Albert

 

58 minutes ago, Albert said:

... why did Atari abandon it with ...

 

Probably because "without" is cheaper.  Time Warner saved money wherever they could (and couldn't) and Tramiel Atari was even worse.

 

Sincerely

 

Mathy

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2 minutes ago, Mathy said:

Probably because "without" is cheaper.  Time Warner saved money wherever they could (and couldn't) and Tramiel Atari was even worse.

Yes, definitely this.  They also used cheaper plastics for the 7800 console and cartridges.  They are quite brittle and break pretty easily if you're not careful. If I accidentally drop a 7800 cartridge on the hardwood floor, odds are quite good it will break.  This never happens with 2600 shells (well, excepting the later ones that used the same shells as 7800 games).

 

 ..Al

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5 hours ago, TheRaven81 said:

Would it be possible to make these with dust covers? like the Atari brown/black/silver label carts? 

Like this one for example:

http://www.atarimania.com/8bit/boxes/hi_res/Pengo_cart.jpg

Sorry for google translate: Yes, it is possible but economically unreal. For now, I have not yet paid the costs of making the injection mold for those housings they make, WARNER housings are more complicated and have more elements, such as the closing plate. In addition - I personally like the onuda style from XE GS, and I was inspired by them.
Good news - PCBs compatible with WARNER housings are compatible with those housings that I make.

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  • 2 weeks later...

Cardboard box for Sikor Soft cartridge cases, dimensions:
Box (length x width x height, dimensions in mm): 232x158x32
Insert for housing (length x width x height, dimensions in mm): 225x148x20
All external dimensions, construction of the box allows you to close the inside of the cartridge housing together with a possible instruction with a maximum thickness of about one centimeter. Boxes made with a professional die on white-gray cardboard (see photos). Dimensional tolerance about 1.5mm.
Price? I will count soon, around 3 PLN / pcs. In packs of 5.

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On 3/24/2020 at 9:40 PM, Wilheim said:

Thank you for your compliment! I had converted Realm of Impossibility to cartridge some years ago, so I decided to design the label.

 

On 3/24/2020 at 9:30 PM, adam242 said:

That Multigame artwork is fantastic! And is there a cart version of Realm Of Impossibility out there?

 

I loved that game! The EA record style packaging that held the disk was so cool back then. It would be great to see a disk to cart conversion. My Ultimate Cart would enjoy that! ;-)

 

Back to the topic on hand....

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On 4/25/2020 at 4:46 PM, Albert said:

Just built up two games with these new shells so I could test them out.  :)

 

New_8bit_Shells.jpg

 

 ..Al

?? Love these gray cases!@Albert Does this mean we'll see more new games in the store? 

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2 minutes ago, Albert said:

Yes, indeed.  :)

 

 ..Al

Holy Smokes!!!!! Awesome! I'm on a XEGS kick as of late. So this is very exciting! Bring on the disk to cart and homebrewed games! 

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On 1/24/2020 at 9:55 PM, Curt Vendel said:

Sorry for taking so long to get back.   Been tied up with work on my XM's and just work in general.   So here is the shell I think you guys really want.   The XE game shells, the two piece plastic shells were actually designed by Warner Atari Inc in 1982 as a replacement for the Plastic/Metal shells done by Craig Asher for the 400/800 in 79.   So here is the full sheet.   Sorry about the shadows on it, I don't have time right now to go to Fedex/Kinko's to run this through the scanner and its E sized and would take me an hour to try and scan each section in then run it through the composite assembler to make one image.

@Curt Vendel

As a programmer,fabricator,artist and atari lover I find these drawings just awe-inspiring! Thank you so much for posting them.

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On 1/24/2020 at 9:55 PM, Curt Vendel said:

(...) were actually designed by Warner Atari Inc in 1982 as a replacement for the Plastic/Metal shells done by Craig Asher for the 400/800 in 79.   So here is the full sheet.   (...)

 

8-bit-cart_shell.thumb.jpg.f8a62ab3a013bf9477dab527f84a0b49.jpg

 

After plugging and un-plugging many sorts of carts on the 400/800/XL lines, all I can say is that gram-by-gram, inch-by-inch, Craig's design has no substitute.

 

His carts' unique balance of size and that special quality-oozing, solid-feel was never seen again... and the stuff that came after just feels cheesy and cheap, plain-and-simple (although much easier and simpler to manufacture, to this day, of course...)

 

Kudos to Craig, for getting it so right, so well, at the first try!

 

 

Edited by Faicuai
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Man are those sharp!  If they were available in the early 80s when I had my 400, I would ave spent more time staring at the "magic" PCM inside, than playing the game.  Fast forward 40 years - I am still just as fascinated :)

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