Atari 2600 Jr. Mylar Strip Issues

[Ianr757]

Hello all, I just ordered a replacement mylar strip for my Jr., but the reset and select switches only seem to function when I am holding the top of the plastic shell at a 90 degree angle from the cartridge slot. When I try to set it back down, as it would look when screwed back together, the buttons cease to function. I've tried making sure that it isn't simply the mylar slipping out when I shut the case, but it seems to be firmly inside still. Any ideas? Thank you!

[+Stephen Moss]

I cannot visualise the inside of a Jr and the mylar strip but I assume from what you have said the mylar strip pushes into a socket of some kind. If you have access to a multi-meter and can access all the relevant points you could try doing a continuity check to try and confirm that there is a connection from the solder joints of one socket to the other.

This may be a little less practical, but if you can get a short length of ribbon cable you could solder that in place of the flex cable and see if that solves the problem.

Try re-soldering the joints for the switches/relevant joints for the flex circuit connection, it could just be that as you set back down into its normal position the PCB flexes slightly and a bad joint goes open circuit.