LinkYoungPS Posted February 12, 2020 Share Posted February 12, 2020 Hi All, I just recently acquired an Intellivision I (2609) in an auction. I've been testing it with several games that came with the system, and haven't had much luck getting them all to work. I did, however, confirm that the system does work by finding one cartridge to turn on. (Triple Action) My question is, is there someone that can point me to a guide, or give me some pointers on how to appropriately clean the carts? I think this may be the issue, as I've had trouble with other cartridge based systems in the past. (Atari 2600-7800, NES, SMS, etc.) I've heard that the system is pretty fragile, so I don't want to do anything that will cause an over-cleaned cart to damage the contacts in there. Thanks in advance! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tavi Posted February 12, 2020 Share Posted February 12, 2020 (edited) A year and some ago I bought a lot of Atari 2600 games through eBay from what I imagine was a pawn shop cleaning out some old stock they had tucked away in a box in the back for years. Most of them did not work right out of the box, they were pretty dusty and a lot of oxidation on the contacts. I found that cleaning the cartridge contacts with a q-tip soaked in rubbing alcohol, some of them requiring a few q-tips, was all that the majority of them needed to become functional again. That is were I would start at. It is not a very aggressive way of cleaning so I do not believe it should hurt the contacts any; at least I have never had a problem with cleaning them this way so far myself. For a 2600, but the exact same process. In fact, probably easier as there is no dust shield to fight with on the Intellivison cartridges Edited February 12, 2020 by Tavi adding youtube link 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chuck D. Head Posted February 12, 2020 Share Posted February 12, 2020 I doubt this would be the problem with multiple games, but, some games don't seem to make good connection when fully inserted, but work if you pull them out slightly. Usually about 1/8" does the trick for me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mthompson Posted February 12, 2020 Share Posted February 12, 2020 Don't forget to clean the cartridge contacts on the console the same way (with isopropyl alcohol or DeoxIT). If most carts don't work, that could be the problem. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Intelligentleman Posted February 13, 2020 Share Posted February 13, 2020 2 hours ago, mthompson said: Don't forget to clean the cartridge contacts on the console the same way (with isopropyl alcohol or DeoxIT). If most carts don't work, that could be the problem. QFT - what is more likely? that a BUNCH of carts don't work or that one cart input slot is dirty. That said, these games are 40-ish years old. If they're opened, they could probably use a good cleaning. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+JasonlikesINTV Posted February 13, 2020 Share Posted February 13, 2020 I clean mine with isopropyl alcohol. If not working inserted all the way, try partial. Using this combination, I've found ~98% of carts still work after all these years. Things can go wrong with the console for sure, but the carts are pretty darn robust. Not surprisingly, the controllers often fail from getting the most abuse. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LinkYoungPS Posted February 14, 2020 Author Share Posted February 14, 2020 Thanks everyone! I was able to get 11 of my 14 carts working by getting some 91% Isopropyl Alcohol and some Q-Tips. I'm going to have another go with those remaining three, because some of those carts were pretty gunky. Pics below. I'm pretty stoked to get this up and running, as I'm planning on putting together some content about this and some other classic consoles on my channel soon. Not to mention my little guy (He's three and a half) is pretty excited to see me setting this stuff up and wants to sit down and check it out with me. .... Quick extra question, how do you get something in the console to hit those contacts? I'm thinking maybe a tooth brush with some of the Isopropyl. Is there something better to use? Thanks again! 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mthompson Posted February 14, 2020 Share Posted February 14, 2020 Take a credit card or gift card, fold a piece of paper over the edge, and pour alcohol on it. Then work the card into and out of the cartridge slot several times (until it stops coming out dirty). Good luck! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nick3092 Posted February 14, 2020 Share Posted February 14, 2020 1 hour ago, mthompson said: Take a credit card or gift card, fold a piece of paper over the edge, and pour alcohol on it. Then work the card into and out of the cartridge slot several times (until it stops coming out dirty). Good luck! That's my preferred method as well. Just don't use some kind of economy printer paper that is too thin and could tear when wet and you have to clean it out of the slot. I picked up some 65lb paper/card stock for something many years ago and have a lot left. That has been my go to for this kind of cleaning. It also feels a little more coarse than regular paper, so in my mind it cleans a little better. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Lathe26 Posted February 14, 2020 Share Posted February 14, 2020 -- duplicate deleted -- Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Lathe26 Posted February 14, 2020 Share Posted February 14, 2020 2 hours ago, nick3092 said: That's my preferred method as well. Just don't use some kind of economy printer paper that is too thin and could tear when wet and you have to clean it out of the slot. I picked up some 65lb paper/card stock for something many years ago and have a lot left. That has been my go to for this kind of cleaning. It also feels a little more coarse than regular paper, so in my mind it cleans a little better. Sounds like a good idea. Rather than buy paper for this, do you think the typical junk mail envelope could be used for this purpose (once cut to the right size and shape)? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LinkYoungPS Posted February 14, 2020 Author Share Posted February 14, 2020 Thanks again everyone! My system seems to be reading games better now. I've got to say, the community on this board is really great! I'll be back with any updates, in case I can get the other 3 games working, but I fear the carts might be shot. :0( 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LinkYoungPS Posted February 15, 2020 Author Share Posted February 15, 2020 Hi All, Sometimes you just have to bite the bullet and get in there I suppose! I was able to get the rest of the games working by taking the games out of the cartridge and giving them a good swabbing. One in particular was pretty bad, even after swabbing it twice while still in there. (See below) But now I'm fully up and running, and my little guy and I are pretty pumped! I'm really happy to be able to share this with him, and I'm glad he's showing interest. Thanks again to everyone for the great advice, and see you all around here, I'm sure! 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+LS650 Posted February 16, 2020 Share Posted February 16, 2020 On 2/12/2020 at 1:50 PM, LinkYoungPS said: I've heard that the system is pretty fragile I don't think that's true. I find that most of the pre-NES consoles are quite sturdy and are still working great after 40 years if they are treated with respect. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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