Colecovision restoration

[Bobby Nelson]

Here's a story of redemption to warm your hearts. Back in October (2019) I was browsing a local online auction company's website and saw a lot listed as a "Calecovision". The first 2 pics are from that auction site. You can get an idea of the very poor, filthy state this thing was in. 

I never had a Colecovision so wasn't sure if I'd be interested but I threw a bid on it and as luck would have it, I won. It had been sitting since then but a few weeks ago I felt it was time to dig into this thing!

The next photos depict the condition it was in and also show some before and after pics. Every nook and cranny of this system was caked in layers of dust, dirt, and grime. It took HOURS to deep clean it. Note the pic showing how filthy the keypads were (before and after comparison)

 

All in all here's what I did:

-Disassemble and deep clean everywhere inside and out.

-New electrolytic capacitors.

-Installed a "no-delay" bios chip (allows me to skip the 12 second colecovision intro screen if I so choose)

-Installed a composite AV mod and also installed a TRRS jack for composite output. (I like the TRRS jack method better than having 3 RCA jacks)

-Attached heat sinks to the 8 ram chips that tend to run hot.

-Attached anti-static mod boards to the bottoms of the controller connector ports (the Colecovision has no provisions to protect against static on the controller inputs and that can fry the controller interface chips)

-Removed the original power switch and installed a nice upgrade switch. (Shout out to Crossbow! Thanks Jesse!!!)

- Removed the somewhat awkward joystick "discs" and installed arcade-style ball tips to the controllers. (sourced locally from ACE hardware)

- Deep cleaned the controllers including flushing the buttons with contact cleaner, cleaning the joystick contacts, and soldering all connections (ditching those janky crimp-end connectors).

-The original power supply works fine but I also bought one of the Col USB power supplies.

 

When all was said and done this refurb took between 10-12 hours in total but now this old Colecovision is better than new and as you can see by the last two photos, it's looking great and works beautifully! I've already picked up a few home-brews (I'm LOVING PACAR) and am hooked on Colecovision! Some might think I'm crazy, but I love the original controllers. I'm sure that the ball knob tips and the fact that everything is cleaned and working like new doesn't hurt but I find they are responsive and feel nice.

 

 Thanks for looking/reading along everyone!!

[TPR]

Man that looks great!  I know you posted about this on my Colecovision Lunatics group (or maybe it was Retro Games Fan? 🤔) either way, I love seeing stories like this!  Great work!

 

One question: Do you have a link or a product name for the ball tops you got from ACE?  Would love to know what those actually are and maybe I might want to do the same with some of the controllers I have here!

[Bobby Nelson]

Thanks!! Yup I posted this on RetroGamesFan. 🙂

 

 Here is a link to the knobs: https://www.hillmangroup.com/us/en/Fastening-Solutions/Specialty/Household/Knobs-%26-Handles/Ball-Knob-(1-1-4"-Diameter-x-1-2"-Height-with-5-16"-18-Female-Thread)/p/550KB66

 

  You can get a 2-pack on amazon for a few cents less than what I paid locally (well as long as you get free shipping).

 

  The plastic on the joystick post is soft enough that the brass insert of the knob will cut the threads. You just need to apply some force AND adjust the tilt of the knob as you go (slowly) to make sure it goes on straight. It’s easier than I make it sound. Makes a world of difference!

[Bobby Nelson]

Just an update for those finding this later. Here is a link to McMaster Carr to get the knobs if you can't find them anywhere else:

 

https://www.mcmaster.com/6046k35

 

Also here is a pic from my ACE hardware store with their barcode etc. If you'd like to see if your local ACE hardware can order them for you.        (1-1/4" diameter, 5/16-18 thread.)