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Commodore Monitors...Firing Up...


Solomon_Man

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All,

I have a 1701 and a 1084 Commodore Monitor down in my basement.

 

The basement lets just say its unfinished and has in the last year suffered 2 separate failures in the sump pump.

 

When we bought the home the previous owner said he was replacing the pump before he left.

 

I found a new Wayne sump pump box moving in (2015) but found out 3-4 years after I moved in the sump is more than 15 years old and only a meager 1/4 horse (similar to the carcass one (assumed original) I found in the basement).

 

We ended up finding the failed pump and 2 feet of water after I moved my retro collection to our basement.

 

Then about 6 months later we lost our power and guess what it flooded again...LOL. May I add I found both scenarios about a week after the fact. The second scenario almost escaped detection exept the wet area rug gave things away.

 

Luckily everything I have was either in Totes or on tables, not to mentioned sealed in large baggies except for 2 commodore drives (1541 and a newer white one). After dissassembly and a cleaning the drives it appears everything is ok. The 1541 was under water completely for days but the bag it was in kept things semi dry.

 

The goal...I am going through my collection (40 years of stuff), repacking the extra hardware, and trying to build shelving....get stuff better organized etc. Steps toward a game room.

 

I came to the monitors....I recently picked up a Retrotink 2x-pro...so I see these monitors being tested and then sealed in bags/wrapped and placed on shelves. The 1701 was not sealed but on the table. The 1084 was sealed and on a table.

 

Knowing the scenario (wet damp basement), do you think it would be advantageous to open the monitors up and check for corrision before firing them up to test functionality etc? 

 

My guess the 1084 will be fine. The 1701 may be another story.

 

Thanks

Chris

 

 

 

 

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All,

Thanks for the replies.

 

Do you think a quick blast of air on both monitors and maybe Q-Tips with 91% Alcohol on bad areas would work...Or is there something better?

 

I have used WD-40 Electrical/Contact Cleaner with good sucess in the past usually for switches/contacts/small board areas.

 

Do these monitors suffer from Capacitor Issues? 

 

Any good maintenance advice on these old Monitors.

 

Thanks for the help,

Chris

 

 

 

 

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Anything of this age will potentially suffer from cap issues.  I would use a proper electronics cleaner and a soft-bristle tooth brush, or alcohol and cotton swab, and a rinse in distilled water (steam distilled prefered.)  I often use an ultrasonic cleaner with as little cleaner as I can get away with (it is caustic.)

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On 9/9/2020 at 1:30 AM, OLD CS1 said:

Anything of this age will potentially suffer from cap issues.  I would use a proper electronics cleaner and a soft-bristle tooth brush, or alcohol and cotton swab, and a rinse in distilled water (steam distilled prefered.)  I often use an ultrasonic cleaner with as little cleaner as I can get away with (it is caustic.)

All,

The process is very similar to what I have been doing just far on electronic board cleaning.

 

UltraSonic Cleaner was mentioned...been considering one...What is a good size unit for Retro-Activities and what should I look for in a unit?

 

Thanks,

Chris

 

 

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2 hours ago, Solomon_Man said:

UltraSonic Cleaner was mentioned...been considering one...What is a good size unit for Retro-Activities and what should I look for in a unit?

For the simple work I do, I have been able to get away with an el-cheapo unit from Harbor Freight.  Picked it up for under $40.  It is about a 2/3 gallon tank, so it is not terribly big.  I rarely have to do anything big, but when I do I will suspend the board and clean it in sections.

 

What to look for?  Sadly I cannot give very good advice here, either.  You can find a few good tutorials on YouTube, including some from Louis Rossman and Big Clive, among others.  Prices can range from the very cheap, like mine, to far more expensive, like $1,200 and beyond, the type you would find in more professional settings.

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If you are concerned about how fit these monitors are you might make a dim bulb tester to use when plugging them in for the first time (unless you have a variac). You can google dim bulb testers to see what they are and how to build one.  They are super simple.  I learned about them on AudioKarma Where they use them to make turning on questionable or repaired audio gear for the first time so that if they have a short it won’t damage the gear.

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Guys,

Thanks for the info!

 

I will probably pick up a Harbor Freight One...There are 3 within 20 minutes of my place.

 

Looks like the price jumped on the unit even with a 25% off coupon...but still is reasonable.

 

I will let you know what I find out on the monitors.

 

Thanks

Chris

Edited by Solomon_Man
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1 hour ago, Mitkraft said:

If you are concerned about how fit these monitors are you might make a dim bulb tester to use when plugging them in for the first time (unless you have a variac). You can google dim bulb testers to see what they are and how to build one.  They are super simple.  I learned about them on AudioKarma Where they use them to make turning on questionable or repaired audio gear for the first time so that if they have a short it won’t damage the gear.

MitKraft,

Thanks for the tip!

 

I will have to ask my step-dad about this more (seems easy enough in theory and to just create one) as he works on vintage radios all the time. (He was a electrical engineer in the Air force for 20 years and refurbishes/brings back from the scrap heap old/very old radios.) He belongs to some national club etc.

 

I can see where I will use this tool quite often for a couple other projects.

 

Thanks again,

Chris

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21 minutes ago, Solomon_Man said:

Looks like the price jumped on the unit even with a 25% off coupon...but still is reasonable.

You might get lucky.  I have found that the price listed for items on the website is often higher than that in the store -- including the UC.

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