Colecovision cleaning/repairs

[dvdguy]

I got my first Colecovision the other day (never had one as a kid, although my friend across the street did), and it seems to have some of the basic problems that most people run in to. Namely, some carts won't get recognized by the system, others start "freaking out" after they've been running for about 10 minutes or so.

 

Any good tips for cleaning/troubleshooting the CV?

[Famicoman]

I hate that problem. What I did is try to clean the contacts in the console with one of those sandpaperish nail files. It seems to work o.k. for me at least. But I heard many things can cause this problem.

[Bruce Tomlin]

I don't know if you've seen those Naki Eliminator cartridge slot cleaners, but those are pretty good for cleaning cart slots. Basically it's a PCB-thickness piece of plastic with an extra thick piece of Scotch Magic Tape (the kind with the textured surface) wrapped over the end. Open one up and use a pair of scissors to trim to size. You can even use a pencil eraser to clean the cleaner.

 

You could probably get the same effect for free by sticking half a dozen strips of tape over the edge of a dead cartridge board. Have the tape stick out a bit over the sides, then trim with a boxcutter blade.