Video Game Care 101: Looking after your old disks and cartridges

[Pookiablo]

I've recently began investing a lot of time and money into obtaining old Nintendo 64 games and in most cases, I've had to pick up my items second-hand. Now, sometimes these items, as with anything that has already been used, can come in a condition that is less than ideal.

 

So, after a little looking on the Internet, I came across this great , short video that gives a brief guide of how to clean your games. The demonstrator uses a Nintendo 64 cartridge in the the demo but I'm sure the same can be applied to SNES/MD and possibly even NES games.

 

 

The only part I wasn't too familiar with was the whole "Magic Eraser". I recognise the dude on the packaging but does such an item exist in the UK?

 

Anyway, this could be a great thread for discussion with regards to cleaning and maintaining older gaming items. If anyone has any great tips, advice or info for cleaning controllers, consoles and accessories, share your thoughts!

[Cube]

It looks like the UK version of the Magic Eraser is this

[Emasher]

I just use "Goo Gone". It works just as good as those magic erasers and is somewhat cheaper. I'm not sure if you can get it in the UK though.

[Pookiablo]

Just found a pretty good article entitled "Restore your N64 to its former glory".

 

Link

 

I also emailed Nintendo Customer Services. Supposedly an official cleaning kit was released at the time of release. Otherwise I've asked for their advice on how to best clean my consoles, controllers, games, etc.

 

Using rubbing alcohol and a magic eraser seem to be my best bet at the moment however. I'm thinking that come next payday, purchasing a few cleaning materials may be a worthwhile expenditure. Clean all the cartridges as best as I can - I'm worried that some of them may well stop working sometime soon!

[Pookiablo]

I just use "Goo Gone". It works just as good as those magic erasers and is somewhat cheaper. I'm not sure if you can get it in the UK though.

 

It appears that a few select stores do sell it! Description sounds pretty good and the way that you apply it seems a lot better than spraying the entire cartridge with window cleaner.

 

As far as I can tell, my carts are sticker-free but could do with a general wipe clean from a Magic Eraser. More importantly, I just need to clean the contacts or whatever they're called.

 

The biggest issue is opening up my 64. Would love to give it a full clean as I imagine it's caked in dust. But, I'd be distraught if I wasn't able to successfully put it back together again

[Pookiablo]

After a bit of exploring first-hand yesterday, if you have an old Nintendo 64 memory pak that doesn't appear to be saving any data, you should open it up. Inside you'll find a CR2032 battery. It is possible that replacing this will cause your memory card to function again!

 

Of course, in order to gain me some practice, people are more than welcome to send me their N64 memory paks and I'll replace the battery for them (for a small fee to cover the battery and postage). However, given that these batteries are supposed to last a long time, I doubt they'll die anytime soon, unless you have a crappy third-party memory pak!

[Tellyn]

This seems like the best place to put this... what's the best way to repair discs? I have a few games which have been mistreated by friends, and preowned ones which are in bad condition, such as the copy of Killer7 I just got from eBay.

 

Also, anywhere to buy GameCube game cases (empty ones) to sort out scratched and sticker-y cases?

[Emasher]

A lot of game stores and movie rental stores have disk repair services. I've never tried such a service myself, but I've heard good things.

 

As for gamecube cases, Nintendo used to sell them online, but I don't think they do anymore. The disks will fit into standard DVD cases though, and stickers can easily be removed with the "Goo Gone" product I mentioned earlier.

[Pookiablo]

That's a good point Emasher, although I'm not sure if stores in the UK still offer that service. The only one that might is Gamestation, because I remember it definitely doing so last gen.

 

Otherwise you can buy machines to do so yourself but you'd probably wanna make sure it's okay for GC games before use!

[Tellyn]

As for gamecube cases, Nintendo used to sell them online, but I don't think they do anymore. The disks will fit into standard DVD cases though, and stickers can easily be removed with the "Goo Gone" product I mentioned earlier.

 

There's something nice about the miniature disc space and the memory card space for the GameCube cases, something irreplaceable.

 

That's a good point Emasher, although I'm not sure if stores in the UK still offer that service. The only one that might is Gamestation, because I remember it definitely doing so last gen.

 

Otherwise you can buy machines to do so yourself but you'd probably wanna make sure it's okay for GC games before use!

 

I purchased a Game Doctor thing ages ago for use with the GameCube, the hole is the same size as a normal DVD hole right? Should be fine. I'll take it to Gamestation next time I'm in town.

[nekunando]

There's something nice about the miniature disc space and the memory card space for the GameCube cases, something irreplaceable.

 

I would have to admit to being quite fussy about stuff like this The thought of putting a GC game into a regular DVD is disgusting I would prefer to have everything as it should be.. and Tellyn, it may be possible to find some really cheap Gamecube games in CeX or somewhere similar that may be worth buying just for the cases

 

As for maintaining games, this thread inspired me to clean an N64 game that had been given to me that just didn't work.. Sanfrancisco Rush! I took a damp cotton bud to it the other night and ran it along the connectors and, wouldn't you know it, it played straight away after that I haven't played it before and I'm not expecting an awful lot.. but at least it works now

[Tellyn]

Indeed, there's something great about GameCube cases that just makes regular DVD cases seem kinda flimsy!

 

Just found some official cases (brand new) on eBay, which lots of sellers seem to stock. Here's a link in case anyone else is interested in making their cases look sexy.

 

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/10-X-ORIGINAL-NINTENDO-GAMECUBE-REPLACEMENT-CASES-NEW-/280466805055?cmd=ViewItem&pt=LH_DefaultDomain_3&hash=item414d1fd13f#ht_582wt_911

[Pookiablo]

Opened one of my 64 controllers today and I was shocked at how much shit there was in the small gap where the controller opens up - filthy dirty! Gave it a good clean-out and empty a load of the chalky plastic from the stick. Need to go about fixing the stick later on today or tomorrow though.

[pratty]

I seem to remember someone selling gamecube cases on amazon uk, though if you just wanted spare cases and were't bothered too much about the condition it would probably be cheaper to buy some 99p pre-owned games.

 

How are you going about fixing your N64 control sticks Pookiablo? I thought once he spring had gone they were done, or are you just replacing them?

 

For gamecube controllers replacing the analogue sticks is easy with a little soldering skill, I had two controlers with shot sticks so I swapped the c-stick from one to the other and made one working pad out of two broken ones.

[Cube]

For gamecube controllers replacing the analogue sticks is easy with a little soldering skill, I had two controlers with shot sticks so I swapped the c-stick from one to the other and made one working pad out of two broken ones.

 

Would it work if you put the analogue stick from one controller in place of a C-stick?

[pratty]

Yes it should work, as far as I know they are essentially the same.

 

I assume you don't just mean the detachable thumb sticks but also the analogue mechanisms attached to the circuit boards, in any case both can be moved, providing your soldering is good it should be okay.

 

I've seen some controllers with a additional screw holding the analogue mechanism to the circuit board but I assume that's just for extra stability during the soldering process and not necessary.

 

I've only done this on official controllers, don't know if third party controller sticks would work on an official one and vice versa.

 

Its a useful trick, if you've got 2 controllers then you've essentially got 3, if a stick wears and develops too much play then you can use the second controller, if the same happens to that one you can transplant the working analogue stick onto the first to build a working "third" controller, with spare parts leftover.

 

I also applied a thin layer of vaseline to the lubricate the analogue mechanisms in an effort to prevent future wear to the plastic, though I can't say I'd recommend it as there may be better alternatives, but I've not had any problems so far.

 

There is a two part video on youtube showing how to do the transplant which is where I got the idea from.

 

I have some official N64 controllers with worn sticks so I may try transplanting a third party N64 stick onto one of them.

[Pookiablo]

If people are looking to open up their retro consoles (basically anything pre-Gamecube I believe) - you should buy one of these!

 

 

It's called a Gamebit, and it comes in two sizes, a 3.8mm head and a 4.5mm head, the first being for opening up game cartridges and the second for consoles. On the Nintendo 64 (and SNES and even Mega Drive I believe) - there's some security screws on the bottom which have a funny shaped head - this bad boy will open 'em up!

 

I was able to remove the top off of my newest N64 and fix the reset button (it had jammed). A worthwhile investment as I now intend to open all my consoles and give them a good clean!

 

You can buy 'em off ebay for a tenner (that's with a handle) or about £5 for just the bits!

 

If you'd like me to clean your console for you (just pay the postage to and from), I will do it for you (it's great practice!). PM me if so!