I finally found my old NES while cleaning out the basement. It had been sitting there in a random box for almost twenty years until i finally found it. It doesn't seem in too bad a shape but the controllers where on the bottom of the box, having been exposed to a minor flooding that occurred a couple of years ago and they look, well, just nasty. I hope i can revive it. Wish me luck!
i'm actually restoring my very first NES, and your video was by FAR the most instrumental video i've found. thank you!!! it's quite a relaxing thing, restoring this old bug. I may even do another one; and because of that, your video has been saved. *subscribed*
Thank you!!! I viewed 2 other videos but this one worked much better than the others. I think the difference is the vinegar bath and the eraser. Better than the sandpaper and brass cleaner recommendations.
I took my original 72 pin connector and with a straightened paper clip, I gently pushed each pin (very time consuming though) but pushed each pin upwards to where they are pressed up against the hard plastic casing of the pin connector. By doing so, games can be inserted and played WITHOUT pushing the game down . You see, pushing the games down was the biggest flaw of the NES. It slowly pushed the pins down creating slight gaps, through time, between the 72 pins and the cartridge pins thus not making proper connection.
I bought a new 72-pin connector like 4 or 5 years ago and its still in great shape. I cleaned all my games around the same time I replaces the pin and I never had a problem since. I keep all my games in clean dust covers and are stored in the original carrying cases they made back in the day. Never have to blow in games again. Totally worth the effort and should last for years to come!
Thanx for this man. I still have my og Nintendo in the drawer of lost consoles, along with all the rest of the oldies but goodies. I'm gonna dig it out and do this to it. Still got a bunch of old games too, including "Mike Tyson's" Punch out and the gold edition Zeldas and Final Fantasy 2 with my 30 year old saved games I beat the game with when I was 10.
Finding that childhood gem and getting it working is a great feeling. I honestly think finding them and getting them working is the most enjoyable part. These system or truly a time capsule of a gone era.
here's how I clean my NES 72 pin connector. First I'll put the 72 pin connector in boiling water for about 15 mins, after the 15 mins clean the connector with rubbing alcohol and put it back in the water, then I'll put 1 1/2/ 2 tablespoons of baking soda in the water, It'll fizz and there will be alot of bubbles but that's normal, leave it for another 15 mins and then take it out, while it's still hot hold the connector with oven mits since it'll be hot and connect/disconnect a clean cartridge about 30 times, after all that's done, bend the pins out with a sowing needle *VERY CAREFULLY* and put it back together. If you do this correctly you will no longer need to push the cartridge down in the system (which is a good thing since that's a major design flaw of the NES) To clean games: First I'll get a Mr.clean magic eraser and soak one corner of it with rubbing alcohol, then take apart the game with a gamebit screw bit and then just scrub the pins down with the alcohol soaked magic eraser, only do this until the pins are clean/ shiny since you could damage it if you go over-kill. I've done this with my NES and all of my games and in September (It's January when I post this) and I can't remember a single time where the game didn't read on the first time. Long story short it works well.
Another very Informative video..ive learnt quite a bit by watching your videos..I too am a retro gamer n want to be able to repair them too..got an Atari 1050 drive and Sega Master system I'm working on ATM:)
You are correct. While I haven't had any issues with the system or games I'd done this way. I've since switched to isopropyl alcohol. I'll be adding an update to the description of this video. Thanks for watching.
You'll only really need a Philips screw driver and maybe a pair of needle nose pliers to take the original NES apart. If you want to open the games themselves you'll need an 3.8mm Security Bit. Good luck restoring that old system.
I looked but couldn't find the video about bypassing the security feature that makes the NES blink. Did you make the video? or is it still upcoming? or not making it? Just curious :) this video was awesome. You were very descriptive and I thoroughly enjoyed it
Great content. I enjoyed it however I do have a comment to make about doing any cleaning with what appeared to be a nylon brush; static build up. I know that humidity levels can have a huge effect on this. Perhaps a clean lint free cloth with IPA is best to prevent any possible static discharge issues.
I would pay someone to do this to my NES. I got it back in 2012 at the flea market with 5 games (but no cables, had extras at home) and a controller for $25. Works perfectly fine but I'd like to clean it, dust it out completely and restore it's original color
This is a very good beginners DIY project. No major diagnostics, component replacement or soldering. I encourage you to give it a shot on your own and if you run into problems, just drop me a message and I'll try and guide you the best I can.
the problem with my NES is the cartridge tray is missing the top metal piece. because of that, the game cartridge is higher then it should, causing it to read wrong sprites.
That's a very interesting take idea. I know Motorola used to put metal plates in the handheld radio units to make them feel more robust. Thanks for watching.
Dang it did it again. I know this isn't a blog format but you seemed pretty knowledgeable and had some cool tricks to that others didn't do. What happened was after I put in Mario 3 I cleaned the best I couldn't my tool wasn't for the cartridge. I took another game out didn't do a clean and all of sudden it started looping. Put Mario back in and that didn't work again. I went online and found another original connector. This time around after installing the new connector should I rip apart every game and clean them fully or do you think the connector is just bad at this point? Any suggestions would be great. Thanks again.
Cleaning every game in your collection is going to greatly improve the reliability of your cleaned NES. Putting dirty games into the clean 72-pin is just re-introducing dirt and grime. I agree that after cleaning or adjusting the original 72-pin, if your having looping errors it's worth getting a new 72-pin. Another culprit to game misfire is the NES10 security chip. If there is not a great connection between the chip on the game and the chip on the NES the game will just rest every second. Bypassing that also allows you to play PAL titles.... hey this might make a good video.
I would suspect PINs as well. I always start with a vinegar soak to clean off corrosion. If your still having issues, try using an angle pick or a safety pin with a bend at the tip and see if you can bend the pins to make better contact. retrofixes.com has a pretty good write up on bending the pins. www.retrofixes.com/2013/07/nintendo-72-pin-connector.html Thanks for watching.
I always assume things like adapters & cables are missing because people threw them in various boxes years ago and lot track of them. All of a sudden retro is popular again and people sell off what ever they can find.
I use straight white vinegar, The Acid will not effect the plastic and really helps clean up the contacts. But I quickly naturalize it with a Baking Soda and water mix. I have been using this method for a few years now and my NES has not had to be re-cleaned. Keep in mind all the games you use in the system need to be clean too. Thank you for watching!
Hey man,, idk if you’ll ever see this but I was wondering if you’d be willing to sell that for maybe $80-90 ? I’m really trynna find an original Nintendo Bc I really miss the enjoyment of playing it as a kid.
The omni-present Tecnolock sees all comments. Nintendo, especially the original entertainment system, has a way of bringing us back to our childhood. When multi-player meant sitting in the same room as someone. Or before internet walkthroughs, when kids would desperately talking to friends at school on how to beat a difficult part. I recommend trying out one of those garage sale apps like "Letgo" or "Offer Up" I frequently see people selling NES setups with controllers and games for around $100. Better yet find one broken and try repairing it. Doing a little extra leg work like hunting it down or repairing it goes a long way in getting that warn nostalgia feeling.
I still have the Nintendo I got way back in the 80's. A good cleaning and vinegar bath was all I needed to breath new life back into it. It's seen tremendous use over the and the tension on the pins is still good. After a good cleaning, inspect each of the pins and see if any are noticeably more depressed then the others. At that point it may be worth leveling out any pins not lining up.
If your cart doesn't work on the first try and you blow into it 7 times and retry 7 times and it does work, why didn't it work on the first 6 blows? What about the next game you want to play has the same problem? Maybe blowing has no effect. Maybe if you tried inserting and pulling out the game a few times without blowing on it, you'd get the same results. ltm (laughing to myself)
I would avoid using anything abrasive on the 72-pin. It may work fine at first but lightly sanding the pins will drastically ware down the plating resulting in the pins corroding/oxidizing quicker. Even after a few years the 72-pin cleaned in this vid is still firing up well and continue to recommend the vinegar bath. I know I used Windex in this video for the initial cleaning but you'd be better off using isopropyl alcohol.
@@Tecnolock I enjoy watching videos, of people that THINK, the actually know how to restore a NES console! SO AMUSING! LMAO! ( So many THINGS NOT TO DO, in this VIDEO!) ; )
@@kingjaekob I appreciate your constructive comment. Thankfully no consoles were harmed during the filming of this video and are still working great. Thanks for the view!
Thank you! To the craft store I go! I'm about to embark on some serious restoration of systems and games. May as well go do the lot of them in one large batch.
I've adopted a few of your methods and added my own. Looks like you've given up on making videos though. I do appreciate the education. You got me started.
Glad you've been able to make some improvements. Actually working an a three part video on repairing and building a Windows 98SE Gaming rig from old scavenged parts. Hope be be able to have part one up by this weekend.
These old systems really hypnotize me too. There is something artistic about doing a lot with a little and that is where these classic counsels shine. Thanks for watching.
No. But I can show you ways to fix cheap systems. If your looking for a deal try personal listings, resale shops and garage sales. I typically look for the ones sold as-is/untested/not working. Good luck and thanks for watching.
Thank you man for the friendly reply. I am looking for a NES, considering buying the mini at the moment. I hope somebody makes upgraded longer cables for it.
Is there a point to listening to your rackmount server that probably serves no purpose? Get real, it's not cool to have a loud rackmount for no reason.
