Certainly not an expert, but if a magic eraser is the difference between someone restoring a game and the game ending up in a landfill, I'm 100% team magic eraser. The possibility of some very minor cosmetic scuffs is far better than it living under tons of waste in a landfill.
Any chance the collection of broken games will be sent over to Steve to see if he can fix them? It's great to see you two collaborating with each other to bring vintage games back to life!
The one faded label super Mario game was a classic sun faded flea market glass display case cart. Also I would recommend going over the sharpie writing a few times with a dry erase marker first instead of sanding away the matte surface with the magic eraser.
I used to just dump more IPA on ink/sharpie but I tried dry erase marker on the last couple games I bought and it's magic! It still takes a couple passes but it's way better.
I work at a used game store, and have had a LOT of luck getting stickers off labels with a heat gun! Not the kind you solder with but the ones that are like super strong hair dryers. Hit the sticker with a heat gun just long enough to soften the adhesive and start GENTLY peeling it! Hopefully you can give it a shot some time!
This. This is the pro’s way of removing old stickers and decals from things you don’t want those two things on anymore. It’s much safer to the underlying substrate because you’re effectively just reactivating the PSA, making it simpler to gently pull it away from whatever it’s affixed to with little to no damages made. The key is to pull it off starting from above the most secured section of the original label, working your way out towards the end.
On the magic eraser debate, given I've also happily used it for cleaning: the people who **really** care that much are selling games and want the idea of purity to stick around because it drives up the prices. Just below them is the layer of people who don't realize their opinions are those of selling them. And below them you get into enthusiasts and preservationists, but you show me a jacked up cartridge that doesn't work and you slap a new label on it and clean the pins: it's still in better shape than when you found it.
Why fully submerge the shells? Any damage to the labels will allow water into the label like you see @10:00. It might be slower, but spot cleaning carts with IPA is a safer option to not damage anything further.
People are so sensitive about magic eraser. It's fine, it's like a high grit sandpaper. Don't use it on shiny surfaces or you scratch them or rub it on matte surfaces enough to polish them and you'll be fine. I saw people use actual sandpaper on contact pins that had corrosion and limescale from water damage. ETA: you can brighten splotches on the front, but it's a huge pain - you can just sunfade them. Put masking tape on the rest of the cardridge (the label should have regular paper taped over, so the glue doesn't damage it) and chuck that thing on a windowsill for couple weeks, sometimes months and it will fade from the sun. Not really viable in reselling business as it takes lots of time. If you had ozone generator you could retrobrite without any humidity, that would shorten the process significantly. ETA2: if you can't reach a stain with magic eraser, try Pink Stuff paste or cleaning cream on a toothbrush or cotton swab. Similar products work too, as long as it's at least cream and not liquid. ETA3: You can remove stickers from the label relatively safely using a heat gun. Warm up the sticker until its glue starts to liquify and just gently pull it off. Heat up an wipe off the residue.
I have done something similar. Bought a box of “not working” cart games and cleaned them. In my case, most of them did actually work after. Magic eraser: I’m with you that as long as you’re careful with it, it’s fine. My goal for restoring anything is making it look a close to original as possible. Speaking of: nice SNES Jr
6:26 when my grandmother worked at a college library in the 80s/90s, they put metal strips in the spines of the books that let them check the books out (so that you wouldn’t set the alarm off). Those labels look similar, if a bit smaller, so perhaps it was a rental game at one point?
There was a site I found quite a while ago that had every cartridge label, especially SNES, to scale and you can take the PDF on a thumb drive to staples and they will print the label on 12pt gloss and cut it for you. It’s fairly cheap.
That is awesome to hear I would love to know the site as I have a working Super Mario Bros 2 NES but the shell is really damaged and was held together by tape.
I’ve always used brasso applied/removed with cotton swab then finished removing any brasso residual with cotton ball & 90+ % isopropyl alcohol. Removing residuals is a must or cause buildup on the console’s contacts. Also note: a hair dryer works well with removing stickers from cartridge labels.
Bestine (heptane) is so awesome at cleaning sticker residue without damaging plastic texture or glossy labels. Works good at removing ink and stains, and works really well at removing Sharpie when combined with a dry erase marker.
Love the Magic Eraser. It removes the layer of oxidation on the pins with the Deoxit. For the matte surfaces, I go over it again with Meguiars Plastx polisher. It repairs the microscratches from the magic eraser. Like any of the tools, just use it responsibly.
Yeah I recently sold some games that I got from my grandma back when she worked at stop and shop, which had a games rental in the grocery store, they often had the void stickers and permanent marker on them
If you need to remove residue from stickers, try orange oil. It's much more effective than alcohol. Every sticker removal product you can buy from Amazon is based on orange oil. It's similar to mineral turpentine, but less aggressive, smells better and won't damage plastics or metal of any kind. It is irritating by skin contact, but it is not toxic and in diluted form it is even approved as a food additive. It is extracted from the peel of the bitter orange and it does indeed smell like orange peel.
For sticking labels with less chance of permanent superglue mess: Glue sticks! I use a glue stick in combination with toothpicks to deposit the adhesive under the label.
Those extra pins on the Starfox cart are for the enhancement chip in the cart, the one in that one being the Super FX chip, which gives the game a 3d look.
It's a long shot, but I've successfully transplanted cart labels using a hair dryer and rubbing alcohol to loosen the adhesive. The tricky part is going slow enough to keep from ruining the label. Even then, it's not always a guarantee.
I found a copy of Mario Paint for 100 Yen (basically nothing) labeled as broken in a thrift store in Japan once, as well as the SFC mouse. I took it home, cleaned it and it ran perfectly!
With a lot of patience you can remove the good Mario label, clean the bad label completely of and stick the good one on that cartridge. The security label at the end would come of when you use IPA and a cotton stick, but on that point you also need patience and work slowly to prevent damaging the label.
No problem with magic eraser but don’t submerge any shells in water. There are easier solutions with better results. I wouldnt call the other 5 not working, I can almost guarantee it’s a simple fix.
I have a copy of Super Mario World with a blue Yoshi. It's thought that the Cyan in the printer ran out, so that is a cool find if you can find a working board to put in there.
I've found when things get sunfaded, the blue ink tends to linger longer while the red and green fade away first. I think the "blue yoshi" cart spent a lot of time on a flea market table at some point and faded a good bit (the label itself even looks lighter than the OG one).
I’ve dropped goo gone for bestine; just as effective and not oily, so it doesn’t seep into labels. I’ve used 0000 grit steel wool for the last decade and never had a problem damaging carts. You’d really have to go wild on the contacts to cause damage. I’ve tried even less abrasive (like magic eraser) but they don’t seem to be strong enough for the dirtier cart connectors. I have no problem using magic eraser for the shell, though I try to keep it at a light touch. Dunking in water is a big no no for me; a damp rag and tooth brush is usually good enough 90% of the time. You can really see the unnecessary water damage on the back of the chess master cart. The color difference is SMW is sun damage. Probably from sitting out at a flea market for years during the early 2000s. Finally, super glue is way overkill and it’s going to leave nasty residue. Use a nice water based archival glue (like what scrapbookers use), wipe away the squeeze out, and hold down with your fingers until it sets up.
little tip for removing stickers from labels. Tip a can of compressed air on its head & spray the sticker you want to remove till it ices over. It will freeze the glue & make it brittle & break away. Then carefully pull up on the edge of the sticker. Don't spray the label itself if you can help it. Any residual goop left. You can remove with a bit of goo gone.
As far as the magic eraser goes, I tend to use it on a “worst-case scenario” basis, which doesn’t tend to happen to me all too much. Also, the John Madden games date all the way back to 1988 on the Apple II surprisingly! I learned that just today actually. 😅
When I clean the shells of carts I use baby wipes, Qtip's and IPA and a tooth picks. If the games used to be old Rentals I try to save the stickers and put them on the inside of the cart to save that it used to be a rental game
you can transfer good labels to other carts using low heat and low steam from an iron, you have to be careful not to over saturate them though. some people use a heat gun but I find it's too easy to accidentally cause damage and steam temp is just right. you can also breath on them and slowly peel but it's very very slow and takes practice to do right without damaging the label. good to find already ruined labels to practice on for both. the idea is to get as much of the adhesive to come with the label as possible so it'll restick well. these techniques also work for removing stickers with less risk of damaging lables and a slow and even peel is the key
After seen the Star Fox board, and been an SNES game collector, i am pretty sure that the one you have is a reproduction, since it doesn't have the same type of chips as all the other games shown. You should investigate further about it if you can. Good work on keeping all this games alive. SNES is a fantastic platform and should be preserve.
I find this very enjoyable. I also cleaned my second-hand GBC collection, they were listed as junk/not tested. A lot of them just needed a little bit of contact cleaner to work. All turned out working fine. I didn't bother checking the battery though since they are Japanese copies, I won't understand a thing from the game.
Consider using these tips for future cartridge cleaning: 1. If you're already opening the cartridge, use a white/vinyl eraser. It works equally as well, with way less steps and time taken. 2. Never submerge the label portion of a cartridge in water. The label will get moisture underneath it, causing irreversible wrinkling/bubbling. Instead, use a toothbrush to apply and scrub soapy water or surface cleaner onto your cartridges to remove dirt. 3. Something as simple as paper towel can remove the texture of a cartridge, so no matter how soft you press with a Magic Eraser, you will definitely be wearing the plastic away. A smooth section on a cartridge can look just as bad as having marker there, so just don't use them. 4. While it can be useful for older sticker glue, try not to use Goo Gone, especially near labels. It's runny, stains, and leaves a greasy residue that needs to be cleaned off. Lighter fluid, isopropyl alcohol, a hair dryer, or a combination often works just as well. Also, get some plastic razorblades for optimal sticker scraping. 5. Rather than applying solutions/chemicals with a cotton swab, invest in some eyedroppers to help ensure the liquid goes exactly where you want it to. This also allows you to let it soak into stickers or marker before removing it.
As a kid no idea how I worked it out but I used to use an eraser or vinegar, I think the vinegar was because my dad said to use aftershave but I couldn't afford to so used vinegar instead.
The metal strips inside the cartridge shell are a sensormatic strip. If they weren’t magnetized at the checkout they’d activate those gates you’d see beside the doors. Loud noises. Alarms. My uncle used to install them in the carts as they came in, he hated the cartridge based systems because of this. Much easier to install in a movie case than having to unscrew every single cartridge.
For the several carts that did not work, use WD40 contact cleaner (not regular WD40) and spray through the contacts and entire PCB board, let dry, and repeat the same process again to the pins. These games will work.
A tip you may know for removing marker pen is to use a white board marker. Draw over it with whiteboard marker and it should take the old marker pen off. Might be someone has already told you that. Cheers Toy Polloi
Really enjoy your channel. I would not recommend dunking the carts in the water. Avoid getting front and back labels damp as it can seep into the sticker edges or any damaged parts. Just spot clean the plastic and avoid wetting the labels where possible.
I'm a Snes cart collector and I think if you try a few more times, games that didn't work will work. Sometimes they need to be reinserted again and again until you find the right position.
If Star Fox on the SNES is anything like Super Mario Bros Duck Hunt NES it wouldn't surprise that they printed off so many that there are multi authentic motherboards. Because I've seen that type before thought it was a repo only to discover it's real just not a first printing if you will.
This Star Fox game chip is very different from the one I have. Mine is much bigger and has 5 chips (not covered with black stuff) and the tiny capacitor is in the front, not the back.
So the webbing looks like the cacoon for a moth of some type I've seen those before. But this is a very cool video for sure and will be going through them.
I found heating the sticker with a blow dryer softens the glue and leaves little to no residue with removing. Also, denatured alcohol is a bit better at removing the residue and contains no water.
I think a cool quick followup video would be if you guys do sell these games what you actually were able to sell them for to show the audience if it’s worth it to fix stuff like this up and what you might be able to get for your time spent. The other consideration would be how you came to own these and what it cost.
I bet the strips you found inside Super Turrican were from Blockbuster or perhaps a different rental shop. I remember the lock boxes on the rental shells were sometimes cut at the spines and the contents stolen. It would be more work to prep cartridges but those would be a good way to give the cart security if it were removed from the rental case.
As someone new to this, I just want to confirm the process of deoxit pass with a qtip, light buffing with a magic eraser soaked on ipa, and then another pass of deoxit and leave it on?
Submerging those shells in water will still soak in moisture around the very edge of the label, compromising it. Just spray with Windex, use a toothbrush, and wipe with a micro fiber towel. Otherwise fantastic methods on everything else! Keep up the excellent work!
I still remember in the 90s renting SNES games at a video store or Blockbuster. I was so happy because after doing my homework and chores got all excited that I ran to the video store to rent one only for the game to not work. So I returned the game explaining my problem to the video representative. He gave me a new copy and ran fast very happy home and it worked. But if I knew about the game bit screwdriver and cleaned it with a solution it would’ve saved me lots of time. But when I did bought a game and didn’t work I cracked it open and cleaned the chip with 50% isopropyl alcohol. It worked but had to tape it up😂😂😂😂
you see this is just another example of don't assume it's not working for people spoiler below only 5 of the 30 needs a lot more work to get working (assuming they are not too broken) basically some times all it takes is cleaning the pins to get it working. and as for the other 5 just needs more work with replacing parts on the circuit boards.
I tried retrobriting the back of the same Bugs Bunny game cartridge, but instead of losing the yellowing, it turned white. Apparently, you can’t retrobrite SNES cartridges. I saw a similar case online where a Wild Guns attempt also failed.
The metal strips inside that one cartridge are probably a passiv rfid chip. Could be theft prevention of a store but since it's on the inside I would guess that it was part of a library.
Does the liquid mess up or soften the cartridges front and back labels in any way? Obviously leaving it in liquid would but since you are wetting them to be cleaned and then scrubbing clean, any damage or any effect on them?
The labels have a coating that resist water pretty well. The only way the water can soak in is from the very thin edges. I wouldn't wet the labels at all but they are not going to get wavy or peel off from the quick dip.
I don't know too much about cartridges, but aren't the labels just stickers? Can't you soak the cartridges in water for a few hours/overnight and easily peel off the label to get the good cartridges or good labels to replace the ruined duplicates?
No it would destroy them. They are paper with a coating. Not plastic. What could be done is use a hairdryer on the good label to soften the glue and then try to peel it away slowly.
