(Part 3) Top products from r/consolerepair

Is it necessary to clean up flux? Almost never. Is it a good idea to do it anyway? I'd say so. Here's a good article about all things solder and flux to bring you up to speed.

Flux is SUPER carcinogenic, or so I've been lead to believe, and it also causes serious gastrointestinal issues if ingested, in even relatively small amounts. I generally try to leave all the circuit boards I work on clean of big globs of flux, but I'm no perfectionist. Flux is non-conductive, so don't worry if you leave a bunch behind or it looks like the flux might be bridging a connection. I oftentimes leave smaller flux contamination spots on the board, unless it's in a spot where I'd be likely to touch next time I'm handling the board.

Here's a pretty good soldering iron, the Hakko FX-888. It's more than enough iron to last you through all your projects in the foreseeable future, and it comes with extra tips and a tip cleaning canister. To be honest, though, it's pretty expensive, and I totally understand if it's out of your price range. Personally, I use a Chinese clone, which works extremely well, for what I paid for it.

I'd also recommend anyone working on anything with a soldering iron to get a set of helping hands. Finding one which isn't broken or of shit quality is a real crapshoot, but, once you have one that works, you'll wonder how you ever got by without one. Personally, I recommend spending the cash to get one with some sort of LED built in, but here's a link to a cheap and functional set of helping hands.

If you're going to be desoldering things often (or trying to make beautiful solder joints), you definitely want to get yourself some desoldering braid, which is just stranded copper wire filled with flux paste. When you put heat to the top of the braid and put the bottom of the braid on the component, the braid will wick excess solder from the component. Once you master using this stuff, it's a real boon for disassembly (or cleanup of solder blobs). You might also want to look into a desoldering pump, which is okay for some things, but not nearly as versatile as desoldering braid.

Last, but certainly not least, is having the right solder for the job. Personally, I use silver bearing solder, because I've been told it is more resistant to cold joints, and slightly more conductive. Here's a link to a spool of silver bearing solder, which I'd buy, were I in the market for a new spool.

One more link for you... When I was looking for a link to that Chinese clone soldering station, I stumbled on this DIY SMD soldering practice kit. Might be worth your time to invest in one and try your luck. For $2, it's a great way to go from soldering zero to soldering hero in a day or two. Also, check this page for more DIY kit ideas.

Let me know if you have any more questions! My inbox is always available, if you'd feel more comfortable PM'ing me questions, too. (That goes for anyone who needs a hand, not just /u/websurferathome)

Awesome! Great video, thanks for doing that. Now I have something to link people to when I bring it up. Two tips:

To get the alignment of the connector and drawer mechanism perfect on the first try, you plug the 72pin connector into the mainboard and then set the drawer in place on top of it. You screw in the 6 screws, but only a couple turns to get them started. Then insert a cart and lock it down into place like you were going to boot the system up. This aligns everything naturally. With the cart still locked down into place, tighten up all 6 screws and you're done.

To clean carts that you've cleaned a dozen times but still don't work, you need a brass brush. Brass is a nice soft metal (you probably have a brass soldering iron tip cleaner) that works great at cleaning other metals. Spray the contacts down with some of that cleaner you've got, and then scrub back and forth across the pins. Don't be afraid to apply some pressure. This roughs up the surface of the goldfingers, removing all sorts of oxidized crap that alcohol and even contact cleaner can't dissolve. I had one Intellivision cartridge from the 1970s that was so corroded I didn't think it would ever boot, but came right back to life after a brushing. Here's a link to some brushes I bought on Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/TEKTON-7064-Mini-Brush-3-Piece/dp/B0037UUZRS/ (The nylon one is great for cleaning console exteriors, and the steel one can be used to clean your BBQ grill.)

As a side note, it doesn't matter if the connector sits on the bottom the whole time. The surface temperature of the bottom of a pan full of water boiling at 100C is going to be within a couple degrees of 100C itself. Sort of counter-intuitive. You'd expect the pan bottom to be really hot, but it's not. There's actually a fun science fair thing you can do that shows this in action: boiling water in a paper cup. Check it out: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I9gKzea3Cno

I don't know about making repro crats, but I do know about mods and repairs. I have done an overclock mod and 2 s-video mods on my genesis consoles, as well as lots of repairs on other consoles.

I have the basic tools like screw drivers, needle-nose pliers, and some tiny cutters just like these.

My soldering iron is a cheap 35 watt fixed temperature hunk of crap. Get a better one. I don't have any recommendations, but this one is linked to from this subreddit's sidebar. It has good reviews, but I haven't tried it myself.

I also have a spool of thin rosin core solder that is about 1mm thick. I also have a spool of de-solder wick which comes in handy.

To hold down and/or secure wires I use some rubbery electrical tape or hot glue. I use the electrical tape whenever I can, since it is easier to remove than the hot glue. The hot glue is useful in small amounts to keep wires from getting accidentally pulled out of place.

A multimeter is very useful. You probably won't need a really fancy one, just a basic $10 one.

I bought one of those parallel cables that all the old printer's used for only $1.99 at a thrift store. It's packed with different colored wires, that are just the right thickness to use for most console repairs/mods.

Since everyone caught the leaded vs non-leaded error I won't even mention it.
However, I'm just gonna nip one thing I did catch in my read-through right now:

> Fast drying WD40 can also be somewhat useful for cleaning PCB’s.

I really hope you're referring to WD's line of electrical contact cleaner here, and not plain ol' WD-40 lubricant. Should probably make that a bit more clear so newcomers don't assume you're referring to plain WD-40.
Do not ever put standard WD-40 on your PCBs or components, it is oil-based and can eat plastic and rubber components if left to sit.

To add in/on/around:

• Craft knife works for cutting traces wonderfully. However, my favorite scraping tool ever for exposing a trace for soldering is a decent fiberglass pen/scratch brush (like this one), does the job fast and clean, and generally easy cleanup. Just be gentle when scraping.
  
• Q-Tips are cheap and do the job well, but if you want to be 100% clean go for some lint-free swabs and wipes when you clean up your PCB and joints.
  
  Fantastic little batch of starter info here, though it could use some formatting work. Mods, pls sticky/pin this.

I'm still amazed that nobody ever mentions the most effective way to clean contacts on a PCB: Scratch Pen (aka Fiberglass Pen / Pencil)

$6-8USD on Amazon.

Better than brasso. Better than sandpaper. Better than pink eraser. Better than isopropyl. Better than vinegar. These are all effective solutions to restore conductivity to corroded/worn pins/teeth, but for about the same price as a bottle of most of those liquids you can get something that works better, faster, and with less mess.

I suggest a quick isopropyl wipedown after using a scratch pen, just to pick up any metal dust left behind, but you can also use compressed air or a dry cloth if you want.

Wouldn't help too much. I'd just recommend going through the above steps.

Also, rubbing alcohol and a nice fiberglass pencil can help as well in some cases.

Something like:
https://www.amazon.com/Scratch-Brush-Fiberglass-Colors-vary/dp/B0019V18D2/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1484439545&sr=8-1&keywords=fiberglass+pencil

As someone who has gotten into doing this over the last three years or so, my best recommendation is to start with a decent temperature-controlled soldering station.

I started with a $10 kit that included a cheap pencil iron, stand, small amount of solder, desoldering pump and desoldering wick. I thought it would be a good place to start but it was horrible and taught me more bad habits than anything else. Most of the time, it couldn't get hot enough to melt the solder either.

I'm not saying you have to spend a lot of money, I'm just saying if you go as cheap as possible, you'll just end up wasting that money when you inevitably find that you need a real soldering station. I got the Aoyue 936 (don't ask me how to pronounce that brand name, way too many vowels) and absolutely love it. I got it for $40 when Fry's had a sale on it but it's worth the $50 Amazon is asking. Pick up one of those brass wire sponges to go with it, they're much better at cleaning your iron than the traditional damp sponge and keep the iron hot at the same time.

Good luck!

I'm in the US so this is 120V, but 3 years ago I upgraded from a Radio Shack branded iron to this guy:

http://www.amazon.com/Stahl-Tools-SSVT-Temperature-Soldering/dp/B0029N70WM/ref=sr_1_1?s=hi&ie=UTF8&qid=1463154858&sr=1-1&keywords=stahl+soldering+iron

I also got these tips as the one they gave me was not fine enough:

http://www.amazon.com/Stahl-Tools-SSRT-Soldering-STSSVT/dp/B0029N91Q0/ref=sr_1_2?s=hi&ie=UTF8&qid=1463154858&sr=1-2&keywords=stahl+soldering+iron

I've done quite a bit of repair and modification with it, not the best iron out there by any means but for the price a great entry point for beginners and more advanced users.

Its kinda specialized. The bottom of the fan has tabs that hold it steady on case.
There is this one people like to use. But you will have two openings on bottom of case

Nexus 70mm Real Silent Case Fan https://www.amazon.com/dp/B003PNLRLU/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_KjxZDbC479WHB

I found something like https://www.amazon.ca/Retro-Bit-Power-Adapter-Black-Nintendo-Consoles/dp/B001S2VT6I/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=Retro+Bit+Universal+3+in+1&qid=1570125648&s=gateway&sr=8-1


Anyone have experience with these?

Depends on the plastic. If you are referencing automotive lubes then yea dont use lithium grease for auto plastics. But for the plastics in analog sticks, it should be fine.
Personally I use this for my game stuff.

You could drill it out if you're careful. There may still be some edges on the head even if it appears to be round, you could try placing a rubber band between the screw head and your bit, that can sometimes give you just enough traction to work the screw loose. You could also buy something like this: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Boa-Grabit-Damaged-Screw-Remover/dp/B00096JDL2 They are great additions to your toolkit, but they won't work with GameBit screws.

Nintendo RVL-002 Wii AC Power Adapter - Bulk Packaging https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0033QISHU/ref=cm_sw_r_other_apa_saLHybPDAWH83

Here we gooooo!!!

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000I45Y8Q/ref=pd_lpo_k2_dp_sr_3?pf_rd_p=486539851&pf_rd_s=lpo-top-stripe-1&pf_rd_t=201&pf_rd_i=B000P0TZ5G&pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_r=1GK1PEGVBH90WXJPVFS0

I used this and put it in the sun for about 4 hours wrapped in plastic wrap. L'Oreal Oreor Creme 40 Volume... https://www.amazon.com/dp/B000A3ZN7W?ref=ppx_pop_mob_ap_share

You can try screw extractors, depending on the size of the screw. http://www.amazon.com/Alden-8440P-Grabit-Damaged-Extractor/dp/B001A4CWHO/ref=sr_1_1/187-8195755-9660224?ie=UTF8&qid=1406149736&sr=8-1&keywords=screw+extractor

I have a different disc cleaner and it leaves swirls all over the discs. These swirls does not appear to affect any of the DVDs I have used it on in any negative way and it has saved a lot of movies for me.

You can also buy replacement batteries for a reasonably low price. http://www.amazon.com/Rechargeable-Replacement-Battery-Pack-Nintendo-DS/dp/B0023UWKJ4

Grab one of these. Copy it all back and you can copy to another mem card. There was a company in the UK that made one too (thought it was Codemasters but I cant find it anymore) that was a cheat system/memory manager that worked the same, but this will do the trick.

*Found it, it was CodeJunkies, only thing is they ship from the UK