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c/antique-tech-supportspencer_rossspencer_ross21d agoProlific Poster

Can we talk about using a hair dryer to fix old game carts?

I see everyone yelling at people to use isopropyl alcohol and q-tips for cleaning NES and SNES games. That works fine for surface dirt, but I had this copy of Mega Man 2 that just refused to boot no matter how many times I cleaned it. After a few days of frustration, I grabbed my wife's hair dryer and gave the cartridge a good 30 second warm up on low heat, then inserted it into the console while it was still warm. Booted right up, every time after that for the last 6 months. The heat helps with the cold solder joints on these old boards that crack from being stored in basements and attics. I still use alcohol for cleaning, but the hair dryer trick saved me from buying a replacement on eBay for $60. Has anyone else tried this for stubborn carts that won't work?
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noahs82
noahs8220d ago
Dude, I absolutely feel your pain on this one, I've been there with a copy of TMNT that just would not cooperate. That hair dryer trick is genius and totally makes sense for those cold solder joints, way cheaper than @jakewhite's Deoxit too.
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jakewhite
jakewhite21d agoTop Commenter
Buy a can of Deoxit, it's better than heat for cleaning corrosion.
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