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To open an NES system console, you just need a regular phillips screwdriver. The 3.8mm bit allows you to open GAMES (also called cartridges) for the following systems for cleaning: NES - SNES - N64 - Virtual Boy - Game Gear (SEGA) - Gameboy Original and Color but not Advance (see chart). This Nintendo Nut Driver set includes security bit screwdrivers in size 3.8mm and 4.5mm. Extra large handles for ease of use, much easier to use than bits. Allows for opening and internal cleaning of games and consoles as well as battery replacement.
with 47 posters participating, including story authorWriting about the Nintendo Entertainment System's birthday a couple of weeks ago put me in the mood for some retro gaming. I didn't want to dive into the legal grey area that is emulation—my fever can only be cured by the real thing. I wanted to play the original games with the original controllers, so I hopped on eBay and snapped up a few used cartridges to expand my childhood game collection.
What I quickly found is that different vintage game vendors have pretty drastically different ideas of what 'cleaned and tested' means. I've bought 'cleaned and tested' games with connectors caked in dust, coated in tarnish, and (once) partially obscured by a dried up old spider carcass.
Putting dirty games in your console is bad for it, and a dirty console can go on to infect the clean games in your collection. Luckily, with the right tools and an assortment of chemicals, getting these games back into near-new condition is no trouble at all. Here's what you need.
- The right screwdrivers. NES, SNES, Genesis, and other cartridges all use special screws that you can't turn with a Phillips or Torx screwdriver. These are high-quality tools that will open up all of the above carts and more.
- Q-tips. Lots of Q-tips.
- Brass polish. This is a must to remove stubborn tarnish from a cartridge's pins, which is otherwise hard to dislodge. I've had good luck so far with Weiman Brass Polish, which I bought after reading negative reviews of the competing Brasso polish.
- Rubbing alcohol. The higher the concentration of alcohol the better—you need this liquid to clean up the contacts after you scrub them, but you don't want a lot of water in it because it can rust and corrode the pins. Stay away from anything 50 percent or lower.
- A gentle, lint-free cloth. You can use this to wipe the contacts when you're done if you want, or just to keep on-hand in case of spills.
- Some people swear by rubber erasers, which can theoretically be used to rub away stubborn dirt and corrosion without doing damage to the contacts. My experience is that they don't take care of anything the brass polish doesn't and that they leave little bits of eraser everywhere besides, but if you want some they're pretty easy to find.
Our video guide (embedded above) will show you how to open up and clean an NES game in detail, so we recommend watching it if you're nervous about breaking something. Even if you don't regularly open things up to tinker with them, though, this is a fairly simple process.
First, you'll want to use your screwdrivers to open up your cartridge. The number of screws will vary from console to console—an NES game has three—but once you remove them the plastic shell should come apart pretty easily to reveal the printed circuit board inside.
Once you have access to the PCB, dip a Q-tip in some brass polish and scrub it across all of the pins on one side. If there's visible tarnish it should all come up pretty quickly if you apply some elbow grease, but even clean-looking cartridges can dirty up a couple of Q-tips without much trouble.
After you've given the pins a good scrubbing, dip a Q-tip in your rubbing alcohol and mop up the brass polish, and then use a dry Q-tip to wipe up excess alcohol. You'll pick up a bit more residual grime during this part of the process—continue to alternate alcohol-soaked and dry Q-tips until the cotton stops getting dirty.
If your PCB has pins on both sides, flip it over and repeat the process on the other side, making sure to hold the board by its edges since the oils in your skin can corrode the contacts over time. Once you're done and both sides are clean, set the PCB aside (perhaps on your clean, lint-free cloth) and clean the game's plastic shell, paying particular attention to the end that actually connects to your console. Dirt here can come off inside your system, which can then make all of your games dirty again. It's a vicious cycle.
Finally, you're ready to put the PCB back into the plastic and close it back up—the cartridges I've cleaned have all had small plastic retention clips or other things to prevent you from putting the board back inside them the wrong way. When screwing the cartridge shut, be gentle. As soon as the screwdriver stops turning easily, don't tighten the screws any further, since you run the risk of cracking the game's plastic shell.
That's all there is to it! The basic process should be very similar for just about any system that accepts cartridges, from the Atari 2600 to the Sega Game Gear to the Nintendo 64. With properly cleaned cartridges, you'll often find that your old games and consoles are even more reliable than they were when they were new, making it that much easier to pick up fruit in Bubble Bobble or fail to beat Contra.
Further reading
- Nintendo Entertainment System Repair on iFixit
- Solderless battery replacement for NES cartridges on Gamefaqs
- Nintendo NES cart battery replacement guide on TheJobbit