Colecovision controllers

[punkoffgirl]

Anyone know anything about these?
As in, how to take them apart & clean/repair them if necessary?
We have a TON of 'em, and hardly any of them work correctly. I'm assuming that, for the most part, they've gotten dirty over the years and just need some cleaning, but they might have broken parts too..
Help?

[omnedon]

yes.

They absolutely SUCK to work on. Often, the metal contact switches for direction are literally broken in two. These can be soldered out and replaced with one from a donor controller. If they are not broken, sometimes the contact surfaces can be gently sanded with a thin strip of sandpaper to improve performance.

Sometimes the side button switches are worn out, and these are nigh impossible to replace (as far as I have figured). If that is the case, it's a good parts donor controller.

They keypads can be pulled out and replaced with one from a donor. Tears and cigarette burns begone!

Some cable can be replaced without soldering, and some require soldering. Depends on when manufactured I think.

When all is said and done, and it's fixed, they still kinda suck. I find diagonal directions are hard to input consistently. I love the CV, but I hate the stock controllers. So, yes, they are often repairable. One can at least make a couple on mint looking ones this way too, by replacing dented/ missing chrome stick caps, cracked housings, and damaged keypads.

Mine look new. :P

[punkoffgirl]

So, does anyone have, or know where I can find, schematics for the inside of these controllers?
We have enough of them that I could just use a few to play guinea pig, but if I had something to follow along with, it would help a lot.

[omnedon]

They are quite simple inside, though difficult to work on. Never seen a schmatic for one.

Start with the ugiest one.

[xertcev]

I took this one apart years ago, said "Screw It" and then just threw it in a ZipLock.
http://home.mchsi.com/~lindner24/coleco.jpg
I think usually, and in this case, the directional switches break in half.

That's the best advice...(above)
Take them all apart and use the best parts to build a couple good ones. Hopefully.
Once you take it apart you can usually find the problem visually.
Multimeters are handy too. You can get a cheap one at radio shack, get one with a continuity tester. (It Beeps when current flows)

[zektor]

They are really not that bad to take apart. I have taken mine apart quite a few times. A while back I received some off a friend and the buttons would not respond (left and right triggers) and after a good cleaning they worked great. When you unscrew the controllers, you dont have to unscrew that very middle screw in the back. That is the screw that is holding the mainboard in place. When you unscrew the others, you just have to play with it a bit to get it open. Some are easy, some are a pain. Once you do, compressed air helps...ALOT. Simply blowing on the contacts made the majority of my controllers work! If the trigger buttons stick, try a little wd-40 right in the metal square shaped slot on the mainboard next to each button. I do stress tho, A LITTLE. I don't think it screws anything up, but I remember I put too much on and while plaing I realized my thumb and pointer finger were covered in wd-40