anything i need to know before replacing NES connector

[Capybara554321]

just wondering since i newver done it before and was wondering if there is anything special i need to know

[Jibbajaba]

Why are you replacing your connector? Why not just refurbish the original part in your NES? I tried a replacement connector and was sorely disappointed. In my opinion, connector refurbishment is the way to go.

Chris

[Capybara554321]

well its my girlfriends sisters boyfriends and they already have the connector but how would i go about refurbing it

[Carey85]

There are plenty of tutorial on the internet. It mainly consists of sanding the contacts on the connector with a fine grit sandpaper and bending the contacts back into their original location. One of the problems with the ZIF connector on the NES was that with every use of the unit, the pins tended to lose their original location in the connector.

[Trebuken]

huh...refurbish? I have a SharpNES system that needs some help regarding the connector. Never thought it could be refurbished...sounds less dramatic than repacing it...

Thanks,
Trebuken

[videogameoverdose]

<joke>Did your girlfriends sister's boyfriends brothers nephews monkey uncle get the generic replacement 72 pin connector or the Brand New, Better Than Ever, High Fallutin, Whizz Bang, Can't Possibly Get Any Better Than This, Pin Connector To End All Pin Connectors, Will Work A Lifetime, Never Needs Replacement Because It's Just that Good, GOLD PLATED one?</joke>

I was just wondering

[StakeRaiser]

I've yet to find one that wouldn't wear out after a while, even the Gold ones, though those do seem to last a lot longer

[intelli78]

Just last night, a friend and I opened my NES and bent all the pins back into place. Easy to do, free, and works great! Take a look here for instructions: http://www.classicgaming.com/feature...les/nesrepair/

[johnsmith]

I find that it is better to refurbish an official Nintendo 72-pin connector than it is to replace it with an unofficial third party connector. The official connector can be scrubbed clean, once removed from the system, and then it can have its pins bent to make the connection tighter.

[atomicthumbs]

The only thing you need to know is this... You will NEVER regret doing it! I just did mine a couple of months ago (bought mine from electricquarter.com). I should have done it YEARS ago!

[Slash]

Replacing a 72 pin connector is easy. Even keeping track of where each screw goes is easy. You might need to use a bit of force to get the old connector off of the motherboard and when putting the other on. .

I would keep the old 72 pin connector and try refurbishing it as stated previously. Better than a small screwdriver is a safety pin. Take a small pair of pliers and bend a small 90 degree angle at the end of the pin. It's much easier to fish in the sharp end of the pin and have the small bent portion around the bottom of pin so you can lift the whole pin straight up. With the mini-screwdriver technique it is much harder to diddle it in between the pins and lift them up evenly.

The "Repairing Your NES" guide doesn't mention repositioning the top pins, which could be nessesary with really, really old connectors. Same idea, but you use a screwdriver to push down on the top (through the holes) as well. Be careful doing this, as if you push in through the top too far, the upper pin will get totall borked.

For cleaning the contacts, use metal polish/cleaner. I use MAAS creme http://www.maasinc.com/ . The stuff does wonders on metal, cleans stuff like new.

[videogameoverdose]

This method is a bit crazy.
I used to removed every pin top & bottom, used 2200 grit paper to clean, then re-bent every pin and re-inserted them one by one back into the holder.

It only took 2 1/2 hrs the first time, I got faster (not smarter) after doing about 1/2 dozen spare pin connectors I had from swap outs.

Now I use old dental picks I buy at the swapmeets....it's a LOT faster than the STUPID one by one method I was using for a while.

[SkiDragon]

I just bend the pins and dont really bother cleaning them because they dont look too dirty and they are hard to get at, and mine turn out just fine.