MAKE YOUR NES RUN BETTER THAN NEW!


By XBJ-9000     8/4/2003


Ok, as you may already have found, the most common reason for an NES to fail
(blinking screen, scrambled graphics, game hangs during play etc.) is NOT dirt,
but rather the poorly designed 72-pin connector.  This, of course, is the part 
inside the NES that games plug into.  The connector tabs will wear out with 
time and no longer make solid contact with the game.  A popular approach to 
this problem is to take apart the NES, remove the 72-pin connector and:

   A) replace it with a new one, or 
   B) bend the metal tabs so that they once again make good contact

A new 72-pin connector often costs $10+.  And even a new connector will also
eventually wear out.  Many people who advise simply bending the tabs back
into place seem to have limited success.  I think this is because you can really
only get at the lower tabs, and you may not even be able to see the upper ones
without some effort.  I think most people only bother to bend the lower tabs,
and assume the upper ones can't be reached.  But it IS possible to bend every 
single tab back into a tight position.  In fact, far tighter than they were 
even when brand new!  My NES will now run games without even having to 
push the game into the down position!

 You will need:

1 Phillips screw-driver

1 large safety-pin (about 1.5 inches closed)

and..  some patience

First, flip the NES upside-down and remove the 6 screws that hold it together.
Turn the NES back over and remove the top.  You will notice some sheet-metal.
Next, locate and remove the screws that hold the metal shield in place.  
Remove the metal shield.  You should now be able to see the black plastic 
game-slot and some of the mother-board underneath.  You should also see a 
metal 'box' at the rear right corner of the NES, with the audio/video outputs.
Remove the 6 screws that hold the game-slot in place, as well as the 2 screws 
that hold the audio/video box.  Note that 2 of the game-slot screws are 
longer than the rest.  Remember which ones!  You should now be able to 
partially lift the mother-board out of the NES enclosure.  Lift it out a bit
and gently slide the game-slot toward the front of the NES and remove it.
You should now be able to clearly see the actual 72-pin connector.  Gently 
pull it back and off of the mother-board.  You now have full access to the 
72-pin connector!  Take this opportunity to clean it with an old tooth-brush 
and some rubbing alcohol.

Now, you'll need a comfy seat and a bright lamp.  Maybe even some magnification
goggles or something.  Study the part of the connector that the game actually 
slides into.  You will notice that the lower tabs are easy to see, but the upper
tabs are almost completely hidden.  It should look something like this:
___________________________________________
 _I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_I_     <-- ignore these square holes!
Im-m-m-m-m-m-m-m-m-m-m-m-m-m-m-m-m-m-m-m-m-mI    <-- 'm'= lower tab

Look carefully into the slot where the actual game-chip goes, NOT the row of 
square holes above the slot.  With some good light, you should be able to see 
the upper tabs, which are farther back than the lower tabs.
  
Now, take your safety-pin and carefully slide it into the slot.  You should be 
able to angle the safety-pin and slide it behind the first upper tab.  Lever
it straight down, then gently remove the safety-pin.  Examine what you have done. 
Does the tab now seem to hang down much lower than the other ones?  If so, move 
on to the next tab, and so on, until you have completed the top row.  This can 
take some time and patience, as the tabs are hard to see without a light shining 
directly into the slot.  

Now that you have the hard part out of the way, it's time to do the bottom tabs.
These are done in the same way as the top, but it should be much easier to see 
what you're doing.  

When you have bent all of the tabs, check to make sure none of them are too 
crooked.  You don't want the tabs to overlap or touch the wrong connections
on your games.  If all is well, put the NES back together the same way you took 
it apart.  Your NES should now work like new, although you may have to put a 
cleaning kit in and out a few times to 'warm it up' and scrape away any remaining
dirt and corrosion.  After that you may find that the tabs are so snug you don't
even need to press the game down!  If there are still problems, it's almost
certainly because of dirt on your game.  Clean it with a Q-tip and some alcohol. 
In any event, it should work MUCH better than before.

Now's the fun part!  Play your games without a half-hour of cleaning and wiggling
the game from side to side!  YAY!!!

XBJ-9000

xbj9000@satanist.net

(XBJ-9000 is NOT responsible if you break your 72-pin connector or any other
  part of your Nintendo Entertainment System.  XBJ-9000 is in no way associated
  with any branch of Nintendo...  or Q-tips...)