NES repair and cleaning advice.

Well I posted earlier about getting 4 NES consoles and a bunch other stuff to go with them but none came with any AC adapters. I managed to find an original power block that came with the NES 9v 1.3a but one of the prongs is loose so I think it's a bust. I then found another power block that isn't for a NES but it's output was 9v 850ma so I thought it might work because I've seen replacement blocks sold online with the same output.

Well after testing all four NES consoles with one or two games I'm getting the infamous blue flashing screen on 3 of them and a green flashing screen on the other. I don't know if the power blocks ampage being only 850ma might be the problem.

Then again these consoles and games are all pretty dirty so I was hoping someone here might have some experience with cleaning old NES consoles and games, or just electronics in general because if I do take them apart I would like to clean the PCB's as well and not just the connectors. Any info or tips are much appreciated as one of these NES consoles was my grandfathers and I would really like to get it working and would hate to mess it up.

Are they front loaders?
I think the flashing blue screen thing might be from a bad pin connector (which could be replaced) :thot:

And yeah I've seen replacement power supplies that only have the 850mA rating, but I have no idea if that's ok or whatever :shrug:

Hopefully some of the resident NES nerds will see this thread and give you some quality info and tips.

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Originally Posted by deadlegion

Are they front loaders?

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Yup. All for of them are.

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Originally Posted by deadlegion

I think the flashing blue screen thing might be from a bad pin connector (which could be replaced) :thot:

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I didn't even think of that. I guess after 20+ years of use they could be a bit worn. Thanks DL.

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Originally Posted by _Gambit

I didn't even think of that. I guess after 20+ years of use they could be a bit worn. Thanks DL.

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It's a common issue iirc...the pin connector was a cheap part, you might still be able to get a quality replacement on ebay or whatever.

As for cleaning, I wouldn't bother doing anything but blowing them out using a can of gas duster (aka air duster).
But remember to follow the instructions on the can (most have a flammable sort of gas so you'll need to have the device disconnected from power).
No need to clean everything fastidiously if the connector is the problem.

Well so far so good! Got 1 of the 4 kinda working :wacko:

Cleaned the contacts on the board with Brasso and cleaned the 72 pin connector (after bending the pins slightly) using a game, the Brasso, and some alcohol.

Works like a champ! But only when the game isn't pushed down :thot:

All the guides I read mentioned a black tab on the game carriage that needs to be underneath the motherboard but I pretty sure I did that correctly.

Here's a picture of my NES and what I'm pretty sure is the tab mentioned.

Spoiler warning:

Attachment 36975

Is there anything else that might cause this?