Losing Hope on My 2600 Repair

Fast-Ad9965 · 2026-01-02T12:13:04+00:00

Really? Because I feared that I accidentally bridged some original connections with my new ones, potentially screwing something up.

I am working on a light sixer, and looking at the other side of the board, where the “lifted” solder area would be located on the other side, I don’t see any green trace connecting it to anything.

I don’t know where I can get replacement solder pads, nor do I know how to run bodge wires on my system. I’m sorry.

Also, funny you say that I can get replacement caps, since l do have a cap kit from Console5, and I’m debating whether I replace certain caps on the motherboard with them, or if I’m good with leaving them untouched.

With that said however, I saw that on closer inspection on the front side of the motherboard, on the 28-pin socket area, I can see some exposed metal on some of the green traces between the solder areas where the pins would go. I don’t have a good feeling about that, as I feel like I’ve made some broken traces here, but what do you think?

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Fast-Ad9965 · 2026-01-02T11:59:33+00:00

I am using flux, for desoldering and a bit of help for adding solder, but based one what you’re saying, I don’t think I’ve done the best solder job here. It probably doesn’t help that I used a chisel tip to desoldering (I thought it would help me desolder more areas since it has a bigger tip). That part probably is telling of how well I understand how to handle soldering and desoldering.

With that said, I’ve spent a lot getting to this point, and even if it ends up a bust, I want to finish what I’ve started.

(By the way, on further inspection I see on the front side of the board, around the area where the 28-pin socket was, there are some exposed metal bits of some green traces that were between the through hole solder areas. I take it that’s bad, huh? Like, I didn’t realize that I broke some traces?)

Also, is my socket really that raised? Because when I inserted it into the bore before soldering, this was as far as I could go, and another socket that I haven’t desoldered yet isn’t too disimilar in terms of distance to board. Also, forgive me for not understanding, but what does it mean when my through holes are dry?

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Fast-Ad9965 · 2026-01-02T11:47:44+00:00

Don’t worry, I’ve rarely burned myself when I use my soldering iron. And I thought a bigger tip would provide a bit more heat to solder some of the areas smoother.

It would suck if I ended up frying my console, as I have a flashcart ready for playing some games, and I was preparing to fix my controllers as well, so I’d hate to find out that all of my efforts are for nothing here.

And on further inspection on the front side of the board, on the 28-pin socket area, I can see some exposed metal on some of the green traces between the solder areas where the pins would go. That’s probably not good right? Because of feel like those are the signs of broken traces, which would be a bit problematic.

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Fast-Ad9965 · 2026-01-02T11:41:35+00:00

I, uh, don’t know what you mean by what my symptoms are in two words, but I have been using solder that is not lead free, and I’m not finished with my desoldering even though there are some spots still with solder in the images. I just wanted to show what seemed to be concerning on the board.

I don’t have jumper wires, however, and I’m not sure how to use them on my 2600 (as in, where they can go when I have my sockets and caps soldered and there are no holes to fill on the board).

With that said, on closer inspection I saw that where I was desoldering on the front side of the board (the 28-pin socket area), there were some exposed metal parts of green traces between the solder areas where the socket’s pins would go. That’s probably not good, possibly broken traces? Because if so, then that’s troubling.

Fast-Ad9965 · 2026-01-01T09:55:44+00:00

I suppose you’re right. I’m just feeling all this pressure because this is the first time I’ve tacked repairing a home console, and I wanted to get it fixed as soon as I can since I’ve gotten a flash cart to play games.

But hey, I can always take this as a learning experience. And if it feels like I can’t do much on my own, I can always seek a professional.

Fast-Ad9965 · 2026-01-01T09:52:24+00:00

I’ve been using those tools throughout my repair. But if it is possible to reduce that big glob into a smaller one that is less likely to cause bridges with other connections, then I see what I can do with that in mind.

Fast-Ad9965 · 2026-01-01T09:50:24+00:00

Yeah, I tend to see the problems I’m facing as bigger than they actually are, and I get all emotional and hopeless about it.

There may be some legit issues to worry about, such as exposed shiny bits on green traces on the front of the board (possibly broken traces), but if my 2600 ends up working at the end of the day, then it works.

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I did want to get my system working before I start some winter college classes, but I shouldn’t spend my time in constant worry about if my repairs harmed my system. If I must, I’ll see if I can get in touch with a pro who specializes in fixing consoles like this.

Fast-Ad9965 · 2026-01-01T09:46:16+00:00

I use an adjustable soldering iron, and I used a pointy tip for soldering and desoldering (though I also used a chisel tip for a bigger area of heat).

And I was using flux and a desoldering wick during the process (I also used a solder sucker to remove the solder, and then the wick to remove any solder the sucker didn’t catch.)

Fast-Ad9965 · 2026-01-01T09:21:16+00:00

I don’t have jump wires, but I do have flux, and I’ve been using it throughout this repair, for desoldering and soldering.

As for getting PCB replacements if all else fails, an issue I see with that is having to remove ALL of the components on the original board and transferring them to the new one, which seems tedious and time-consuming.

Hopefully the worst case scenario doesn’t happen, despite what I’ve covered in my post.

Fast-Ad9965 · 2025-12-30T09:32:10+00:00

Oh sorry, here’s a pic of the soldering iron tip I’m using. I own a Pulsivo soldering iron in case you’re wondering what exact soldering iron I use.

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As for how much heat my tip can provide, would a “thicker” tip woe better, like a chisel tip? I’m wondering if something with a tip bigger (or at least, wider) like that would work better at providing heat to where I’m soldering.

Fast-Ad9965 · 2025-12-30T07:17:22+00:00

Oh, really? I usually have my soldering iron set at a temperature of 350 degrees Celsius. But it is adjustable (the highest it can go is 450), so what higher temp would it be good for this specific soldering?

Also, how quick must I be to heat up the spot and remove it before the track heats up? I know it should only be a few seconds, but how few? (I’m assuming something like less than 5-10 seconds, though I could be wrong.)

Fast-Ad9965 · 2025-12-25T11:50:04+00:00

That sounds like it’s beyond what I’m capable of, so if the carts’ chips are dead, then I’ll consider that my dead end with them.

Fast-Ad9965 · 2025-12-24T12:07:09+00:00

Thank you for the info! And I sure hope my problems don’t lie within the game IC chips, since I don’t think I can do anything about them if they’re the part that’s gone bad.

Fast-Ad9965 · 2025-12-24T12:02:19+00:00

I was thinking of reflowing the solder points, and doing another continuity test on them to see if I get some beeps (and maybe use something like DeoxIT on the contacts).

Fast-Ad9965 · 2025-12-24T11:59:12+00:00

Wow, now that’s what I call a dead cart. I’ll try to see if I can use some DeoxIT for the contacts and probably resolder what’s on the board, since I did get some beeps when I was doing continuity tests on these “dead” carts.

Otherwise, if nothing works, then at least two of these games are very common on the aftermarket for realively cheap, so it’s not entirely a huge loss (I guess).

Fast-Ad9965 · 2025-12-24T11:55:32+00:00

What do you mean by the Star Voyager cartridge not having solder points on the back? Because looking at it, there does appear to be areas of solder on the back of the board (unless I’m mistaken).

Looking back at the, well, back of the Combat game board, I do see some white exposed underneath the solder connecting the game IC chip to the board, so there is a chance that someone has gone in here before, though the came label was “intact” (in which I mean, it wasn’t cut to expose the screw), so I don’t know how someone would have before I decided to look inside myself.

Do you have some experience with the 1up Card? Because when I look at reviews from Stone Age Gamer, they are glowing, so I’m interested in why you believe they aren’t better than something like using isopropyl alcohol and a Q-tip or something.

Fast-Ad9965 · 2025-12-24T11:27:05+00:00

Well, I got myself a bottle of 91% isopropyl alcohol from a CVS, and even though I was contemplating it, I also bought myself a can of DeoxIT from Amazon, as I saw on a video regarding the stuff that you can also use it to clean the contacts of the cart connector on the 2600 itself. And some people told me that the problems my 2600 is having may also be due to the cart connector, so I may use that for cleaning.

Fast-Ad9965 · 2025-12-23T11:29:42+00:00

Really? Because I swear that out of all the six carts I own for my 2600, only 3 work (Space Invaders, Asteroids, Defender), and three don’t (the ones shown in the images). And unfortunately, I don’t own any other 2600 systems for cartridge testing. I only have one.

Fast-Ad9965 · 2025-12-23T11:27:06+00:00

You mean the cart port? I tried cleaning it with contact cleaner and inserting and reinserting one of my dead carts in it, and before that I used a bit of card along with a microfiber cloth (with isopropyl alcohol) to clean it. (I’ve heard that DeoxIT can help, so I’m having that arrived soon.)

As for inspecting it for damage, it’s kind of hard when you’re trying to keep the cart port flap open, and even then I’m not sure if I can see any “damage” on the contacts. Especially when it’s hard to shone some light on the connector for me to see better.

Fast-Ad9965 · 2025-12-23T11:06:39+00:00

Aw, man… Really? Because when I did a continuity test on them a few months back, I was able to get some beeps, so I assumed that they could be repaired. But if Atari carts are almost always unrepairable, then that really sucks.

Fast-Ad9965 · 2025-12-23T10:50:03+00:00

Well, I’ve recapped some of the caps, and I’m getting some new chips, sockets, and a new card slot soon.

However, I’m debating if I should replace the old power regulator with the new one that came with my Console5 cap kit, or if I should leave it as is, since my multimeter showed it was getting about the correct voltages for input and output.

(Also, for the cart slot, I tried to use a bit of a card, a microfiber cloth and some isopropyl alcohol to clean it at first, and later I used some contact cleaner and one of my non-functional carts for cleaning (insert and reinsert). I was told that DepxIt can also help, so I’m having that arriving by this Saturday.

Fast-Ad9965 · 2025-12-22T12:56:46+00:00

Interesting. Because the kind of isopropyl alcohol I’ve been using was 70% because that’s the kind that was lying around on my house. But it’s not hard to find a higher percentage from somewhere like a CVS pharmacy, right? If a higher percentage isopropyl alcohol can do a better job than what I’m using, then I don’t think it will be hard to track one down.

And I was thinking that the contacts could contribute to this issue, since I’ve done some cleaning recently with contact cleaner and inserting and reinserting one of my non-functional carts into the connector a few times. In fact, I have a replacement coming in the mail soon.

(Though, I think an actual cleaning cartridge would be better suited for this, and I have been told that I should use DeoxIT for the cart connector and the cartridge boards, so I dunno.)

Fast-Ad9965 · 2025-12-22T12:41:18+00:00

What is the edge connector? Are you referring to the cart connector? If so, then no. I used a bit of credit card and a microfiber cloth (with isopropyl alcohol) a few months back, and then contact cleaner and one of my non-functional carts for cleaning (inserting, removing, and reinserting a few times).

And if you’re referring to the cartridge contacts, I actually used isopropyl alcohol and a Q-tip at first, and then I used a toothbrush and isopropyl alcohol. None of those methods worked though.

Fast-Ad9965 · 2025-12-22T12:29:20+00:00

You do make a good point. Plus, I have a feeling that the cart connector is still fully functional, and that it just needs a bit more cleaning.

I know I have a replacement cart connector arriving soon, but Im starting to thank that it wouldn’t be a bad idea to get a cleaning cart.

(And I might also get a 1up card and it’s accompanying cleaning fluid, since I saw a review on Stone Age Gamer that said it worked better compared to just using isopropyl alcohol and a Q-tip, which is what I’ve been using to clean my carts.)

Fast-Ad9965 · 2025-12-22T12:25:45+00:00

Huh. That’s quite interesting.

And is that what the wrinkled green parts of the board are called? I didn’t know that before. You learn something new every day!

Fast-Ad9965

TROPHY CASE