I have seen many people ask how to open a homecart, the search engine will return some results but I have not seen an indepth guide. Therefore.....
SSSensei's guide to opening a homecart WITHOUT a screwdriver (doesn't work all the time)
(I will not be held responsible for any damage you apes do to your homecarts, try at your own risk)
The biggest danger by using a screwdriver to pry open the clips is they may break off, or you will wind up scratching your cart.
This is a way to open your cart without damaging the label. Again, be VERY CAREFUL. Practice on a cheap old homecart first.
There are a total of seven clips holding a homecart together. I have numbered only the ones that concern you. The seventh is located directly at the top middle of the label.
It is important to note that the clips are actually a part of side A (the top). They latch into B (the bottom).
I recommend you do this sitting down, so you can press the cart into your chest. A strong firm grip is required for this.
-Start at the bottom near the contacts. You will start with clip 1. Using your left thumb push down on side A (area above the line for clip 1, on the bottom of the cart) Using your other hand try to reach in the area near the contacts and carefully pull up and out on side B (area below line for clip 1 on the bottom of the cart) If you can successfully seprate the two sides enough the clip should pop out.
- Use the above procedure for clip 2 as well
- Note the two dashed circles in the picture, if you have successfully gotten clips 1 and 2 unlocked, look inside the cart through the contact area. You should see what looks like two cylinders. These are actually glued together. Gently pull up on A and see if you can get them to come undone, if the glue is too strong you will have to wedge a screwdriver in there and pry them apart. These cylinders keep the PCBs in place.
- As for the rest of the clips, alternate sides until you get to the top. Again, pushing A down and lifting up on B. Go from 3 to 4 to 5 to 6.
- If you manage to get all clips undone and the cylinders seperated, the top part with the label should act as a hinge. WHEN OPENING THE CART, USE ONLY THE SMALLEST ANGLE SO YOU CAN GET TO THE PCBS. Otherwise your label could crease, crack etc....
-As for the inside of the cart, you should be able to figure out how the PCBs are sitting in there. When you are done messing around and ready to close the cart. Make sure everything is aligned and carefully start pushing the clips back into place. If done correctly everything should pop back into place nicely, and your cart should look the same as it did when you started.
