Opening a MVS cart w/o damaging the label?

breaK

n00b
Joined
Jul 17, 2016
Posts
18
Hi everyone,

I'm new to the MVS biz and I wondered if it's possible to open a MVS cart without bending / folding / damaging the label on top ?

I'm expecting my first cart and I want to take a quick peek inside, what are my options?

Do I even have to open the cart? I've seen that there are (ventilation?) holes on the shell, can I look through those to make it out ??

Thx,
breaK
 

Kid Panda

The Chinese Kid
Joined
Jun 13, 2010
Posts
12,514
You can look through the vents, check for Windows in the middle of the roms. You can open a cart about to a 45 degree angle and pull the boards out.
 

ChuChu Flamingo

We have purposely, trained him wrong, ...as a joke
10 Year Member
Joined
Nov 23, 2010
Posts
2,766
If you are opening to take a peak, might as well clean the contacts the proper way. Use a soft eraser (I use a white one, the type used for art) and rub both sides of the contacts on each of the boards (there are 2). Blow away the eraser debris and finish off with a Q-tip+rubbing alcohol on each side.

just make sure you follow Kidpandas advice to keep the label from creasing.I usually do it enough to just slip the boards in then wiggle until they are sitting properly in the pegs. Additionally, remember which boards go where as they only go one way, and that the hard piece of plastic's fat edge (the divider board for the two boards) is towards the top when putting it back in (when putting it back in the top side of the mvs cart should have the 4 places where you put the screws back in). It's amazing how much dirt,gunk,and minor tarnish can build up on contacts, just cleaned my Magician Lord since its never been properly cleaned ever. Q-tips just weren't doing it justice.
 

breaK

n00b
Joined
Jul 17, 2016
Posts
18
Thank for you the advice, I'll definitly make sure those contacts will shine again :D
 

RabbitTroop

Mayor of Southtown, ,
20 Year Member
Joined
Dec 26, 2000
Posts
13,852
If you are opening to take a peak, might as well clean the contacts the proper way. Use a soft eraser (I use a white one, the type used for art) and rub both sides of the contacts on each of the boards (there are 2). Blow away the eraser debris and finish off with a Q-tip+rubbing alcohol on each side.

just make sure you follow Kidpandas advice to keep the label from creasing.I usually do it enough to just slip the boards in then wiggle until they are sitting properly in the pegs. Additionally, remember which boards go where as they only go one way, and that the hard piece of plastic's fat edge (the divider board for the two boards) is towards the top when putting it back in (when putting it back in the top side of the mvs cart should have the 4 places where you put the screws back in). It's amazing how much dirt,gunk,and minor tarnish can build up on contacts, just cleaned my Magician Lord since its never been properly cleaned ever. Q-tips just weren't doing it justice.

The correct way to clean the contacts is with Deoxit D5, not an eraser. The abrasion from an eraser is definitely removing corrosion, but it also creates a mess and I'm not big on using brute force on sensitive electronics.

Better to use something formulated for removing corrosion from contacts and... Also cleans the Neo's cart slot when used regularly as well :)
 

RabbitTroop

Mayor of Southtown, ,
20 Year Member
Joined
Dec 26, 2000
Posts
13,852
And yes, Deoxit is expensive as fuck, but if you're into retro gaming or other electronics, it's a lifesaver. It's made games play flawlessly that I had almost given up all hope on, and fixed sound and graphic glitches in the most stubborn of Neo Geo carts.

The little oiler bottle will also last a really long time. You're basically running a thin line over the contacts and then rubbing them with a cotton swab, so you're using just the tiniest amounts of this stuff per cleaning. I normally use a high grade alcohol to remove any dirt from a new cart first, just so I'm not wasting Deoxit, then I put on the D5. The gunk that comes off is incredible.
 

ChuChu Flamingo

We have purposely, trained him wrong, ...as a joke
10 Year Member
Joined
Nov 23, 2010
Posts
2,766
Yeah the eraser does leave quite a mess, but I like the results. Not every game needs the eraser though. The eraser I use is the soft white one used for art, the standard pink ones are too hard imo.

I forgot to mention, I also follow up with contact cleaner or rubbing alcohol depending upon the occasion but he may not have that. I usually use a eraser first, then blow away the bits and finish with rubbing alcohol/contact cleaner. Like you, I also use rubbing alcohol first to get the layer off so I don't waste the contact cleaner. It was a pain in the ass to take apart all my NES games to clean them, but it was worth it (I use a AV famicom with an adapter).

What I never got is when people clean their contacts with sandpaper/weimans cooking top cleaner (unless the contacts are really fucked up).
 
Last edited:

ResO

water damaged
20 Year Member
Joined
Jan 8, 2001
Posts
8,000
Yeah the eraser does leave quite a mess, but I like the results. Not every game needs the eraser though. The eraser I use is the soft white one used for art, the standard pink ones are too hard imo.

I forgot to mention, I also follow up with contact cleaner or rubbing alcohol depending upon the occasion but he may not have that. I usually use a eraser first, then blow away the bits and finish with rubbing alcohol/contact cleaner. Like you, I also use rubbing alcohol first to get the layer off so I don't waste the contact cleaner. It was a pain in the ass to take apart all my NES games to clean them, but it was worth it (I use a AV famicom with an adapter).

What I never got is when people clean their contacts with sandpaper/weimans cooking top cleaner (unless the contacts are really fucked up).

Weimans used to be great stuff for the super messed up contacts. It's definitely less harsh than a pink eraser IMO. Sandpaper or brasso is overkill imo & only serves to damage the metal.

Good ol' 91% isopropyl alcohol and some q-tips is all that's needed for the majority of games. I think most people that have issues never clean their cartridge slots, which are 50% of the equation.

Once you clean your slot(s), and always clean every game you buy it before using it in your hardware you should rarely run into issues. (Unless your game itself is corrupted, or your slots are loose)
 

breaK

n00b
Joined
Jul 17, 2016
Posts
18
Weimans used to be great stuff for the super messed up contacts. It's definitely less harsh than a pink eraser IMO. Sandpaper or brasso is overkill imo & only serves to damage the metal.

Good ol' 91% isopropyl alcohol and some q-tips is all that's needed for the majority of games. I think most people that have issues never clean their cartridge slots, which are 50% of the equation.

Once you clean your slot(s), and always clean every game you buy it before using it in your hardware you should rarely run into issues. (Unless your game itself is corrupted, or your slots are loose)

Yeah that's how I did it with all my previous cartridge based consoles and never hat an issue as well.
It should do the job just fine for Neo Geo as well :D
 

Fakk2

Crossed Swords 2 Bootleg Artist.,
Joined
Mar 8, 2004
Posts
1,548
The BEST way for me to do this, for the older games that do not have HOLO labels, is to first try hard to clean the cart off using the clorox wipes, but squeeze the most of the cleaning liquid from them first so it does not get everywhere and damage the label. Clean the cart off real good and when the wipe is about as dry as possible, then clean the label off a little bit at a time, and wipe it on a clean soft cloth just to make sure the moisture from the cleaning wipe does not damage the label, and when the label is as clean as it can get, I use Scotch brand 3/4" Gloss tape, and I line it up perfectly and I apply it to the old style label just right. Once the tape is applied perfectly, apply pressure starting from the middle of the label and press from the middle to the right of the edge and then again from the middle to the left edge of the tape.

Once this is done, you need to take a sharp razor and hold it flat down on the very edge of each edge of the label and pull the excess tape up until it gets the the razor and then press the tape using your fingernail to make sure the tape is firmly on the edge of both side of the label, and then use the razor to cut the tape off where the label ends. Once this is done, use a hair dryer on hot /high mode and use it going back and forth across the label for a bit but not too long, this allows the scotch brand tape to really apply itself to the sticker making them become one, and once you do this immediately use a semi wet cloth or bath towel to wipe the tape back and forth until there is no sign of the tape having any strange look to it, so it looks natural.

After all of this is done, you can open the game up and not have to worry at all (basically), about damaging the label on the game. I have done this to EVERY game I have on MVS that uses the paper type sticker/label that is non holo, and the results are outstanding. They shine like a holo label does, and I can open them up and not worry about ruining the sticker at all and it also preserves the sticker for the future so time itself does not make the sticker bubble up, or crumble away. Also if you buy a Shockbox for the game, and keep the game inside the shockbox, that will lengthen the time that the label will stay in like new shape.

However, DO NOT do this to any holo sticker games as once the tape is applied to them, the holo rainbow looking stuff will absolutely 100% disappear, and if you try to pull the tape off the label, it will pull the holo rainbow stuff off with it, so this method is ONLY good for old paper style labels. I have a full "how to" with lots of pics on this process on my FB page if anyone is interested in preserving your MVS games labels so in the future you can have beautiful looking labels still AND you can open them up and clean them out without the worry of damaging the sticker as long as you dont open the game ALL the way up. ;)
 

wingzrow

Galford's Armourer
Joined
Jan 20, 2006
Posts
466
And yes, Deoxit is expensive as fuck, but if you're into retro gaming or other electronics, it's a lifesaver. It's made games play flawlessly that I had almost given up all hope on, and fixed sound and graphic glitches in the most stubborn of Neo Geo carts.

The little oiler bottle will also last a really long time. You're basically running a thin line over the contacts and then rubbing them with a cotton swab, so you're using just the tiniest amounts of this stuff per cleaning. I normally use a high grade alcohol to remove any dirt from a new cart first, just so I'm not wasting Deoxit, then I put on the D5. The gunk that comes off is incredible.

I use weiman's glass cooktop cleaner. Have I been damaging my carts? Seems to work fine. I was using it for NES carts for years.
 

ChuChu Flamingo

We have purposely, trained him wrong, ...as a joke
10 Year Member
Joined
Nov 23, 2010
Posts
2,766
One thing you need to consider is the long term damage of using improper cleaning solutions on your cart contacts. Weimans isn't as bad as sandpaper or brasso, or ammonia windex but imo it isn't designed to clean sensitive contacts. The game might work now, but later on the games contacts might be more vulnerable to corrosion and tarnish.

Everyone always praises Deoxit D5, but it leaves the contacts sticky. Don't get me wrong, Deoxit D5 is the shit and cleans better than anything else i've tried without damaging or grinding a layer off the contacts. I just never see anyone mention to clean it off after applying, cause it leaves a sticky film.

My methodology for cleaning now is usually in this order for any given game that needs to be cleaned (and I clean every new game I buy and once in a blue moon of a moon I might have a cart not work, and that is usually due to not seating it right).

1.)Take the game apart so you can see what you're cleaning, should be obvious.

2.)Rubbing alcohol/contact cleaner. This will get the first layer of dirt off and save precious Deoxit D5.

3.)if the contacts are bad it gets a wipe of an itoya white art eraser one or two times. If you think its being too rough or that it will cause scratches, I haven't noticed any but this guy goes into great depth about it. Just make sure you get a nice white art eraser, none of that pink mickey mouse school shit as they are way too hard and abrasive.
http://www.robotroom.com/PCBTarnishEraser.html

4.)spray some Deoxit D5 on it and leave it on for 1-2 minutes. I then wipe it off with a lint free rag and wipe with a qtip+rubbing alcohol to get rid of any remaining sticky shit.
 
Last edited:

xsq

Thou Shalt Not, Question Rot.,
Joined
Jan 17, 2013
Posts
7,414
Everyone always praises Deoxit D5, but it leaves the contacts sticky.
Hm, I always thought the "sticky shit" was a film promoting the connection and helped to clean your slots too... it has never caused any problems for me.
 

F4U57

General Morden's Aide
20 Year Member
Joined
Feb 25, 2004
Posts
7,632
Eraser first

Deoxit D5 second

Play game
 

Heinz

Parteizeit
15 Year Member
Joined
Feb 13, 2005
Posts
22,334
I've only ever used 99% Isopropyl, definitely returns some black/grey dirt. Never had a problem with carts not booting or whatnot. I know that it's not that great at cleaning the contacts but they look pretty clean to me! clean enough not to cause problems ;)
 

ChuChu Flamingo

We have purposely, trained him wrong, ...as a joke
10 Year Member
Joined
Nov 23, 2010
Posts
2,766
Hm, I always thought the "sticky shit" was a film promoting the connection and helped to clean your slots too... it has never caused any problems for me.

from my reading it does promote a connection, but I don't think these contacts need it. This stuff isn't like potentiometers and pickups that need lubrication. In theory due to it being sticky I would think if you switch games around enough it is going to collect a lot of dirt due to ions charging just from being electrically charged from being on.


I've only ever used 99% Isopropyl, definitely returns some black/grey dirt. Never had a problem with carts not booting or whatnot. I know that it's not that great at cleaning the contacts but they look pretty clean to me! clean enough not to cause problems ;)

That is all that really matters, if stuff works and doesn't glitch out. Contacts do not have to look factory fresh for them to work (although I like doing this). All that matters is you make a solid connection with the pin connector.

If you look at how any contact system works, anytime you insert a cartridge it is causing very light minute vertical scratches (which is perfectly normal and sometimes can only be seen under magnification) from the mating process. What this does is scrape away the oxide layer on the contact, and give the pin connector a solid connection.

I know my stuff is super duper clean when I can wiggle a NES cart in a 72 to 60 pin adapter and not freeze or have graphical glitches at all. Too bad it doesn't solve that this converter sucks ass and doesn't work with quite a few games. I need to get a new one.
 
Last edited:
Top