Welcome to Restoration & retrobrite. This board is for bringing tired hardware back to its best: deep cleaning, retrobriting yellowed plastics, recapping, fixing battery damage and restoring consoles, computers and accessories that others might have thrown away.
What belongs here
• Cleaning shells, boards, keyboards, cartridges and controllers
• Retrobrite and other methods of reducing yellowing
• Recapping, battery removal and repairing corrosion damage
• Repairing broken plastics, labels, screens and cosmetic damage
• Restoration logs with before and after photos
• Tools, soldering kit, chemicals and workbench setups
What doesn't
• System-specific mods such as ODEs, flashcarts or RGH: the board for that system, such as Sega or Xbox
• CRT repairs and calibration: CRT gaming
• Getting old software running: Vintage computers, Retro PCs & DOS or Vintage Apple
Posting a restoration
• Include photos before, during and after, and say what you used
• List the model and what was wrong when you started
• Share what went wrong as well as what went right, it helps others
Retrobrite cautions
• Retrobrite usually uses hydrogen peroxide and UV light. Wear gloves and eye protection, and keep it away from children and pets.
• It can cause streaking or blotches if the peroxide dries unevenly, and may make some plastics more brittle.
• Yellowing often returns over time. Store restored items away from sunlight and heat.
• Remove labels, metal parts and anything you do not want bleached first. Try it on a hidden area when you can.
Repair safety
• Unplug before opening anything. Power supplies and capacitors can hold a charge.
• Never open a CRT unless you know how to discharge it safely. Leave it to someone who does.
• Leaking batteries are corrosive. Alkaline leakage, from typical household and many barrel cells, can be neutralised with a mild acid such as white vinegar, then cleaned with isopropyl alcohol. Wear gloves.
• Solder in a ventilated space, use fume extraction where possible and wash your hands after handling leaded solder.
• Protect boards from static and do not use household cleaners that leave residue on electronics.
The rules
Repair and restoration are welcome, piracy is not. Do not link, share or request ROMs, ISOs, BIOS files or firmware, and do not ask where to find them. No selling restored items or parts and no paid repair services. No malware.
The general house rules apply: be kind, English only (posts in other languages are translated automatically), no spam, no keyboard mashing and no self-promotion spam. Report anything that breaks the rules. This thread is locked, so start your own thread here to share your work or ask for advice.
Dexter
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