General Category > General Discussion
Cleaning? How Do You Do?
Dravenae:
--- Quote from: wiggy on May 04, 2013, 02:29:20 PM ---So, in light of he recent concern over the use of Brasso, I've been experimenting with other things. What I've found that works quite excellently is Tarn-X. So far I've used I to clean a few rather corroded carts that were in my junk/trade/donor cart bins with no side effect of any sort. It also requires nearly zero effort to be effective. Dip Q-tip, wipe contacts gently, corrosion literally dissolves, but good contact material remains.
I wanna give a more thorough testing before I wholeheartedly recommend it, but initial results seem very promising.
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Keep us up to date bro! I have resorted to Brasso twice when I deemed it necessary, but I would prefer to avoid it when I can, favoring an eraser, iso, and WD40 instead. Whenever I have used Brasso the contacts come up a silvery color compared to the usual bronze - golden color. They have all worked, but I don't like that it's changing the color of the contacts. I don't like it at all.
This reminds me. I still need to buy me some silica packets.In combination with WD40 my contacts shall last a while.
plc268:
I don't use Brasso, but I do use another ammonia based metal polish. Yes, the contacts look slightly more silver, but I'm not too worried about it. Most of the games I picked up over the recent years have been dirty, and generally uncared for. Every game that gets the metal polish treatment will live out the rest of its days in a case.
I was getting to the point where erasers and alcohol just wasn't doing the trick any more. Or, I'd have to do every other time I put a cartridge in. Ever since I started polishing, they work the first time and every time. That's good enough for me.
Dravenae:
Try WD40 man. Never had a problem with it whatsoever. Keeps the game contacts clean and keep dirt and rust at bay.
Polygon:
--- Quote from: wiggy on April 04, 2013, 04:47:09 PM ---For contacts, isopropyl (91-99%), brasso, magic eraser, and 000 steel wool (for really crusted up contacts).
• Iso is great for regular cleaning.
• Brasso is OK for mild patina removal.
• Magic eraser will clean up most any crap on the contacts
• Steel wool is a last ditch effort if something is really crusty and nothing else will remove the corrosion. Brass wool works too, just more expensive and I don't see the need to pay the premium. Obviously just make sure to clean up any steel burrs left behind with some canned air.
I also put a small silica gel packet in EVERY UGC to help keep the carts nice and dry. I'm sorta OCD like that :P
For discs, I use mild dish detergent, run the disc under a warm tap, and use my thumb. The detergent is really the key as it acts like a lubricant to help prevent scuffing, not to mention that it's a decreasing agent.
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This is pretty much what I've been doing. However, I've never though of using the gel packets. I like that and I think I'm going to do that as I go through cleaning games.
wiggy:
I store my stuff in my basement, and even though I do run 2 dehumidifiers all year long, I figure the extra protection can't hurt. Plus the packets are sooooo cheap. Do it!