Dirty Floppy Projects

SONY KV-8AD10 (1991)

This compact 8" CRT came in completely dead. We repaired the power supply, replaced a capacitor on the D board, completed geometry adjustments, and fine-tuned the yoke for a perfectly straight image. Full teardown and deep cleaning, including all boards, jacks, and flux removal. Bad solder spots were reflowed. Controls cleaned. The picture quality is incredible. Another classic CRT brought back to life!

Multimorphic PD-16 Board Repair for Pinball (2024)

This PD-16 board used for driving coils was pulled from a Galactic Tank Force pinball machine that was blowing fuses (symptoms included RIGHT flipper not working). After troubleshooting, we traced the issue to a shorted MOSFET. Rather than replacing just the failed component, we opted to replace the entire bank of eight MOSFETs to ensure long-term reliability. As a bonus, our new soldering work is better than what came from the factory. Ready for more pinball action!

Pac-Man (1981)

This original Pac-Man board arrived completely non-booting and became a deep fault-finding project. Every electrolytic capacitor had failed, so the board received a full recap, along with new dual-wipe sockets for the CPU, EPROMs, daughterboard, and 2114 RAM.

The board was thoroughly cleaned, all solder joints were reflowed, and several heavily corroded ROMs were replaced with new 2532 EPROMs. One 2114 RAM chip with a broken leg and multiple faulty 74xx-series logic chips were also replaced.

After repairs, the board successfully passed two separate 12-hour burn-in tests without a single issue and is now ready for many more high-score runs!

Sega Dreamcast VA1 (2000) comprehensive DFP spa treatment.

All electrolytic capacitors on the motherboard, GD-ROM drive, and power supply were replaced. Testing of the capacitors confirmed that many of the original SMD capacitors were no longer good.

Circuit boards were cleaned using the ultrasonic cleaner, the exterior shell was thoroughly washed. New battery holder and battery were installed. The GD-ROM drive was cleaned and re-lubricated, and new thermal pads were fitted. Customer already installed a Noctua fan and GDEMU.

This Dreamcast is looking showroom fresh and ready for decades of game action!

Sony PSP (PSP-1000) handheld console (2005). We upgraded this unit with a new IPS display, and the difference is remarkable. You can say goodbye to the horrid motion blur of the original.

We used a 0-ohm resistor to bridge two pads on the board for the new display. While the console was open, we performed a deep cleaning to remove years of human grime. The analog stick was fully disassembled, cleaned, and lubricated with fresh grease. The UMD drive also received a thorough cleaning and new grease to keep everything running smoothly!

Commodore Amiga 1080 CRT Monitor (1985)

All electrolytic capacitors were replaced. Corrosive brown glue found on the board was completely removed, and two jumper wires showing signs of corrosion were replaced. Solder joints were reflowed in various areas, including the rear RCA video jack, which had broken joints.

The rear selector switch was serviced, and the front-panel controls and switch were thoroughly cleaned using Deoxit. Minor yoke and geometry adjustments completed. Testing on our CRT tube tester showed all three color guns to be strong and healthy, we expect many thousands of hours of life remaining.
The monitor's case had yellowed. So we enlisted Keith from Computer Compulsive to retrobright the monitor shell, restoring it to the original color. Thank you, Keith!

Seriously, this is now a fantastic and very clean looking monitor that is ready for many more years of service.

Wells-Gardner 19K4901 19" Arcade Monitor (1983)

This monitor had the usual age-related issues: heavy dirt buildup, failed capacitors, and numerous bad solder joints. The CRT was a little weak, so it received a mild rejuvenation. All capacitors were replaced, the tube and chassis were thoroughly cleaned, no more flux residue. Lots of solder joints were reflowed, and the super frayed ground wires were cleaned up. A single-pin Molex connector was added to the ground wire for easier removal (no more soldering iron required). Oxidized header pins were cleaned. The voltage regulator and HOT were removed for cleaning, and both received new silicon pads. We’re super happy with how this one turned out!

Commodore 1702 (1983) — This iconic 13-inch monitor came to us dirty and showing its age, but it left looking better than ever. We completely disassembled the unit and meticulously cleaned away decades of accumulated dirt and dust. The dried thermal paste on the voltage regulator and HOT was removed and replaced with silicone pads. Tired capacitors were replaced (x5), all controls were cleaned and restored, and a new speaker was installed. It's now ready ready to continue its journey for years to come!

Sega Dreamcast VA1 (2000) – Fully refurbished and ready to enjoy!

This Dreamcast has undergone a complete restoration, including replacement of all capacitors, a thorough ultrasonic cleaning, and installation of new thermal pads. A battery holder with a fresh battery has also been fitted for easy future maintenance.

Upgrades include a 12V dummy load, GDEMU optical drive emulator, and a Noctua fan for quieter operation.

Exceptionally clean inside and out, this Dreamcast is now running absolutely flawlessly and is ready to provide many more years of gaming enjoyment for its original owner!

Wells Gardner K7500 Medium-Resolution 27" Arcade Monitor (2001):

This repair was really different. The raster image was split down the middle, with the left side of the picture appearing on the right side of the screen—an issue we had never encountered before.

As we dug deeper, we uncovered several problems. One of the ceramic capacitors had a broken leg, and we eventually discovered that an incorrect transistor had been installed in position Q602. Once the proper transistor was fitted, the raster went back to normal and the image looked flawless. While we were in there, we also replaced a few additional transistors after finding poor solder joints and oxidation on both the leads and solder pads.

We also found the B+ voltage running higher than it should have been, so we dialed it back to the factory specification of 117 volts. (As usual, Wells Gardner didn’t make this easy—the adjustment pot was glued in place.)

During troubleshooting, we installed sockets for a couple of ICs that were potential suspects, making future diagnostics much easier. To finish the job, we thoroughly cleaned the tube and removed years of accumulated dirt and grime.

This monitor is now spotless, properly adjusted, and performing exactly as it should.