Oldass Genesis Question

[Jaxxoon R]

So I've recently found a Genesis model 2 that looks like it's been left in a fucking forest for 20 years, and as I opened the thing up I saw the metal shields on the top and bottom are pretty rusted on the surface, although the actual pcb board looks no worse for wear despite a wee bit of rust on the very edge where it directly touched the plates (as did the plastic shell itself).




After cleaning out all the spider skeletons, I'm wondering if I should remove the oxidization from the shields in case they might cause a short or something, or if the poor thing is even salvageable at this point. I don't have the power supply for this thing, I don't think, so I can't really test it either way at the moment.

[GreyGhost]

Who was the better lead singer - Gabriel or Collins?

Probably not much point cleaning the shields, unless you're planning to spray them with epoxy enamel or something similar to inhibit further corrosion.

[Doomkid]

Collins of course.

Out of curiosity, whereabouts did you find such an unfortunate old Genny?

[RestlessRodent]

Metals that become oxidized lose much of their electrical conductivity. The rusting that occurs on the shield will make it more brittle, then there are the tiny rusty bits that will get everywhere in the case when it flakes off.

Also depending if the cartridge port is coated in gold or not (like the NES which is not coated), then you might have trouble playing some carts unless you replace it.

[Jaxxoon R]

Doomkid said:

Out of curiosity, whereabouts did you find such an unfortunate old Genny?

We have a relative whose insurance required her to move into an apartment, so we traded an old station wagon for her to use in and to get to Seattle with, in return for a motorhome she used to rent out to people. Also inside were a bunch of equally-filthy-but-not-quite-as-corroded N64 and Atari 5200 carts. I'm thinking the last tenants might've been crackheads, since they tend to leave weird goods like this behind.

As for the cartridge slot, it's actually perfectly fine looking, somehow. I can't see any corrosion at all on the pins, so Sega must've coated them in something. I've been told by a friend to use isopropyl alcohol and a steel brush to remove the rust on the shield, but I'm still weighing the options.

[lazygecko]

Jaxxoon R said:

I'm thinking the last tenants might've been crackheads, since they tend to leave weird goods like this behind.

Hopefully there wasn't any residue meth left inside of it

[Jaxxoon R]

That was actually the first thing I thought about as soon as I saw the thing. Luckily, the only thing I found in the cartridge slot was a spider leg and a penny.

[Doominator2]

I'm curious to where you might of found a genesis in this condition, unless you actually did find it in a forest.

[Jaxxoon R]

Well hey, the answer is only three posts ago. It's right at your fingertips. Whooooa

[Doomkid]

Jaxxoon R said:

[...] a motorhome she used to rent out to people. Also inside were a bunch of equally-filthy-but-not-quite-as-corroded N64 and Atari 5200 carts. I'm thinking the last tenants might've been crackheads, since they tend to leave weird goods like this behind.

That's funny as hell. Did you end up nabbing the carts as well?

[Jaxxoon R]

No one else wanted them, so I had to eat them so they were left with me.

[RestlessRodent]

Jaxxoon R said:

No one else wanted them, so I had to eat them so they were left with me.

You ate their gifted pet spiders!? HOW COULD YOU!?

[pritch]

I would vacuum all parts first with a brush attachment to gently pick off any oxidised flakes, which could cause issues if left alone. The metal shields are kinda unimportant on these, so no strict need to do too much.

After that source a quality AC adapter or designed-for replacement and see if she'll fire up.