How Do You Open Up an Atari Power Supply (Brick)

[UNIXcoffee928]

I'm sure that there is some simple way to open this thing without breaking it or damaging it in any way... Anyone know how?

[fibrewire]

If it's the power brick with two wires coming off of one side, then cut the glue along the seam of the plastic halves with an x-acto knife. By cut i mean stab into the seam and rock the blade back and forth along the seam, NOT prying the plastic pieces apart. When the glue is cut, the two halves will come apart.

 

If the brick has a wire coming off of each end, the thing is solid epoxy...

 

EDIT: i looked up 14319... sorry, throw it in the trash.

[UNIXcoffee928]

If it's the power brick with two wires coming off of one side, then cut the glue along the seam of the plastic halves with an x-acto knife. By cut i mean stab into the seam and rock the blade back and forth along the seam, NOT prying the plastic pieces apart. When the glue is cut, the two halves will come apart.

 

If the brick has a wire coming off of each end, the thing is solid epoxy...

 

EDIT: i looked up 14319... sorry, throw it in the trash.

Bad advice. What part of "without damaging it" sounds like throwing it in the trash? It is obviously hollow, not "solid epoxy", and requires either a special tool or a special technique to open the two halves.

 

Even "Carefully Hacksaw or Dremel it, fix it, then glue it" is better advice than throwing it out.

 

Sheesh.

[UNIXcoffee928]

OK, two minutes later... Here's how you do it:

 

The two halves will separate cleanly, with no damage, whatsoever. There is a 2mm ridge, directly in front & above the seam-line, this is where it was glued at the factory.

 

If you gently wobble the full length of a thin butter knife, in the seam, along the four sides of the power brick, working the blade in the direction of the top of the brick, you will hear the plastic cement (that holds the two halves in place) give way. Keep working the blade around the brick a few times, listening for the plastic cement seal breaking, as you go. Then just pull the two halves apart.

 

There are two fuses inside. If you have any bad power bricks around, chances are that they will be an easy fix, with this info.

 

 

[fibrewire]

Holy crap! I've read in several forum posts, atari museum, and other places (even Best Electronics) that all say "it's solid epoxy, throw it away"

I'm glad you asked instead of reading!!!

 

Learn something new every day.

 

EDIT: I read wrong, it's the XL power supplies that are epoxy filled. Which means all those non-working CO 14319 supplies I trashed...

 

UNIXcoffee928: Also, I noticed you live not far from me. I got a friend that lives on Olive St.

[MEtalGuy66]

FIBERWIRE: Thats why you should keep your mouth shut unless you actually KNOW from experience, rather than acting like a cheap tape recorder, and repeating what you THINK you read/heard somewhere.

 

The ones that are "full of expoxy" are some of the crappier versions of the XL power brick, not the 9vac bricks used with the earlier equipment, or disk drives..

 

UNIXCOFFEE: I have replaced the internal fuse with a 1.5A auto-reset breaker in some of mine. If you get a bad drive from someone (with PSU circuit issues) it can pop that factory fuse in a heartbeat. It's a pain taking those things apart all the time and replacing the fuse..