Repairing roller controller buttons?

[eatenbygrues]

So I recently acquired a roller controller in pretty bad shape (it was filthy), anyway I got it all cleaned up and amazingly the optical sensors still work fine, the buttons on the other hand do not. I managed to open the buttons (you can remove the black piece by snapping it out of the top) and found that all they are is little grey rubber contact buttons (like you would find in say a SNES controller). It looked like the rubber domes had become worn/brittle with time, two of them were torn.

 

1. Does anyone know of a replacement for the button contacts? (the grey rubber piece)

 

2. Does anyone know of a complete replacement for the switch? (as in de-soldering the old switch, putting a new one in).

 

(I can post pictures if needed)

Edited March 15, 2017 by eatenbygrues

[eatenbygrues]

Ok so I managed to get it working again, but I think we will eventually need to source some replacement contacts for these things because they aren't going to last forever. What ended up working for me:

 

1. I removed the black cover of each switch and sort of 'massaged' them back into the correct position. I left it like this for about 2 days, and the rubber button contacts took their original shape. I'm not sure if it was moisture or what the deal was exactly.
2. I also noticed that the solder joints on a few of them had become broken, so I had to reflow those joints.

So all four buttons work, but with the 'bottom' two I get a nice tactile response. The top two buttons work fine in that they register presses but they don't 'bounce back' like you would expect.

Edited March 17, 2017 by eatenbygrues

[mykgerard]

so hey... I have a similar problem. only one of my roller controller buttons works (off and on) I took it apart and I can't say I know what you are talking about as far as grey parts. I see four little switches that look like white cubes with black tops. Did you mean that you took the black tops off of those and there was grey underneath?

[Swami]

A refurbisher told me it is cheaper to buy a new one than get one of the accessories professionally refurbished, so I doubt there is much of a market for the parts. Who were the ones to buy up the mass Coleco liquidations back in the 80s? Like the Colecovision Best Electronics? Someone in New England most likely, since Coleco had a major plant in New York.

[NIAD]

A refurbisher told me it is cheaper to buy a new one than get one of the accessories professionally refurbished, so I doubt there is much of a market for the parts. Who were the ones to buy up the mass Coleco liquidations back in the 80s? Like the Colecovision Best Electronics? Someone in New England most likely, since Coleco had a major plant in New York.

It's not always cheaper to buy a replacement especially if you own the necessary skill set to diagnose and repair issues as well as the time to spend. For those less skilled, it will be cheaper to buy a replacement, but don't throw away the defective item, rather donate it to someone like Yurkie who could repair or re-purpose the unit.

 

American Design Components and eColeco (called ADAM's House back then) are two that come to mind who bought large stocks of CV & ADAM goodness when Coleco started liquidating their videogame and computer stocks. eColeco is still in business and has a website at www.ecoleco.com

[mykgerard]

Ok so I managed to get it working again, but I think we will eventually need to source some replacement contacts for these things because they aren't going to last forever. What ended up working for me:

 

1. I removed the black cover of each switch and sort of 'massaged' them back into the correct position. I left it like this for about 2 days, and the rubber button contacts took their original shape. I'm not sure if it was moisture or what the deal was exactly.
2. I also noticed that the solder joints on a few of them had become broken, so I had to reflow those joints.

So all four buttons work, but with the 'bottom' two I get a nice tactile response. The top two buttons work fine in that they register presses but they don't 'bounce back' like you would expect.

so, how did you get the black tops off?

[vintagegamecrazy]

Does anyone know where I can get replacement optical sensors for the roller controller? One is dead and I might as well replace the other one too.

[alortegac]

Does anyone know where I can get replacement optical sensors for the roller controller? One is dead and I might as well replace the other one too.

Is there a substitute part no? I need 1 sensor. Thanks