Category: Nintendo

Mario Bros. Arcade Repair

I’ve been doing a lot of work recently getting a Mario Bros. arcade machine back into working shape. Pretty much everything that commonly goes wrong with this game had happened. The monitor’s capacitors were dying, the sound didn’t work, the internals were covered in a thick layer of black dust, the list goes on. Here is a rundown of my efforts.

The most noticeable problem was the washed-out picture, with bars of light across the screen whenever something was drawn. I picked up a capacitor kit from Ian Kellogg to replace them with. The monitor that comes standard on pretty much every Nintendo cab is a Sanyo 20-EZ. It has quite a few caps to replace. It’s probably not strictly necessary to replace them all, but with 30+ year old caps that have rubber seals, it’s definitely a good idea. The cap kit also comes with those necessary to rebuild the sound amplifier.

Something that happens a lot is that people either accidentally or ignorantly remove the grounding pin from their AC plugs. Since a lot of arcades in the 80s probably didn’t have wiring that was up to code, a lot of outlets just had 2 prongs. I’m sure many people didn’t understand the importance of grounding to keep from being shocked or overheating your equipment. I went and got a replacement plug for about $2.

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SNES Super Scope Battery Cover now available!

New product alert! I finally had enough time to create a replacement AA battery cover for the fabled Super Nintendo accessory, the Super Scope. If you need a replacement battery cover, it’s available at my eBay store!
I’m always working on new 3D printed replacement parts for game systems and accessories. Let me know what parts you’re still looking for!1adjsm2cropsm

Game & Watch Multi-screen Battery Cover Replacements Now Available

I’ve added battery covers for the vertical Game & Watch multi-screen units to my offerings. You can find them with my other items on eBay.

Battery covers for the vertical multi-screen Game & Watch units are now available from me on eBay.
Battery covers for the vertical multi-screen Game & Watch units are now available from me on eBay.

Game & Watch Wide Screen Battery Covers


Game & Watch Wide Screen battery covers are now available in my eBay store!
If you’re missing the battery cover for your Game & Watch and can’t play, we have new 3D-printed replacement covers waiting for you!
This battery cover is for the classic “Wide Screen” model, which includes Octopus, Fire, Chef, Manhole, and others. Covers for other Game & Watch models are coming soon!

These covers are available in multiple colors, currently including red, yellow, blue, green, white, grey, black, clear, transparent orange, and transparent green. Ask about more colors too!

Coming Soon: Nintendo 64 Expansion Slot Covers

I’ve been working on these for a while, and they’re almost ready to roll.n64slot
I’ll be ready to release my 3D-printed Nintendo 64 Expansion slot covers in a few weeks. I’ll also be working on the bottom EXT. cover soon as well.

I’m also working on modeling more products like the other battery covers and accessories you guys have suggested. Thanks for your input, and keep sending suggestions!

Captain Novolin loaner materials

Here’s something you don’t see every day. When Novo Pharmaceuticals put Captain Novolin in hospitals for the use of their diabetes patients, they intended for the game to be loaned or given to the patients and even provided a checkout sheet similar to a library. By all accounts, this is one of the worst SNES games out there, but it apparently wasn’t too concerned with playability. This example was left in a closet in a clinic until a recent renovation. Here’s some scans of the informational materials they packaged with the game.