The NES is one of the most successful systems to exist. Unfortunately, Nintendo didn't plan to have people still play the NES for this long. I'm here to tell you how to clean the games, get rid of that dreaded blinking screen, and how to clean your controller on the inside so it has the perfect response that it used to have.

You dusted off your NES, hooked it up, ready to play Contra, turn it on, and you get the dreaded blinking red/blue/green/whatever color screen, depending on your model. You try blowing into the cartridge, you tried your special "okay, lets stick it barely in so it rubs when it closes and see if that works" trick, and nothing works anymore. Don't fret, I'm here to the rescue.

The dreaded blinking screen is due to 2 things. A dirty cartridge and a corroded cartridge slot.

Cleaning the Cartridge, (and I don't mean blowing in it):

This method is really easy, and its 100 times better than blowing into the cartridge.  There's two ways to do it, but don't do number 2 until you try the first one and the game still doesn't work.

1. You need rubbing alcohol and Q-tips. Soak a q-tip with rubbing alcohol, sqeeze it so its not dripping wet. Rub onto both sides of the NES cartridge end, repeat with different q-tips until you get zero dirt on the q-tip. Let dry, test. If it works, you're set, if not, then go to Refurbishing the Cartridge Slot, before going to number 2.

2. You need, 2000 grit sandpaper. Your way overcharged credit card will do. If you have the special Nintendo bit to take apart the cartridge, do so. It is MUCH easier. If you do not, then take the sandpaper, fold it over the long end of a credit card. What you want to do is use the sandpaper to polish the contacts until they are shiny. Once you're done, it'll be in the same condition that you got it when you bought it in the 80's.

Now, you cleaned the cartridge, and you still get the dreaded blinking screen. Well, I know just the thing to fix your NES. Don't worry, there's no way to ruin it -- its already broke, right?

Refurbishing the Cartridge Slot:

First off: You can go on ebay and get a replacement NES cartridge slot, but the games are very hard to get in and out. If you would like to go this route, buy the cartridge, follow the directions below to open the NES, and when you remove the cartridge slot, just slide the new one in and put it together.

Tools needed: Phillips screwdriver, credit/debit/best buy/eb games/whatever card, fine sandpaper (exact grit doesn't matter), and for a last resort: jeweler's flathead screwdriver.

This will literally take longer to open the NES than to fix it. You need to unscrew all the screws on the bottom of the NES, 6 in all. Get a cup, there's a lot of screws, and put them in it. Once the screws are out, flip it over, and take the top off. Next, unscrew all the screws for the rf shielding, the piece of metal blocking everything. Once that is removed, remove all the screws connecting the black tray to the motherboard and the cartridge slot, and remove all the screws connecting the motherboard to the case. Don't forget, there are two screws by the rf box in the upper right corner. Once all the screws are out, slide out the black tray that you slide the game in.

Now, remove the cartridge slot. Its rough to slide out, so don't be afraid to break anything, you can't, unless you snap the motherboard in half. Once the cartridge slot is out, its easy to handle. Take your sandpaper, fold it in half. Now, you are going to sand the contacts that the nes cart goes into, but you are not going to sand it left and right. You're going to sand it, in and out. If the sandpaper goes in and out easy, then fold the sandpaper in half, wrap it around the credit card, and sand it that way. You're going to sand every inch of the inside of the nes slot, several times, in and out, by the skinny end of the credit card. Basically, Nintendo used cheap metal, thinking that people would never still be playing the NES. The metal corrodes in time, by the humidity. You're sanding away the corrosion that is preventing the contact of the NES cartridge.

Now, put it all back together the same way you tore it apart. When you slide the black tray back into the NES, make sure the bottom lip slides underneath the NES board, or else when you screw it in, its going to be crooked, and the games won't stay down.

If the games *still* don't work, then your pins got pushed down too far. This is what the jeweler's screwdriver is for. You are going to bend every cartridge pin up very slightly. Due to the NES looking like a VCR to get the whole entertainment center feel, like an old vcr, due to the video game crash, than up and down inserting like the Atari, intellivison, etc, the pins get bent down. Go from one end to the other, bend out the pins on the top part of the connector. This is needed to be done to those people who always used the Game Genie, as the cart thickness is much thicker than the standard NES PCB.

You should have a working NES by now. But, those controllers are working like crap. Doesn't jump when you want it to, buttons feel sticky, etc. Here's how you fix that.

Refurbishing your Controller:

Tools needed: Jeweler's phillips screwdriver, rubbing alcohol, q-tips, old toothbrush.

Open up the controller with the jeweler's screwdriver. You're now going to basically scrub everything down, the rubber pads, the holes that the d-pads go in, buttons, the internal pads where they make the connections, scrub everything with rubbing alcohol. Let dry, put together. That's it.

You now have a refurbished NES. Enjoy your old school games again!