Has anyone tried it? I am thinking about respraying the case however there are a few things I need to know first.
Is the Case easy to take off?
Does the Cartridge Flap & Eject Lever come off easily?
What type of Spray Paint should I use?
I am fed-up of having a piss-coloured Famicom it looks nasty >:( . I want it nice and white again ;D
everything's REALLY easy to take apart.
I wouldn't use any paint, however, as some paints are better than others.
I would paint with tamiya spray paints.
the other option is to look for a broken famicom that is relatively white and buy it cheap and take the top off for a body swap, this is what I recommend since spray paint WILL change the texture
Thanks Kite200, funnily enough I was think about using Tamiya paint as I'm into vintage r/c 4wd buggies. I will try and find a faulty Famicom to use as a donor but if that fails I will spray it.
At least I know it is easy to prep for painting.
Thanks again.
You'd end up with warped thin melted pieces that don't fit together haha.
Not if you do it right.
I didn't realise there was a propper way to blow torch a famicom. :P
again, that will ruin the texture. the famicom is not a smooth console, it has a bumpy texture.
that is the problem with spraying and sanding it.
again, the best thing to do is find a white broken one and case swap it
you could try cleaning it with bleach and a green scruby. or you could try just sitting it in bleach for a couple days.
i used a green scruby and a little bleach now it looks great
Thanks for the advice guys. I have not done anything to it yet. I think I will leave the piss colour yellow until I find a donor case.
Quote from: Mo on February 03, 2008, 06:24:19 pm
Thanks for the advice guys. I have not done anything to it yet. I think I will leave the piss colour yellow until I find a donor case.
I do have a broken Famcom I'm debating on parting out if I can't fix it. Unfortunately it's not too white either. Apparently tobacco is/was popular in Japan as a lot of the Famicom stuff I've gotten have tobacco gunk on it. >:(
I have heard that a lot of old consoles discolour due to a chemical in the plastic that is meant to protect them from fire. Exposure to UV also can discolour them. I have a Super Famicom and it is still a nice grey and not yellow however, my US Snes bottom half is yellow and the top is still purple ???
I have a broken famicom clone which has the identical design on the famicom, and it is not really yellow.
Quote from: Mo on February 03, 2008, 08:47:41 pm
my US Snes bottom half is yellow and the top is still purple ???
That's because the bottom half is made from the yellow-prone plastic and the top is not.
only the controller ports of my SNES are yellowed. Is there any way to change it?
replace them, haha. :P
Quote from: satoshi_matrix on February 03, 2008, 09:48:06 pm
only the controller ports of my SNES are yellowed.
Same here!
It would be pretty cool if you painted it white and then gave it a clear coat for gloss. Make it look more like nintendo's newer systems...
Quote from: satoshi_matrix on February 03, 2008, 09:48:06 pm
only the controller ports of my SNES are yellowed. Is there any way to change it?
Not too much, really.
http://www.vintagecomputing.com/index.php/archives/189
It's all in the plastic and unless they were kept in a cool, dark place they will yellow. I have one SNES that is half-yellow and one which isn't. I just kind of live with it but if you ever want to do a case mod, the yellow one should go first.
By the way, how about vinyl dye for the OP?
once i painted a nes controller with pearl white paint and it came out looking amazing. I just got a "home computer" knock off famicom, i think im gonna give it the pearl treatment to see how it looks
Mix in some glow-in-the-dark with it :D
That would kick major butt.
Now what be even cooler is if somebody made a famicom shell out of metal. Not like those famicomboxes, but like the original famicom, same shape and size, but out of metal.
Wrap it in very very flat aluminum foil, and et voila :P.
Quote from: Nickv on February 05, 2008, 06:46:23 pm
once i painted a nes controller with pearl white paint and it came out looking amazing. I just got a "home computer" knock off famicom, i think im gonna give it the pearl treatment to see how it looks
Pictures please!
I don't know if an aluminum famicom would look that good. What I do think would look good is a translucent famicom. Like see through, but fuzzy as a pose to clear, you know?
PS: 500th post.
I know, like the way that frosted (etched) glass looks, except with plastic.
That would look cool.
NickV, if you do the pearl thing, post pictures :D
Yup. Or those cool lego pieces, haha :P
hmm my SNES is yellowing as well although I have another one that's in perfect color I would like to paint my yellow snes into that light silver the new consoles have. It's a great idea!
Quote from: battra92 on February 03, 2008, 08:16:49 pm
Quote from: Mo on February 03, 2008, 06:24:19 pm
Thanks for the advice guys. I have not done anything to it yet. I think I will leave the piss colour yellow until I find a donor case.
I do have a broken Famcom I'm debating on parting out if I can't fix it. Unfortunately it's not too white either. Apparently tobacco is/was popular in Japan as a lot of the Famicom stuff I've gotten have tobacco gunk on it. >:(
Actually, tobacco is never the fault of permanent discoloring. It is always the plastic itself. Look at all the Super Nintendo consoles. Sometimes, it is only the top that is perfectly discolored, or bottom, and the other half is perfectly, not discolored. Tobacco smoke would not only affect one half, but everything. Apparently, a certain chemical was added to the formation of the plastic, that made it stronger against fire, or something, and that chemical, with age, affects the color of the plastic. I assume this is the same reason for all discoloring of plastic, including the Famicom consoles. So don't blame the tobacco, blame the aging chemical, or chemicals, used in the formation of the plastic, to make it stronger against fire, or something. I don't remember all of this exactly, but this is the basic idea.
Quote from: a.l.e.x00 on February 10, 2008, 05:02:38 pm
Quote from: battra92 on February 03, 2008, 08:16:49 pm
Quote from: Mo on February 03, 2008, 06:24:19 pm
Thanks for the advice guys. I have not done anything to it yet. I think I will leave the piss colour yellow until I find a donor case.
I do have a broken Famcom I'm debating on parting out if I can't fix it. Unfortunately it's not too white either. Apparently tobacco is/was popular in Japan as a lot of the Famicom stuff I've gotten have tobacco gunk on it. >:(
Actually, tobacco is never the fault of permanent discoloring. It is always the plastic itself. Look at all the Super Nintendo consoles. Sometimes, it is only the top that is perfectly discolored, or bottom, and the other half is perfectly, not discolored. Tobacco smoke would not only affect one half, but everything. Apparently, a certain chemical was added to the formation of the plastic, that made it stronger against fire, or something, and that chemical, with age, affects the color of the plastic. I assume this is the same reason for all discoloring of plastic, including the Famicom consoles. So don't blame the tobacco, blame the aging chemical, or chemicals, used in the formation of the plastic, to make it stronger against fire, or something. I don't remember all of this exactly, but this is the basic idea.
Anti-flame Chemicals don't leave a nice sticky film on the console like tobacco tar does. Believe me, I know the difference.
Yeah I sometimes do computer repair and it's amazing what tobacco smoke does to the cases, fans and heatsinks.
I'm tempted to paint my DKC Cart Yellow...
Quote from: MarioMania on February 13, 2008, 05:02:21 pm
I'm tempted to paint my DKC Cart Yellow...
Oh just get out your mad sewing skills and make a "slip on"
http://cgi.ebay.com/Nintendo-64-Donkey-Kong-Country-Promo-Banana-Controller_W0QQitemZ190197979930QQihZ009QQcategoryZ187QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem
It would be nice to get a Skin Sleeve for the Famicom in the original White ;D
I would totally rubberise my famicom. :D
I snapped this pic two days ago, for those who don't believe in the plastic yellowing power of tobacco smoke:
(http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2370/2265458041_3ff99f369a.jpg)
It's my sister's computer, notice the ashtray under the left speaker.
i thought people who smoke nowadays are smart enough to not smoke in the house.
where i live in california, smoking in the home is illegal if you have a child under 18..
i'm all for bhutan though where the sale, smoking, and import/export of tobacco products such as cigarettes is 100% illegal and jailable
Me too, but I live in Chile, where the one with the most money makes the rules.
So, a friend and member of this forum says he's figure out how to whiten yellowed Famicoms. But he won't share the so-called secret. Anyone got any ideas about how to do it? I'd love to experiment, but I don't have a yellowed Famicom.
Bleach?
Teeth whitening products?
What would do the trick?
I've always recommended against bleaching white video game consoles. My theory is that the bleach will only perform a temporary whitening while in turn weakening the plastic. The weakened plastic will then age twice as fast. This was a true event for my friends pickguard off of his strat. However, there are many game console bleaching enthusiasts out there who claim it to be a godsend. My good pal Black TIger has made a tutorial on how to bleach a PC-Engine. I imagine you could do the same for a Famicom. Here is a link to his page:
http://www.superpcenginegrafx.com/cleaning_a_pcengine.html (http://www.superpcenginegrafx.com/cleaning_a_pcengine.html)
Well, he says he doesn't use bleach, but I found this old thread (now above) that also recommends bleach. I wonder...
I've used this page (http://www.vintagecomputing.com/index.php/archives/189) as my bible for maintaining my things and possibly making them better. Looking back, it appears that someone else also posted this link. Take this as a second opinion: it rocks.
If you read on the author goes on to back up what Turbo D has said. Using chemicals will more-than-likely eat away at the plastic in order to expose the unoxidized layers. If your friend really does have a safe way of restoring the color he'll make a fortune.
My own personal choice is to use the Mr. Clean Magic Eraser (http://www.mrclean.com/en_US/products/eraser.shtml). They are a gift from the gods. Apply a little water and ring it out, then wipe away marker stains, dirt, grime, and anything else. As long as you're careful around the labels you should be golden.
I have bleached a famicom before; it worked decently.
If I were to bleach my Famicom's case, would I need to worry about the stickers and the front red logo?
Quote from: 133MHz on February 14, 2008, 09:44:59 pm
Me too, but I live in Chile, where the one with the most money makes the rules.
That's true...
Sadly, a house with smoking parents (not that they're actually on fire! hehe) usually means that sooner or later their kids will be smoking too. And even the kids that are smart enough to not follow their example usually end up being "passive smokers".
Quote from: 133MHz on January 10, 2009, 02:38:44 pm
If I were to bleach my Famicom's case, would I need to worry about the stickers and the front red logo?
I wonder about that myself. Maybe if enough people petition ReproLabels (http://www.reprolabels.com) they could hook us up with a replacement set? They do wonders for collectors of vintage toys.
Any liquid would make me worry about the stickers. I wouldn't put any bleach near my console.
Quote from: 133MHz on January 10, 2009, 02:38:44 pm
If I were to bleach my Famicom's case, would I need to worry about the stickers and the front red logo?
Yes it will ruin the colour and work its way through the sticky coating.
So then the only way to whiten a famicom by beach is to giveup any logos it may say on it, just making it a plain red and white box. A shame...
stic some paper over the stickers with a bit of tape
I wonder if T-cut would work?
I used to use it on car panels to spruce up lacquer and paintwork - it works by taking a very thin layer off to reveal the shininess underneath. Depending on how deep the ellowing goes it may work and you could keep the stickers as it just comes in a box of wipes.
To yellowing itself, I did hear that the fire retardent chemical they put in the plastic has a fine line between too much and too little. The reason some cases yellow more than others is they have a frcation more chemical in, it's a manufacturing problem apparently but of course smoking will yellow cases. Just not all cases are tobacco stained.
I'm thinking of painting my famicom pearl white and red anyway, like the special SP in Japan http://image.com.com/gamespot/images/2003/news/07/14/nesgbasp_screen001.jpg - what do you think?
I may do the pads too and put new stickers on, TEA 4 TWO famicom tuners sell them and also offer a repainting service for anyone who's interested:
http://www.tea4two.jp/product_info.php/products_id/63/
http://translate.google.co.uk/translate?hl=en&sl=ja&u=http://www.tea4two.jp/blog_news/index.php%3Fcid%3D2&sa=X&oi=translate&resnum=2&ct=result&prev=/search%3Fq%3Dhttp://www.tea4two.jp/product_info.php/products_id/63/%26hl%3Den%26client%3Dfirefox-a%26channel%3Ds%26rls%3Dorg.mozilla:en-GB:official%26hs%3Dpf0%26sa%3DG
You'd prolly need a Japan contact, mind.
Quote from: JC on December 09, 2008, 10:01:23 am
So, a friend and member of this forum says he's figure out how to whiten yellowed Famicoms. But he won't share the so-called secret.
I say we get some rope and a couple piping hot irons and figure this conundrum out.
Quote from: 133MHz on January 10, 2009, 02:38:44 pm
If I were to bleach my Famicom's case, would I need to worry about the stickers and the front red logo?
I have a bleach pen, you draw around the stickers, and then carefully wipe off the bleach.
Yeah, that's a real ass-ish attitude to take, why keep it a secret? So one person can have the whitest famicom? Nice one.
I thought the whole point of this website and the community as a whole is to actively talk and share things. We played these games as kids but that doesn't mean we have to behave like them all over again. To hear that someone has a solution but is just keeping it to themselves for whatever reason is really disappointing an immature.
Don't forget the BS factor. I'd say pics or it didn't happen.
He makes money off this kind of thing, by buying yellowed Famicoms and then reselling them as white, so he says.
So if he's offering a service surely he'd like to let people know about it? I know TEA 4 TWO do that but they don't do international orders plus they paint I think (and add their own stickers).
I think your friend should at least pipe up and say how much he charges or something rather than let a whole thread go on about it and say nothing..
Don't you JC?
I was just trying to undermine his genius with our genius, but looks like his genius is immense compared to our genius. I'm sure he'll see this eventually.
Being an Englishman, I still think it's horrifically bad form! ;)
The solution has been found! (apparently):
http://www.zonadepruebas.com/modules/newbb/viewtopic.php?topic_id=4947&forum=17
(Spanish alert, but the pictures speak for themselves!)
Quote from: 133MHz on February 16, 2009, 09:08:36 am
The solution has been found! (apparently):
http://www.zonadepruebas.com/modules/newbb/viewtopic.php?topic_id=4947&forum=17
(Spanish alert, but the pictures speak for themselves!)
Ah very nice! For those who don't understand what kind of solution they use: it's hydrogen peroxide ;)
Yup, at a 30% concentration. The stuff you get at your corner drugstore is about 3% and won't work.
What do they say about the solution eating away at the plastic?
**EDIT**
It seems like there's an English version here (http://www.thetf.net/forum_posts.asp?TID=13204&PN=1&TPN=1)? They've got all the same pictures and everything.
I thought this might be of interest: http://www.atariage.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=138244 (http://www.atariage.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=138244)
Nice stuff! I'm gonna have to print all this out.
Those articles have blinded me with science.
I'd try it out on some of my broken Famicoms, but I don't have a UV lamp.
Use the mighty UV lamp in the sky that the earth mother has so graciously given us!
I don't have a yard...and if I left it by the window, my cat would surely ruin it somehow.
Could you get, like, a tupperware container and stick it on the window? I think I'm going to do that myself.
I'm glad we found a solution to this, it irked me for a long time that someone knew how to do it and didn't say, just to make a few bucks off each one. I just look at this community and communities in general and think how great it is that people share ideas and methods and we all get alot from that.
Business secrets are different, but from the sound of it JC this was hardly big income from your friend, he didn't even have the effort to post here.
FYI: Here's another article on hydrogen peroxide, and a link posted a while ago has new info about that same:
http://retr0bright.wikispaces.com/
http://www.vintagecomputing.com/index.php/archives/189
Quote from: JC on March 03, 2009, 10:02:41 pm
FYI: Here's another article on hydrogen peroxide, and a link posted a while ago has new info about that same:
http://retr0bright.wikispaces.com/
http://www.vintagecomputing.com/index.php/archives/189
Looks like the stuff was able to deyellow an SNES. Awesome!
Wow this is great stuff. Gotta try this out!
I just heard about this on Security Now. It's a pretty exciting prospect. I'm assuming you could paint the gel on around the stickers on a Famicom to avoid damaging them. Or, maybe the gel wouldn't harm them?
Supposedly the gel doesn't harm them, but nothing is stopping you from being extra cautious.
I'm dying to try this method on my yellowed Famicom, SNES and Atari 800XL. Once I get the necessary materials take for sure that I'm going to be posting pics of my results :).
Here's a page of a guy bleaching out a yellowed original PC Engine system
http://superpcenginegrafx.com/cleaning_a_pcengine.html
While bleaching seems to work, it replaces the Oxygen atoms bonded to the Bromine compound with Chlorine atoms. Chlorine is about half the size of Oxygen, this leaves the plastic very brittle because the surface is now full of microscopic pores (because the Oxygen atom has been replaced with a smaller one) and also the aggressive power of bleach destroys the plastic's original texture.
In conclusion, DON'T bleach your systems. Bleaching will destroy the plastic.
Use Retr0brite!
So, has anybody tried using Retr0bright? I'm kind of curious as to whether or not I should try it. ???
I'm gonna try it out as soon as I get my hands on some of that peroxide ;).