ColecoVision Teardown

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Revision as of 20:20, 25 July 2013 by ITEM-3 (talk | contribs)
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This is a stub.

This is a guide for completely dismantling a ColecoVision to gain access to the motherboard and to be able to clean the inside of the case. Opening the console is fairly straightforward with the only complication being removing the top of the case.

Tool needed:

  • A large Phillips-head screwdriver

Step 1 - Remove bottom screws

Colecovision-teardown02.jpg

Flip the console over and remove the 8 screws from the bottom. Note: my ColecoVision only had 6 screws on the bottom, but there are 8 screwholes so I assume I was missing a couple screws. Flip the console back over.

Step 2 - Remove the top

Lifting the back

Removing the top is easier said than done. The top of the case is still secured to the bottom because of a plastic rim which protrudes into the front panel (the part that says ColecoVision) and prevents the top from being lifted. The easiest thing to do is to remove the 3 screws securing the front panel to the case, which will allow you to remove the top of the case effortlessly. To do this, however, would require you to remove the entire front label to gain access to the screws, permanently damaging the case. If you choose to go this route, I highly suggest that you do not replace the middle screw during reassembly so that in the future you only have to peel back the edges of the label to remove the front panel. For those of us who want to avoid damaging the most visual part of the ColecoVision, luckily there is a better, albeit trickier, way.

Lifting the front

You'll notice if you play around with the case that the back opens easily while the front refuses to detach. What we want to do to remove the top of the case is slide the top forward so that the front panel is no longer caught on the plastic rim I mentioned earlier. The best way to do this I found is to choose to start with either the left or right side (I prefer the "ColecoVision" side), use one hand to lift that back corner and push the top forward, and with the other hand pull the front panel past the rim. Try to push the front panel upwards to see if you can get it above the rim, but it will not stay lifted when you let go because you still need to do the other side.

Do the same thing on the other side of the case, but this time when you go to lift the front panel past the plastic rim, you should use your other hand to keep the other end from moving back over the rim. With both ends forward past the rim, you should be able to wiggle the top free, front panel still attached. Put the top aside once it's finally free.