Anyone here got some maintenance tips for an old Commodore 64

[Sphaa80]

Hi there.

I came here because you guys are the smartest electronic freaks I know of. It's ment as a compliment.

I just wonder if anyone have any good tips for keeping old electronic such as a C64 alive as long as possible? Someone has talked about using heatsink on warm chips and changing transistors but I don't know if they KNOW or just guessing.

Do you guys have any good tips? I really want to keep my cute little c64 alive. The same with the PSU and the disk drive 1541-II.

Another thing. Is it best to use old electronic regularly, or should I use it as little as possible to keep it alive?

Edit: just a typo:)

[xboxbreaker]

I have a spectrum ZX that is still going strong (the original 48k with rubber keys) and also and Amiga. Electronic products produced in the 80's are much less likely to fail than anything manufactured now.
I think the problem now is a combination of increased complexity and heat dissipation, and probably the biggest contributing factor to failure rates now is the removal of lead from solder. At least that's been the case for the PS3 and Xbox.
The guys on here know far more than me as well! So they may have better advice, but I wouldn't worry too much, it is unlikely to break from normal usage and care, even then the parts most likely to fail are easy to obtain and replace.

[neonpolaris]

I'm not sure about maintenance, but when it does fail, I'd look at the electrolytic capacitors first.  They tend to have the shortest lifespan of any component on a circuit board.  A quick wikipedia glance looks like there's <10 on board (possibly depending on version).

[Sphaa80]

thanks for the replays, both of you:)

If you or anyone reading this know someone here that have good knowledge about (old) electronics can you please tip them about this topic? (I'm not saying you guys don't have knowledge:) )
I'm hoping some of them get sentemental when they hear the word c64 and want to give their opinion:)
And I don't mind waiting. There is nothing wrong with my c64 (I have two,and a Amiga500), I just want to know if there is anything I should do since they are 20years:)

I've heard what you said about electrolytic capacitors elsewhere. Someone said their average lifespan is 20 years, but I don't know if that's true.

[neonpolaris]

I've heard what you said about electrolytic capacitors elsewhere. Someone said their average lifespan is 20 years, but I don't know if that's true.

I've fixed 10 year old motherboards and 3 year old monitor and television sets by capacitor replacement alone.  Their (capacitors) lifespan has alot to do with heat and (over)voltage used on them.

[Sphaa80]

So getting a new PSU that is very accurate on voltage could be a good idea?


Edit: removed a uncorrect statement

[muelli]

my biggest concern would be the floppy drive..bc that has moving parts and those tend to fail more often..

i have 2 broken external floppydrives for my amiga .. if the built-in breakes to, im screwed

[inspuration]

I keep my C128 in the original box when I'm not using it. It has never failed me yet.