New Source for Replacement CX-52 Mylars AtariRepairParts.com

[CrossBow]

So I hinted about this in another thread elsewhere, but though it might be good to give it is own post.

So a new challenger has emerged online under the website AtariRepairParts.com and as the name implies they provide replacement parts for Atari stuff. However, as they are very very new, the parts available is basically limited to just a few things. But, perhaps the most interesting is their replacement mylar and membrane buttons for the standard OEM 5200 controller (CX-52). Similar to another well known vendor, AtariRepairParts has created their own mylar and button replacements that are also gold plated.

The main difference here is that they cost for a complete set is about 50% less of the other well known vendor. They also don't have any limits on the number of items you can order and have PayPal so payments are easy to make. 

I ordered two sets of these replacements for just under $50 shipped. That might seem like a lot for something so old, but again for the price of 2 sets to install into one controllers from AtariRepairParts compared to that same price for just a single controller from the other vendor, it is a good deal.

I received them in yesterday and only ordered them a few days prior, so they arrived very quickly! Here is my initial impressions of these new replacement rebuild kits..

First lets talk about how everything arrived. It was delivered in a bubble mailer using a section of card stock and envelope to protect and prevent bending of the mylar flex. The membrane buttons were just loose in the padded envelope but as this is all very light weight and small, I don't have any issues with this packing.

The first thing you notice is that the mylar is a very matte black finish in color overall. But you can still see the traces etc. Ever contact point on the flex is gold plated including the fingers that insert into the controller wire harness connector. Additionally, it could have been the way it looked, but I believe that section with the fingers is a tad longer than the stock mylar so they seat in further and more secure as a result. The mylar overall is also a little thicker than the stock mylar and more rigid as a result. But I don't find this to be a negative at all since it means it should be able to withstand the flexing and bending it has to go through much better over time. The mylar also has preaffixed adhesive pads so that it can attach to the keypad support plate, and each of the arms for the fire buttons on the mylar will attach to the vertical supports on the controller properly. In the past I've had to keep double sided tape on hand with replacements so this is a welcome thing to have! I do think another strip should be included for the top row buttons as it doesn't have one for that part. But if you consider the fact that the membrane buttons sit on top of that section, I guess it isn't as critical.

The membrane buttons appear to be new and look and feel like the originals. This is good and bad because a lot of folks don't like the mushy feel of the original buttons and these will retain that original feel. However, similar to the mylar, each contact on the membrane has a gold plated disc that is secured to the buttons. So gold on gold contact will minimize any corrosion over the years from occurring.

Installation is a breeze since everything is of the same size as original parts so it just all fits in place where it should. Even the small holes on the keypad to line it up on the support tray are present and in the correct location. So yeah provided you know how to take the original controller apart properly, installing a set of these should only take a few minutes time. 

I played a few games of The Last Starfighter to break it all in and I have to say that everything worked great! My only criticism is that the top row membrane buttons seem to sit a little lower than the originals and as a result I found them difficult to actually press and make contact. But they do work it just requires a little more direct pressing than I'm used to with my older buttons and foil taped contact pads hehe. Still, the quality of these replacement parts are very nice and I imagine the controller will not require much if any maintenance in the future since the only real failure point now would be the cabling or potentiometers inside the controller itself of which, there aren't any replacements for yet at this time.

AtariRepairParts.com

 

Edited July 27, 2023 by CrossBow
added url

[RickR]

THANK YOU for this info.  I was going to take stock of my 5200 sticks and re-order parts as necessary.  And that pricing is great IMO too. 

I've always done the "foil dots" method of fixing buttons given a working mylar.  Aluminum foil, a hole punch, and Elmer's glue.  But this would save a ton of time and is probably a better long term solution.

 

[CrossBow]

1 hour ago, RickR said:

THANK YOU for this info.  I was going to take stock of my 5200 sticks and re-order parts as necessary.  And that pricing is great IMO too. 

I've always done the "foil dots" method of fixing buttons given a working mylar.  Aluminum foil, a hole punch, and Elmer's glue.  But this would save a ton of time and is probably a better long term solution.

 

Exactly my though! for the time needed to do the cleaning and foil dot method, I think this is a better option because this only takes a few min to install and is likely to last for a very long time given everything is gold on gold contact, and the contact points themselves on these new mylars are much larger than Atari or the other Vendor's designs.

 

[TrekMD]

Wow, this is really good.  Thank you!

[- Ω -]

Not a bad deal comparatively.  I have a rebuilt joystick, but I never use it because my hands can no longer deal with those side buttons.  I found the RetroGameBoyz all-in-one controller a great solution for this arthritic old fart.

[Justin]

1 hour ago, - Ω - said:

Not a bad deal comparatively.  I have a rebuilt joystick, but I never use it because my hands can no longer deal with those side buttons.  I found the RetroGameBoyz all-in-one controller a great solution for this arthritic old fart.

I enjoyed your video 🙂 @RetroGameBoyz have done wonders.

[- Ω -]

7 hours ago, Justin said:

I enjoyed your video 🙂 @RetroGameBoyz have done wonders.

Thanks.  I've made a few others over the years.  I remove the one that do no hold up well over time or are replaced by "something better", but for the 5200 stuff if you want to view the others...

Consider an Atari 5200 for you Retro Gaming

Bosconian 5200 Conversion

of course I made a plug video for this site as well...

Maybe it's time to make a couple more?  Any suggestions for content?

[- Ω -]

Oh, below are the best joysticks ever made for the 5200 (IMHO), even if I still had them, I don't have the room for them now.

... and yes, that is me a long, long, long time ago.

[Justin]

4 hours ago, - Ω - said:

Oh, below are the best joysticks ever made for the 5200 (IMHO), even if I still had them, I don't have the room for them now.

... and yes, that is me a long, long, long time ago.

That's a very good point. Those controls were so good they were almost misrepresenting the product to the customer. They should've made an "arcade stick" using those controls housed in something similar to the 5200 Trak-Ball.

What were you doing with a 5200 kiosk so long ago?

[- Ω -]

4 hours ago, Justin said:

What were you doing with a 5200 kiosk so long ago?

I bought both the Coleco and Atari display units from Montgomery Ward's when they were getting rid of them.  I cut down the monitor for my TI-99/4A as shown here in 1985...

... later when my wife was pregnant with our second child I had to give up my den for the nursery, so I removed the 19" monitor from the cabinet and built a hutch for it in 1987 (shown below)...

The Coleco unit I gave to a neighbor, one of the joysticks went to a friend who hardwired it into his TRS-80 Model III for games, the other joystick I kept, naturally for TI-99/4A use.  You've probably seen it in a photograph of my TI system before, although it's residing in a solid oak enclosure...

[Justin]

That's incredible that they were getting rid of kiosks that early.

[- Ω -]

46 minutes ago, Justin said:

That's incredible that they were getting rid of kiosks that early.

If I had only known then the crazy prices those things can sell for now, and had the room to store it for nearly 40 years...

[Justin]

52 minutes ago, - Ω - said:

If I had only known then the crazy prices those things can sell for now, and had the room to store it for nearly 40 years...

Do you have a story to share about how you came into possession of the kiosks? Did you have to persuade an assistant manager at Montgomery Ward’s to slip these to you out the back? How did you make that happen?

[RickR]

Agree.  More details please! 

I remember the 5200 kiosks.  The joystick was great, EXCEPT, it wasn't quite right for the demo games they had like Super Breakout.  That game was designed for a floppy stick, and the self-centering masterpiece on the kiosk made the game seem hard to control. 

 

[- Ω -]

45 minutes ago, Justin said:

Do you have a story to share about how you came into possession of the kiosks? Did you have to persuade an assistant manager at Montgomery Ward’s to slip these to you out the back? How did you make that happen?

I got these from the Longview, WA store which was then in the old Triangle Shopping Mall which has since been torn down.  I went there for some paint and brushes and overheard the manager asking the employees if anyone wanted to buy them as they needed the space for something else new coming in.  Nobody wanted them, so I offered him $100.00 for both as long as the demo cartridges came with it.  He said yes, "... as long as you can get them out of here before closing today."  I immediately went to the phone booth (no cell phones back then), called my father-in-law and told him what was up.  He was there with the pickup truck within the hour.  

I kept it in my father in-laws shop for a couple of months then started cutting it down, for the TI and mounted the Atari guts in the joystick section and used it that way with the TV at home for a couple of years before a friend begged me for it and I sold it to him for what I originally bought the kiosk for.

[- Ω -]

28 minutes ago, RickR said:

Agree.  More details please! 

I remember the 5200 kiosks.  The joystick was great, EXCEPT, it wasn't quite right for the demo games they had like Super Breakout.  That game was designed for a floppy stick, and the self-centering masterpiece on the kiosk made the game seem hard to control. 

 

I will tell you this, that joystick was AWESOME for Pole Position and Missile Command.

[RickR]

Great story!  Thank you for sharing it. 

[- Ω -]

3 hours ago, Justin said:

That's incredible that they were getting rid of kiosks that early.

Makes sense from a marketing perspective.  Atari discontinued the 5200 in 1984 and Coleco the Colecovision in 1985.  Since hardly anyone wants to buy something that's been discontinued, the stores cannot waste valuable floor space on something that will not pay for the space it takes up.

[Justin]

3 hours ago, - Ω - said:

I got these from the Longview, WA store which was then in the old Triangle Shopping Mall which has since been torn down.  I went there for some paint and brushes and overheard the manager asking the employees if anyone wanted to buy them as they needed the space for something else new coming in.  Nobody wanted them, so I offered him $100.00 for both as long as the demo cartridges came with it.  He said yes, "... as long as you can get them out of here before closing today."  I immediately went to the phone booth (no cell phones back then), called my father-in-law and told him what was up.  He was there with the pickup truck within the hour.  

That's an incredible story!

 

2 hours ago, - Ω - said:

Makes sense from a marketing perspective.  Atari discontinued the 5200 in 1984 and Coleco the Colecovision in 1985.  Since hardly anyone wants to buy something that's been discontinued, the stores cannot waste valuable floor space on something that will not pay for the space it takes up.

Yes, Atari dropped the 5200 to replace it with the 7800 in 1984, however they continued shipping 5200 games through at least 1986. Atari, Inc. (Warner Communications) had intended to continue support for the 5200 for a while longer while not producing new systems. The Tramiels were still selling off Atari 5200 inventory in 1995 though most of it had gone.

I would have thought stores would've hung onto demonstration kiosks a little longer than 1984 until inventory had sold through. Maybe at Montgomery Wards it already had and they had chosen not to take any more inventory for the 5200. Montgomery Wards "Electric Avenue" is where I bought some of my Lynx games when they were new.

Here is a Gremlins for Atari 5200 with a 1986 copyright date as they were still being manufactured and shipped even in the Tramiel 2600 / 7800 / XE era: