Need help repairing Art Asylum ENTERPRISE Communicator

[Phoenix01]

From What I can see the connections are all good, I don't have much experience with this sort of thing however I am good at following instructions, please note I don't have a soldering iron etc. Would consider buying one as these are expensive AF on the bay, furthermore I'm in Australia and we don't have the community here for this sort of hobby so I'm limited in where I can get help. Was hoping you guys could advise, fortunately the Phase Pistol works.

 

[smithjohnj]

You are not providing much detail about what you are trying to repair. However, to me, the brownish coating over the printed circuit board contacts looks very suspicious. That is often what happens when a battery is left in too long and leaks. The acidic residue then shorts out some of the connections. If the brown coating is not suppose to be there you can try to clean it off. Rubbing alcohol on a cotton swab should allow you to try a small section. You do not need to rub hard, let the solvent do the work. If this cleans up the board, concentrate on making sure each metal connection "pad" is isolated from each other.

 

[E Williams]

Sometimes the battery compartment covers on these are a little finicky and don’t press the batteries fully into place. Particularly in the first version with the glossy black body and grey plastic button/lid like yours.

Assuming there’s nothing obvious like corrosion on the battery contacts, check that the battery contacts look like they will be in contact with the batteries once installed - if not you might need to use a pick to just slightly and gently bend them outwards towards the battery.

Install a new set of batteries, close and carefully screw shut the battery cover. With the communicator pinched between your thumb and forefinger (pressing on the battery door), press the side button and see if the electronics do anything. If still nothing try wiggling the battery cover a little more. Sometimes that’s all it takes.

The brownish coating seems normal to me and would be meant to reinforce the wires. It has been a while since I’ve had one of these open though so I don’t remember for sure.

 

[Phoenix01]

Sometimes the battery compartment covers on these are a little finicky and don’t press the batteries fully into place. Particularly in the first version with the glossy black body and grey plastic button/lid like yours.

Assuming there’s nothing obvious like corrosion on the battery contacts, check that the battery contacts look like they will be in contact with the batteries once installed - if not you might need to use a pick to just slightly and gently bend them outwards towards the battery.

Install a new set of batteries, close and carefully screw shut the battery cover. With the communicator pinched between your thumb and forefinger (pressing on the battery door), press the side button and see if the electronics do anything. If still nothing try wiggling the battery cover a little more. Sometimes that’s all it takes.

The brownish coating seems normal to me and would be meant to reinforce the wires. It has been a while since I’ve had one of these open though so I don’t remember for sure.

Hey mate that's exactly what happened thanks! So it does work, but now the problem is the damn compartment cover won't screw back on tight enough to keep it working? I've gotta keep my hand on it myself. Hoping it might be a matter of simply replacing the screw now? Do you know what size screw/washer these are?

 

[13doctorwho]

If it won't put enough pressure on the batteries put a couple of sheets of paper between the battery door and the batteries to press them down harder. A little thin foam would be even better!

 

[Phoenix01]

If it won't put enough pressure on the batteries put a couple of sheets of paper between the battery door and the batteries to press them down harder. A little thin foam would be even better!

The Screw wont lock it down though that's the problem now. It's almost like I'd need blu tac or something, or a new screw. I even tried disassembling and reassembling.

 

[renaissance_man]

A small piece of foil folded down to fit might do the trick.

 

[modelcitizen]

just happened to be passing by...you seem to have a blind leading the blind problem....
so your problem is a stripped screw hole, correct?

 

[Phoenix01]

just happened to be passing by...you seem to have a blind leading the blind problem....
so your problem is a stripped screw hole, correct?

Now that we've corrected the issue with the battery contacts yes. Now the damn screw wont screw in Specifically the battery compartment screw

 

[modelcitizen]

that was probly the problem to begin with but im just guessing.
two options.
Slightly fatter screw
or replace some of the plastic in the hole to give the existing screw something to bite into. im guessing theres nothing wrong with the screw its the hole.

having fallen into a can of worms trap in the past im going to defer to others here how to replace that missing plastic . good luck. i'm sure someone will eventually help you in that regard

 

[renaissance_man]

You could get a brass threaded insert to put into the area where the screw hole was.

 

[Phoenix01]

You could get a brass threaded insert to put into the area where the screw hole was.

Do you have an amazon link to something like that?

 

[Phoenix01]

Bump, can someone help me solve the problem of the stripped screw hole now that I've established the thing actually does work?

 

[renaissance_man]

Bump, can someone help me solve the problem of the stripped screw hole now that I've established the thing actually does work?

Did you try the threaded brass insert option?

 

[E Williams]

Maybe replace the screw with a 2-56 or 4-40 machine screw along with a matching nut on the inside? You’d need to check the dimensions of the nut to be sure it would fit (2-56 would be more likely to). Or the threaded insert mentioned previously.

McMaster-Carr has all of this but you’ll likely be able to find them on Amazon as well.

 

[dotcalm]

What type of batteries? I have one that still works but may need to know.

 

[pengbuzz]

Bump, can someone help me solve the problem of the stripped screw hole now that I've established the thing actually does work?

I would recommend something like Permatex Plastic Weld (NOT a "welder" like the mechanical ones you may have heard of, but a two-part epoxy-like material). Coat the screw in Vaseline so the adhesive doesn't permanently bond it, mix the adhesive and put it in the hole, and then screw the screw into the hole. Let it set, then remove it and trim any excess that may have come out. That should reestablish the screw hole and the "bite" it had.