Caping: Long term or short term fix?

[DarkKobold]

The question is sort of simple: Do Cap kits for whatever project you do (from Arcade Machines to turbografx stuff) last any longer? Or are all electrolytic-capacitor based devices headed to an eventual graveyard? At some point, the people able to do cap kits will be few and far between. I guess this question also applies to Turbo-duo and Turbo CD lasers, as well as the gears, etc. I'd like to think that the fixes done would last my lifetime, but it seems rather impossible.

Anyway, I'd like to think electrolytic capacitor technology has improved in the last 20-30 years. However, I just don't know.

EDIT: Also, would people recommend preventative/premature maintenance? I.E. my Turbo-CD laser/Gears seem to be working fine, but I'd (once again) love to have it fixed so it lasts a lifetime.

[SignOfZeta]

The real problem with caps in TG16 has little to do with the level of technology of the time. NEC got a bad batch, basically. Lots of electronics from that time have crapped out from bad caps.

Consider the Duo R. Production went right from Duo to Duo R. Nearly all Duos (it seems) need recapping by this point, but I'm not sure I've heard of anyone recapping a Duo R. I have a Marantz receiver I use regularly that's from 1974 and its still on its original (huge) caps and sounds great. Would it sound better if recapped? Probably, but you can't tell anything is wrong by listening to it.

As for CDROM2 gears, I don't know. My advice is to never let the system sit for a long time. I think inactivity messes up the mechanics in PCE stuff as much as anything. As for lasers, I wouldn't worry about it. Laser failure is less common than other failures so there is probably going to always be a system you can steal a laser from if you need one.

If you want to be sure this stuff lasts as long as possible:

Buy spares
Learn to fix stuff yourself
Rotate your gear in and out of use

[Jugbug]

Even with bad caps, my Duo lasted nearly twenty years before I decided to replace them.  Good caps should last much longer.  And there's no reason these systems are destined for the trash.  While handy sets of all the caps you need for your specific system won't always be available, the necessary caps will still be available.

I'm not familiar with gear wear in TG CDROMs, but Chop5 here sells some replacements.  I haven't had any issues with my Duo's gears.  Hopefully one day we'll be able to easily make our own replacement gears with 3D printing.

I don't think laser failure is very common, but it would be a good idea to have a spare on hand.  They're still readily available, but in the light of a lifetime time frame, this is one replacement part I imagine would start disappearing before others.

As for preventive maintenance, there's not much of a point in replacing a laser until it starts having problems, but making sure the various moving parts stay lubricated is a good idea.  Preventively replacing the caps is a good idea too as the fluid inside them leaks out and can cause problems.

[thesteve]

preventive maintenance is simple keep it clean and lubed.
when cleaning (probably should be done every 5 to 10 years) look for leakage/corrosion, and deal with it when you see it.
it wont keep it from failing, but it will help it go longer, and be more repairable when it does fail.