An hour or so with an orange oil-based pen, and here is the result :

I found that a wide wedge-shaped tip was the best thing for the edging on the system unit. When it came to the joystick, I used the pen to dab a little paint on each raised surface until the paint covered the whole surface. For the really tiny "TOP", I used a toothpick and dabbed it into the paint. The alcohol will help fix mistakes. Close up, there is no mistaking this for the factory paint job, but it looks really nice.

This wasn't the only thing I had to fix. Most of the fixed-position switches had come loose and made intermittent contact, so I opened them up, cleaned the contacts with 99% isoprophyl alcohol and straightened any bent contacts. When I put the switch housing back on I tightened it to make a better connection. I may have tightened the Power Switch a bit more than the factory preset, but now the console stays on. The momentary switches (Select and Reset) also required opening up and contact cleaning. They are somewhat more difficult to put back because you have to align a spring as well as a pair of contacts, but not impossible. Now when I use these switches, I no longer see random dashes over the screen.

The one thing I still need to do is to obtain some replacement dust protectors for the switches. The ones on the switches were disintegrating and would cause more harm than good if replaced. Heavy sixer internals do not use conductive tape. I also need some aluminium polish to remove the tarnish from the switches.

Nice project!

Wow! I haven't had one of those, since my dad bought us one, and a bunch of games dirt-cheap right when the video game market crashed right after ET: The game. I was 5 or 6, and was only allowed to play it in my Dad's home office before school, so I'd wake up a 4am, to play River Raid before carpool came to pick me up for school. Fond memories!

I used to love to park Pitfall Harry on a log, just to annoy my older sister with that *BWAAAAAAAAAM* noise. 😀

Hope it all still works! If I can find my old cartridges (25 or so), I'll sell them to you cheap as hell. Assuming my nephew didn't make off with them when he was a kid.

They weren't all great, like 01 Combat and Hangman, but I also had River Raid, Pitfall, Empire Strikes Back, and even ET.