Overview
The venerable C64 and VIC20 are still cherished by folks worldwide. The years have taken a toll on many of our beloved machines cases though. The screw posts crack, the bottom case PCB standoffs crack, and the three rear tabs on the top case tend to snap off.
After a great deal of trial and error, we came up with a ‘C64 Case Saver’ kit. The kit includes repair parts for the screw posts, PCB standoffs and the three rear tabs on the top case. The post sleeves and PCB standoffs are CNC machined out of natural ABS. The three rear tabs for the top case may be CNC machined or 3D printed. We 3D print these in such a way that the strength lies along the length of the tab, so the business end won’t snap off.
The screw post repair sleeves are castellated, so they slip right down over the top of the posts. Some posts might be ‘mushroomed’ (smashed a little on top) and require a bit of sanding. The PCB standoffs have a wide base for plenty of gluing area but are narrower at the top so they will fit the holes in the PCB bottom metal shield. The top case rear tabs are designed to self-align to make gluing easier.
Along the way, we have discovered there are at least 6 different types of tabs used on the rear of the top case on bread-bins.
TYPE 1: Type 1 tabs are flat with Type 1A having two wide tabs and one narrow tab, all three of the Type 1B tabs are wide.
TYPE 2: Type 2 tabs have a 'recess' or 'notch' in them. Type 2A tabs have a recess with one narrow and two wide tabs. Type 2B and 2C had two ‘hooks’ originally instead of full-width tabs. The Type 2B cases have three wide tabs. The Type 2C cases have two wide tabs and one narrow.
TYPE 64C: The 64C cases so far have only two known variants. Type CA has two wide and one narrow tab. Type CB has three narrow tabs. The screw post uses a different size of repair sleeve and the PCB stand-offs have two different heights that are both different than the bread-bin cases.
To make things a little more complicated all of these tab types take a slightly different size/shape of repair tab. We created an individual 3D model of each to produce repair tabs that fit and work well. We have also recently started embossing the tab type into the tab during the printing process.
Also included is a good drill bit which matches the screw post hole size for your case type (bread-bin and 64C are different). The bit not only aids in aligning the PCB standoffs but is the correct size to drill out the crew holes in the screw mounting posts is you should need to fill one with epoxy to repair damaged threads! When you order multiple kits at the same time there is a discount and only one bit of each type will be included (as needed per types ordered).
The older VIC20's may use smaller screws for the PCB standoffs. If the screws holding the PCB in are smaller than the case screws you have this type of case. We don't have the correct standoffs for these cases yet.
Look carefully at the
Measurements section on this webpage for dimensions of each tab type to help you pick out the correct lit. Also there are pictures of the different types above.
What is in the kit?
| Description |
Quantity |
| C64-Screw Post Sleeves (or below) |
11 |
| 64C-Screw Post Sleeves (or above) |
3 |
| PCB Standoffs |
7 |
| Rear Tabs |
3 |
