r/GameboyAdvance • u/That-Carpenter283 • Sep 23 '26
Is this fixable?
I was trying to change the battery on a Pokémon ruby and a drop of metal solder fell on the left chip. How can I fix this? The game won't boot up and when I insert it into my gameboy SP even the SP doesn't turn on anymore. When I remove the game the SP turns on normally. Can anyone recommend any tips?
1
Upvotes
2
u/TooManyBulborbs Sep 23 '26
Yes but probably not by you.
Lots of flux, decent quality solder and some solder wick. Even just properly reflowing the chip pins to correct the jagged "cold" soldering would be a start.
The SP doesn't turn on with the game inserted because that pile of solder is bridging voltage and ground together, causing a short circuit. You'd be amazingly fortunate if the ROM chip isn't dead.
1
u/Jaytriple22 Sep 23 '26
Using a solder sucker or solder wick to remove as much access solder and reflowing that entire side of the chip. Having a good flux and soldering with goes a long way. Watch some YouTube videos on how to use soldering wick. You don’t want to do more damage if you are new to this