Here’s a portable retro gaming project by Ben Heck:

Project started in 2000 finally finished – Atari 2600 Junior Single Chip Portable!

When I first starting buying Atari 2600 consoles for modding purposes back in 2000 (right after my website became famous) I was lucky enough that my first Atari 2600 Junior had the ultra-rare “single chip” variant inside.

Of course this was “portablization catnip” for me so I desoldered it and tried to make a custom PCB.  My skills at the time weren’t up to task and I feared the chip dead. Had I know then how rare it was (I’ve never found another since) I probably wouldn’t have tried but can’t change that now.

Flash forward to fall of 2018 and I come across the project in a junk box while moving out of the Ben Heck Show shop. Decided to give it another go and I have help this time – my friend Parker Dillmann has an intact single-chip 2600 Junior so we can cross reference to it.

I documented this near-year-long process in the video below. You can also click here for the full photo gallery with notes.

Want to make curved traces in KiCad?

The track rounder plugin from KiCad RF tools can help:

RF-tools-KiCAD

I learned about the plugin thanks to this post on Hackaday:

RF TOOLS FOR KICAD

Recently, [Maurice] has released RF Tools for KiCad which include a collection of plugin’s that address a long felt need for RF design. The suite includes footprint wizards for designing mitred bends, tapered track connectors, and arc tracks (radius bends) for RF layout. These tools work by creating footprints, so it isn’t perfect, but it’s a big step in the right direction.

Also included is a set of action plugins for arc track corners, track length measurement, and a mask expansion tool. The expansion tool lets you adjust mask clearances for tracks and is handy for RF layout and for high current applications where you want to layer up extra solder on top of exposed copper tracks. It may also appeal to the artistic folks who want more control over track layout and visual design. Rounded tracks will also be pretty handy when designing flex PCBs. It’s worth pointing out that the arc action plugin will create segmented arcs while the arc footprint wizard will produce a smooth arc, so both have their pros and cons. If you get stuck, there’s an active thread on the forum for help and assistance. Check out the demo video embedded below.

https://github.com/easyw/RF-tools-KiCAD