Just received my latest acquisition from a Cabin Fever Auction.....an Alco RS-3 in the Boston & Maine livery. It wasn't made clear in the auction description which model it was, so I took a punt and purchased it, without a box to indicate which model it was.....PS1, PS2 (3v or 5V), or PS3.
Turns out it is a Railking PS2 (5V), model No. 30-2207-1. I pulled the shell off to check the battery and speaker.....the usual suspects...and found this blown capacitor on the top circuit board.
Never seen a capacitors blow itself apart from its base.....normally they bulge and blow from the top!!! Bits of paper everywhere!!! Would have made some noise when the explosion took place.
Question 1: Is it worth pulling the boards apart and replacing the capacitor, in the hope everything else will be OK, or do I just bite the bullet and order a new PS2/3 top and bottom board, and the new speaker and programming to match the upgrade???
Question 2: If I decide to go the repair method, how the he.. do you separate the top board from the bottom board???
Are they the same as my old faithful PS1 boards, where the multitude of fine prongs just pull out of their connection to the bottom board, and go back together with that all assuring "click", or is there some special word/action/tool I must use - apart from the profanity I have been using when trying to get these two boards apart??? They are stuck together TIGHT!!!!
Your help, guidance, and inspiration will once again be appreciated.
Peter.....Buco Australia