Speak and Spell Repair

[N9WXU]

I just received a care package from my father with a pile of old "junk".  In there was a Speak and Spell from around 1978, I don't know when mine was bought.

I quickly checked the battery compartment (4 C-cells) fearing to find a pile of corrosion.  I did, but it was the rusty sort.  The battery contacts were rusted.

I opened the unit, removed the contacts and dropped them in vinegar to dissolve the rust.  The contacts completely fell apart.

A quick Amazon order for Keystone 209's and I was back in business.  The new clips seem to be slightly thicker or perhaps stiffer, as the batteries are more difficult to insert.  BUT it works!

While I was waiting for the 209's to arrive, I considered adding an 18650 battery and a USB battery charger.  The old TMS5100 series electronics runs from -15v so there is an inverting boost regulator to drop the 6v down to the -15.  I tested and this works OK from 5v which is the standard output from the variety of battery manager/chargers you can find.  But in the end I did not want a second button to activate the USB battery and then the normal ON button to activate the device.

In any case, my 5 year old son loves it, though he did ask "can we install more games".