What's the most disgusting item you have purchased?

[crazydean]

So, anytime I get a used controller or game system, I do a thorough cleaning. This typically consists of a complete disassembly and soak in hot, soapy water after taking out the electronics, of course.

Out of maybe 15 consoles and at least twice as many controllers, I've only found two to be truly disgusting. A couple years ago, I bought a 32X on a whim because it was cheap. It smelled like cigarette smoke and took extra time to clean. It also had a few dead cockroaches, pretty gross.

The second was a PS3 I bought only a few months ago. It's a super slim, and again, I got it pretty cheap. This one also smelled like cigarette smoke. I didn't even bring it into the house until I was ready to clean it. Good thing too. Every part I took off was covered in roaches and roach feces. There was also a lot of insect "flakes", I guess this was some sort of molting? I almost threw the whole thing away several times, but I didn't. I even washed the boards because it was all so gross, yuck! What surprises me the most is that this is my newest system. I bought a 2600 about six months ago and its over two decades older. Nothing gross in there but dust.

Do you guys clean your stuff when you get it? Because of these two experiences, I won't be buying anything that smells like smoke in the future. What's the worst you have seen?

[DragonmasterDan]

So, anytime I get a used controller or game system, I do a thorough cleaning. This typically consists of a complete disassembly and soak in hot, soapy water after taking out the electronics, of course.

Out of maybe 15 consoles and at least twice as many controllers, I've only found two to be truly disgusting. A couple years ago, I bought a 32X on a whim because it was cheap. It smelled like cigarette smoke and took extra time to clean. It also had a few dead cockroaches, pretty gross.

The second was a PS3 I bought only a few months ago. It's a super slim, and again, I got it pretty cheap. This one also smelled like cigarette smoke. I didn't even bring it into the house until I was ready to clean it. Good thing too. Every part I took off was covered in roaches and roach feces. There was also a lot of insect "flakes", I guess this was some sort of molting? I almost threw the whole thing away several times, but I didn't. I even washed the boards because it was all so gross, yuck! What surprises me the most is that this is my newest system. I bought a 2600 about six months ago and its over two decades older. Nothing gross in there but dust.

Do you guys clean your stuff when you get it? Because of these two experiences, I won't be buying anything that smells like smoke in the future. What's the worst you have seen?

I was told by Chop5 that were was a cocoon in a TurboExpress he recapped for me.

[NecroPhile]

The worst I've bought is some water damaged moldy games.  I'd not intentionally buy them; they were parts of lots.  A couple of 'em were salvageable with a little cleaning, but a couple were too far gone and I had to replace the paperwork with self-printed goods.

I clean all used games before they go on the shelf.  I'll disassemble the case and give it an alcohol rub down, the game I'll wipe down with a damp cloth (or alcohol on a huey or the data side of a disc if it's particularly grimy), and let it all sit and air out 'til dry or longer if anything is smokey stinky.

[CrackTiger]

Got a Neo Geo CD from a major Japanese seller on eBay that stunk of house fire smoke, was covered in grease and had bits of the shell cracked off. I would have been fine with it after I cleaned it, but the laser was weak and quickly died altogether. The seller who knowingly packed a console so stinky it was overpowering and who would have had to immediately wipe and wash the grease off his hands after packing it... said that I had to pay the shipping to send it back, which alone was close to the price of the console and then if I was lucky, I might get a partial refund or have to pay the shipping a third time to get the lemon sent back.

Another time I bought a PCE Shuttle from a well kbown importer on eBay that was covered in dirt and had dirt inside. So it must have been buried at one point. When I mentioned it on here, he said that I should have let him know about it first. But you can't handle a console covered in dirt (not dust) and pack it without knowing exactly what you're doing. I got a SuperGrafx from the same seller that looked like it had cola poured inside if it.

Bought a copy of Darkwing Duck TG-16 that was dark yellow from cigarette smoke and stunk like it.

[JoshTurboTrollX]

I got some SNES carts in a box from someone that had them in storage for years.  When we finally opened the box it was as if some nasty oil got on, into and all over the carts.    I still have a couple I need to clean more, but man, it was so disgusting.

His initial thought was for me to sell them online for him, but after we saw the condition he was like "Yeah, you can just have 'em."    oh well, some nasty, but free carts. 

[esteban]

I am afraid of the dead roaches inhabiting some of the consoles I bought over the years.

Damn.

[sirhcman]

It would definitely have to be China Warrior for me. Totally disgusting game!

[esteban]

It would definitely have to be China Warrior for me. Totally disgusting game!

Hhahahahahjja.

[SignOfZeta]

The Nintendo 64. Biggest letdown in video game history, until Sega died anyway.

[seieienbu]

The Nintendo 64. Biggest letdown in video game history, until Sega died anyway.

Grossest thing I ever bought was an As-Is copy of Castlevania 4 about 15 years ago.  The label wasn't exactly pristine but I don't really care and the price was really good so I got it.  I got home and opened it up to clean it and the insides were completely corroded.  I scrubbed with brasso for what seems like forever and couldn't get rid of the corrosion.  I never felt comfortable putting that cart in a system so I still have it lying around and don't even know if it works.

[bartre]

During my time working for the local game stores, I saw some shit.

Eventually we decided to buy some roach killer and put every system in a garbage bag and spray it down and seal the bag for a day or two before we did anything.
Most of the time it got nothing, but once in a while we'd be able to shake out a few dozen roaches once the dust had settled

Oh, and I bought my toploader NES from a buddy, went to clean it and the whole interior was covered in a fine green dust

[NecroPhile]

Oh, and I bought my toploader NES from a buddy, went to clean it and the whole interior was covered in a fine green dust

Soylent green.  You had people bits in your NES.

[ToyMachine78]

The turbo stick I bought a few years ago was not only filthy, but it seems that the owner used animal hair furballs as packing material. Pretty gross.

I usually don't tear down items to clean the internals, but did in that case.  I wouldn't have even opened the box in the house had I known what was waiting inside.

[crazydean]

Soylent green.  You had people bits in your NES.

It's PEOPLE!!!

[TR0N]

It would definitely have to be China Warrior for me. Totally disgusting game!

Attack by flying potatoes !!!!!

[esteban]

It would definitely have to be China Warrior for me. Totally disgusting game!

Attack by flying potatoes !!!!!

The are **aggressive** baked potatoes... pretty f*cking intimidating, actually...

[turboswimbz]

I got a DUO with a TZD sticker on it. covered in some sort of grime.  Cleaned it and use it as an every day machine.  I love the huge have torn sticker on it.  and a box of stuff from my Aunts attic that had mouse nests and droppings in it.  I had to wash that stuff for quite a while to get it clean.

[Winniez]

No matter how good the item looks I like to take it apart and do a throughout cleaning. Especially true for controllers. And some of the controller PCBs have looked absolutely wretched inside, remainings of 80s japanese fast food and that sort of stuff.

[xcrement5x]

Most of the grossest stuff I got is from CL, but thankfully there are not really roaches out here that I have ever run into.

I got some suuuper smokey controllers and a smokey Dreamcast at one point.  I got a LoZ for the NES that was water logged and looked horrible but a bit of elbow grease fixed it.

[NecroPhile]

No matter how good the item looks I like to take it apart and do a throughout cleaning. Especially true for controllers. And some of the controller PCBs have looked absolutely wretched inside, remainings of 80s japanese fast food and that sort of stuff.

Yarr, I didn't think about controllers.  I've not needed to disassemble and clean other hardware (just a good wipe down of the outside), but I've done it for controllers; sometimes they're downright nasty, with bits of finger cheese in every nook and cranny.

[CrackTiger]

I clean the pins on each new cart I get, so I never have to try to remember which have and haven't been cleaned.

I clean new controllers externally and usually don't open them up unless there's crud inbetween the shell and pad/buttins or a button is sticking or something.

I like to clean each used console I get at sone point, but usually wait until my first extended play session.

[Dicer]

Fleshlight, barely used...and pre-lubricated.

[BigusSchmuck]

Does having your cat pee on Bernie products count? My poor N64 still smells of cat piss.

[ToyMachine78]

Does having your cat pee on Bernie products count? My poor N64 still smells of cat piss.

.

[SuperGrafx]

Back in the day when I was on a Neo Geo kick, I distinctly remember buying a bundle of common AES carts for a good price.  I could smell the stench of stale cigarette smoke even before I opened the shipping carton...goddamn, nothing I did could remove the putrid smell of smoke from the cases, carts and manuals.

I later ended up selling that bundle at a slight loss just to get the damn things out of my sight.

[NecroPhile]

Charcoal and ozone will de-stink pretty much anything.

[xcrement5x]

I've also had good luck with vinegar on plastics, but make sure you take the electronics out first if you are going to keep it in an enclosed space.