First time restoring an AIWA.  is this what the leaking capacitor issue looks like?

Hi there , Surface mount capacitors are the worst .....they spill their guts all over the board and eat the copper traces and before you know it your board is toast . I did the head amp on my Sony Dat player ....it was acting funky ! it wouldn't play or record ( distorted ) sounds awesome now  I used the cut method with a set of wire cutters ....works great . re-tin the traces and put in regular caps if you got the room and your good to go . best of luck

That doesn't look good. Another possible cause is a leaking battery. Recently I have had two items (one of them a £100 central heating timer) destroyed by leaking Duracells (maybe they were fake). Either way you need to clean all the crud off the board including under the capacitor so you might as well replace it.

Navpers is right about there being problems with the 1990s Surface Mount Capacitors. With a through hole board the board shields the capacitor from most of the soldering heat. With surface mount more heat goes on the bottom of the capacitor weakening the seals.

Two items notorious for leaking capacitors are the Sony ICF-SW77 shortwave radio and the Sega Gamegear. You will find lots of discussions about fixing them on the web.

Thanks both.   What method do you use to remove the electrolyte off the board? 

Franz Gangl posted:

Thanks both.   What method do you use to remove the electrolyte off the board? 

Have a look what PCB cleaner you can get from your local electronics store.

In the UK I would use this

http://www.maplin.co.uk/p/mapl...-cleaner-200ml-n64an

Tradionally, manufacturers used tanks of Tricloroethene. Then the authorities decided it was a Greenhouse gas and banned it.

While I am on a whinge I would say don't use lead free solder. I have been trying to use it at work (company rules) and it is much harder to make a good joint than with leaded.

hello , You can buy pc board cleaner ...etc: But I just use 100% Isopropyl Alcohol with a tooth brush .....seems to do a good job .

you probably don't have an ESR meter which is great for testing capacitors in circuit ...... when they leak you can smell a fishy smell ...its what they used in the capacitors back in the day ....lol I bet some are probably all dried up too . you got your work cut for you but just take your time .

oh one more thing ....if you cut the capacitors out make sure you take pictures or mark everything down cause the black mark on the capacitor is the negative side should also be marked on the board but not always

Brilliant.   Thanks for the tips! 

I had a look last night and if you Google "Sega Gamegear Capacitors" you will find loads of photo guides on replacing capacitors like these including removal and  soldering tips. Of course the values and positions will be different in your stereo. One guide suggested Methalated spirits for cleaner which is similar to the Isopropyl Alcohol Navpers suggested.