Atari 800 cartridge door latch spring retainer

Replace the fragile pins that used to hold the cartridge door latch spring
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updated March 11, 2024

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The Atari 800 computer has a cartridge door that springs up when the latch is pushed. The latch has a spring made of a flat, bent piece of metal. When the case is intact this spring is retained by two surprisingly thin plastic posts. 40 years later the plastic is brittle and it's really easy to break them off when trying to remove the spring to clean the case. 

This design is for a plastic post with a slot for the spring. Two identical posts are printed and M3 brass inserts are inserted from opposite sides to make a left and right pair. A 3.5mm hole must be drilled through the existing plastic so that screws can fasten these new posts into place, then the spring can be retained as before and the cartridge door can function normally again. This fix is invisible when the case is closed up.

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