I've mentioned it before, but I think it is worth saying again! If you're storing things such as cables, controllers etc., NEVER use rubber bands to tie them. Why? Because they degrade, especially in heat, with the following result..... So, if you don't want your collectables looking like they have devil jizz on them, get rid of the rubber bands!! A non-degradable substance would prove much better, such as string or cable ties (either the locking kind, or the twisty ties you get with electrical equipment).
Hehe - technical word would be mucus, but you can go with snot, bogeys, boogers (Americanism)... and I'm sure several other things!
Yikes! I'm gonna have to get some string! h: May I suggest a sticky to warn people about this.;-) Thanks for the tip!
that is disgusting! the only time i use rubber bands is for long road trips when we miss a rest stop.
ouch ^^ on topic: i made the same mistake in the kitchen with some spices in bags i sealed with rubber bands. never again. only those plastic clips with metal inside, that you can twist, are good! i use them everywhere now.
The only thing they are good for is making balls out of! They make brilliant bouncy balls, though when they're cricket ball sized they're deadly...
I remember when i lost some 1.44mb diskettes because of this. After that, i never used rubber bands anymore. Not only they degrade like that, but become almost impossible to remove.
Slightly off topic : A lot of old motorised items like cassette players and floppy drives used rubber drive belts to drive the spindles and they do fail, sometimes turning into a black mushy goo. I bought a MSX 2 computer and the floppy drive didn't work so I opened it expecting to see a decaying rubber band but someone had beaten me too it and used a piece of string instead.... (Obviously didn't work as I had to open it...)
Yes, drive belts can go, too. In fact, they can ruin heads and loading mechs with their sticky goo. It really is worth storing such machinery in particular conditions - i.e. not too hot! Haha, string! I think they were being a bit optimistic, there!!
That's what rubber bands are made from Yeah, FDS units suffer drive belt problems. The most common drive belt problem is that it has lost its elasticity and expanded. Fortunately, that's an easy repair, and also fortunately most drive belts aren't made of the same material as rubber bands so don't decompose like that. They're more likely to go brittle and snap. However, some do melt, indeed!
