So what did you two think of the q-tip strategy? Any good?
Just tried the q-tip.
It doesn't even fit...
To be honest, I don't know if it's because my Saturn was new, when I bought it (talking about more than a decade ago), and I've never really messed around too much with the cart slot, but the AR Plus fits in there no problem. It doesn't move/wobble, and the contacts feel pretty solid. Never had a single 'detection' issue, and each time I fire up my Saturn, it regularly boots to the AR Plus splash screen.
Once again, I'm using a Japanese white Saturn with a later AR Plus model. Maybe the same slot is somewhat different in the US/PAL consoles, or the earlier Action Replay carts are slightly smaller?