How do you shop a pin?
westcoast
I would really like to do a thorough shop on my pinball machine.
(Grand Lizard.) The whole enchilada: Break down the playfield, clean
everything, clean and wax playfield, new rubber, etc. I have never
done this before, know very little about proper procedure. I have
received conflicting advice on what kind of wax, strippers, etc., to
use.
Would value any advice or reference to a website with detailed tips.
Thanks to all!
thabigwolf
WC -
To truly break a field down - Digital Camera - Detailed notes of what
part was removed with pictures of you doing it. Certain tricks suck as
removing certain playfield pieces you will have to ask the pro's but
the key is slow and detailed notes and pictures of what you did.
Example:
Step 1: removed 3/4 phillip screw from upper playfield lamp (See
pictures 1 - 2).
Make sure you organize your parts so that they dont get lost. Some
pro's have huge carts that they place all their pieces on and use a
Pinball Rotiesserie (sp?) to do it. Nice tool to have...
John
Matt McKee
Roll up your sleeves and dig in! Lean by doing.
I like to do it all in one shot so I remember where everything goes.
Start by ordering a "rubber Ring Kit", light bulbs and some wax and
maybe the three Novis products (cleaners). One great place to by from
is Pinballlife.com another is Pinball Resource. When you get the new
parts tear into your game. I think you'll enjoy figuring it out,
remove everything from the top side of the playfield except for the
pop-bumpers. Clean everything, wax the playfield, replace the light
bulbs and put everything back onto the playfield. My guess is it will
take you 6-8 hours.
After your finished try to think of where your going to put all the
games you will soon be buying.
Matt
Taylor-VA
>
> - Show quoted text -
Take more pictures than you could possibly use- you will use them. : )
Also, be as anal retentive as you can be the first time- it will
prevent you from re-shopping it once you figure out what you did not
do. Just my 2 cents.
-Taylor
Mighty Chris
http://www.pinrepair.com/restore/
Chris
Unknown
There are some polishing kits for playfields and metal parts at
www.pinballmagic.com/store You can also find tools and accessories there
too.
"westcoast" <mike...@hotmail.com> wrote in message
news:1185488330....@l70g2000hse.googlegroups.com...
kaju...@yahoo.com
ramp,etc..)
Take tons of pictures from every angle.
Be sure to polish the metal rails.
Kajunlion
billc479
plungers of dirt/oil. Tighten all of the screws under the playfield - you
will be surprised by the number of lose screws that cause the slingshot
coils to be strong and then weak, along with other issues on the playfield.
Clean the underside of the inserts - they get dirty, too. I like 91%
alcohol, and use cotton balls if the insert is large enough- otherwise, I
use Q-tips.
<kaju...@yahoo.com> wrote in message
news:1185502226.8...@g4g2000hsf.googlegroups.com...
billc479
plungers of dirt/oil. Tighten all of the screws under the playfield - you
will be surprised by the number of lose screws that cause the slingshot
coils to be strong and then weak, along with other issues on the playfield.
Clean the underside of the inserts - they get dirty, too. I like 91%
alcohol, and use cotton balls if the insert is large enough- otherwise, I
use Q-tips.
<kaju...@yahoo.com> wrote in message
news:1185502226.8...@g4g2000hsf.googlegroups.com...
<kaju...@yahoo.com> wrote in message
news:1185502226.8...@g4g2000hsf.googlegroups.com...
billc479
plungers of dirt/oil. Tighten all of the screws under the playfield - you
will be surprised by the number of lose screws that cause the slingshot
coils to be strong and then weak, along with other issues on the playfield.
Clean the underside of the inserts - they get dirty, too. I like 91%
alcohol, and use cotton balls if the insert is large enough- otherwise, I
use Q-tips.
<kaju...@yahoo.com> wrote in message
news:1185502226.8...@g4g2000hsf.googlegroups.com...
> I put sections of parts in a zip-lock bag and mark it. (Left
> ramp,etc..)
>
> Take tons of pictures from every angle.
>
> Be sure to polish the metal rails.
>
>
> Kajunlion
"westcoast" <mike...@hotmail.com> wrote in message
news:1185488330....@l70g2000hse.googlegroups.com...
>
80's GUY!
On GL, you can also get very creative by changing the post colors to
either Blue or Green. Same thing with the GI Lights, try a Yellow bulb
or Green in place of the white. Just adds flavor to this pin. Best of
Luck, and have FUN!~ Bret
Steve C
sometimes. I say sometimes because I've shopped over 100 games and I'm almost at
the point that I can throw things in only a few containers since I do a good job
of taking pictures and you kind of get the feel of where things go on most all
games. This will be bathroom reading since I type rather fast.
One thing I use is a couple of magnetic steel bowls that can be found at
www.pinrestore.com from Scot Bogart. I use the heck out of these things as I
remove screws, washers, pins, nails, and anything else metal. All you have to do
is throw the metal screws at the magnetic bowl and it will stick due to
magnetism.
I have all my shopping tools in a roll-around red cart with three shelves that I
bought at Harbor Freight for next to nothing (they have a local store here in
Denver so I just dropped by and picked it up). I also use quality screwdrivers
(Phillips #4 and Phillips #2 plus a large and small straight edge screwdriver),
the normal cast of nut drivers, needlenose pliers, a small deep socket ratchet
set, a Ryobi drill (for speed removal of screws), a dowel for prying up wire
forms using a small pair of channel locks, Magic Eraser, air can for mylar
removal when present, purple plastic "razor blades" from pinrestore.com, Orange
Power also from pinrestore.com, diagonal cutters (small ones), staple remover
(for underside of pop bumpers), a hammer with a nylon head (for when stuff
pisses me off), Qtips, pipe cleaners, alcohol, Mean Green, Bleche White (for
cleaning the cabinet), restoration buffing compounds (Scot sells those as well
at pinrestore.com), old plastic meat containers like you frequently get from
grocery stores when buying sliced turkey/ham (I have a bunch of these rather
than throwing them away), a divided plastic box or two for sorting screws, a
Berry Tumbler (for tumbling parts to clean them up), Naptha (for cleaning),
washed old Tshirts I've cut to small 3 inch squares as well as some 6 inch
squares (I'm fat enough my Tshirts look like a sail), Novus 2 and Novus 3 (I
don't screw with Novus 1 very much), Meguiar's Metal Polish, Nano Wax for waxing
the playfield (comes with its own buffing cloth that works very well), both
sandwich baggies and freezer baggies, flexstone, diamond nail file, burnishing
blade, blue stretchy gloves, and last but not least (I'm sure I'm forgetting
something off the top of my dusty head), a digital camera.
As others mention, I start taking pictures with the digital camera. lots of them
since it's a matter of erasing the pictures later if no good. I use a tripod for
most all my pictures since my room is well lit and I don't like flash-back in
some cases). I often transfer my pictures to my computer just in case something
was to happen to the camera card.
I remove the playfield glass and start taking pictures as the game is before
even starting on it. I start at the top from the left, to the center, then to
the right, and I take pictures of everything as I move all the way down the
playfield ensuring my pictures overlap and are close enough there's no doubt
every little nook and cranny is in a photo, then the coin door while it's
closed.
Then I go back and focus on the playfield main parts. Pop bumpers, scoops, wire
forms (if some look close in size I lay a 6 inch ruler beside the wireform as I
take its picture), drop targets, plastics and where they go, posts anywhere they
are visible, etc.
Then I lift up the playfield and do the same thing again from the bottom left,
bottom center, bottom right and then move up ensuring that my pictures overlap.
Then I take pictures of special interest areas on the underside. I focus on
areas like the pop bumpers, drop targets (if any), flippers, scoops, detailed
shots of subways if present, etc. If need be, I put the camera on a timer mode
and point at something with my finger and wait for the picture to fire. I do
this to "point" out something important.
Then I see if I can remove the playfield or not. if it's too much work as in
newer games, I'll leave the playfield in. If it's a SS game or especially an EM,
the playfield is removed and put on two saw horses with foam rubber on each one
that is held in place by stretch wrap (which I can easily remove later when I'm
finished).
Next I start removing plastics from the top of the game. As I remove the screws
I throw them in the magnetic bowl. After removing maybe half of the upper
playfield plastics, I label a baggie with a Sharpie that says "Upper playfield
plastics screws" and I also write the number of them on the baggie although
sometimes this can backfire if I miscount them. I put the plastics in a larger
freezer baggie.
Then I do the next set of plastics that are remaining and do the same thing with
the screws baggie and the remaining plastics in a freezer baggie.
Then it's time for some more digital pictures. I take everything again from the
top to the bottom paying attention to posts and standoffs that were obscured by
the plastics. I also get an idea of where the rings are located.
Next it's time to remove the rings. I print out the pictures I took that showed
the rings (the previous step's pictures), remove a ring, hold it up to a ring
chart page, figure out the ring size and write it on the printed picture showing
the size of each one that I marked using a Bic type of pen (not the newer water
soluble pens which can wash off if wet).
Next thing I go after is miscellaneous playfield parts such as ramps if they are
present. I also take pictures of the ramp and if I find different screw sizes, I
measure them and mark them on the pictures of the ramp area. I also show washers
as a circle on the drawing with a line through it to indicate a screw with a
washer. Any wires I remove from the bottom of the playfield get a label saying
where it went on both the under playfield plug and the ramp plug that goes with
it. they are labeled to say the same thing and everything that is a different
connector gets labeled with a different name to keep things unique. I put the
parts related to a ramp in their own baggy saying something like "right ramp
screws." Any gates associated with a ramp that can be removed goes in the same
baggie. I also remove habitrails if present and put their screws/nuts in a
baggie labeled to indicate which habitrail (if present).
Then it's on to the posts. I use a Ryobi drill with a phillips head bit in place
on an extender shaft and the drill set to low speed and low torque. If the posts
or screws have different sizes in the game, I measure them and show the size of
the post and the screw on the pictures I've printed for that area. I use
something like "P-3/4" and "S-1.5" to show a post height and screw length. If
they have a washer I draw a circle like a washer and show a line going through
it to indicate it's a screw with a washer. I put the posts in the plastic sliced
meet containers. I put the screws in a sandwich baggie labeled "post screws."
Any screws that felt like the wood was stripped gets circled on the printed
picture to indicate I'll have to come back and glue in a narrow dowel (pine or
bamboo skewer) once the playfield has been cleaned.
I keep taking pictures as I go if I think it won't be intuitively obvious (which
it may seem to be at the time you are dissasembling but later not so much).
Never hurts to take too many pictures.
Then I remove any of the metal posts that are present (the kind with a grommet
rubber ring) using a deep socket while being aware there may be a nut on the
underside. if so, I don't raise the playfield yet to remove that post since I
like to raise the playfield as few times as I have to. on older games, I like to
do all of the top of the game and then flip the playfield over since it's on a
pair of sawhorses and it can be a pain to keep flipping the playfield over back
and forth. point is that I try to stick to the top of the playfield and remove
absolutely as much as possible without flipping the playfield over/up.
Take more pictures.
Remove the bulbs noting flasher bulbs on the printout if present. I also store
them in a sliced meat plastic container.
Next is the pop bumpers. I remove any caps and put them in a baggie by
themselves. Then I remove the screws holding the pop bumpers in place and put
them in their own labeled baggie as well. You won't be able to pull them out yet
because in my case, I haven't removed the nuts holding the bumper ring. I take a
picture looking down on the lamp socket so I will know which way it was
installed later.
Next is the wire forms. I use a 3/8 inch wooden dowel as a lever and a pair of
small channel locks and gently pry up under the wireform to remove it. I remove
them all.
I also remove any of the metal flaps on the game typically at the arch at the
top of the playfield and put the flap and its screws in a baggie. I label the
baggie to indicate which flap it was. I often take pictures around this area
since I work on EMs, SS, and DMD games and there can be metal arch guides on
older games that sit behind the flaps.
Next I take more pictures that will focus on the various metal pieces on the top
of the game. I remove the screws but leave them near where they were screwed in
because I'm intersted in the screw size as well as their placement. I take
digital pics of this whole thing for later in case I need it.
Now I'm starting to get winded here explaining this stuff so I'll shorten it up.
I remove all the targets and leaf switches that protrude to the upper side of
the playfield and let them dangle. their wires aren't that long since wire is
expensive for manufacturers so it should be obvious where they go. I take
pictures if not sure.
Then I desolder the pop bumper light wires and since I took pictures of the pop
bumpers I don't need to worry about which way they were oriented. Then I remove
the bumper nuts and pull the pop bumper out from the other side of the
playfield. I put the pop bumper assembly in a larger tupperware box due to their
size. make sure you watch out for the skirt spring and don't lose it (shouldn't
but watch out anyway).
Then I remove any drop target banks and let them hang out of the way. same goes
for older EMs where they have bonus units. I remove them too. I put their screws
in a baggie as well and note the type of screw and its length.
Then the flippers loosening the cinch clamp, pull the flipper out from the other
side of the playfield. Then I remove the coil, wrapping blue painter's tape
around it lengthwise to hold the tube in place since I'm not replacing it yet. I
put the screws involved in a baggie and label it. I have a tendency to put all
the flipper parts in a common freezer baggie. I don't remove anything soldered
unless I absolutely have to. Then I remove the flipper bushing and put it in
with the other flipper parts. I make a note on the picture of the flippers
indicating whether the EOS switch needs to be replaced or not. I always replace
bushings, tubes, and coil stops whether they need it or not. I also mark whether
the fiber link on older games needs to be replaced or not (makes a world of
difference if they are worn).
Time to wrap this up.
Then I tumble all the metal parts for a couple of days. I have baggies that had
screws and parts with their sizes noted on them so I won't have any trouble
returning them to their proper baggie. I buff larger metal parts on a Jet
polisher tool for woodworkers. I have lots of pictures that I've printed and
marked so I keep them together in a folder for later reassembly. Once you do
this a few times you can go to the plastic parts box approach where you just
separate the screws by their length and type. In the early days probalby not,
but as you get more experienced, yes.
I make a complete list of all parts that I will need and then I place my order.
I don't like ordering a few things first and then find out that I need to order
more. It ends up costing more on the shipping and I like everything to arrive
while I'm busy shopping the game. Don't forget flipper buttons, flipper
switches, a plunger, or plunger springs if required.
There are many posts on how to clean the playfield but I will say that I flip
the playfield back over to the upper side and begin cleaning a playfield that
has nothing protruding from it. I use the freeze spray to remove all mylars if
required even if the game only has pop bumper and slingshot mylars. This is
where the plastic razor blade and Orange Power comes in for cleanup.
I use Mean Green to clean the entire playfield and I use a cut up Tshirt cloth
to do this rather than a paper towel. This is also where I decide if I will use
a power cut substance to clean the playfield and probably a Magic Eraser soaked
in Alcohol if it's a SS or older game that had no mylar. After cleaning well I
decide whether I need to do artistic touchups or not.
I also use a burnishing tool and regap switches if needed when I assemble
things. That's another whole story, so I'll end it here.
Hope this helps,
stevebo