TAG - Thunderbirds Pinball - parts update thread

[Homepin]

[Retropin]

Holy crap.. didn't think for one moment you would be making your own sleeves as well. Im with Daniel here.. must be a nightmare trying to list all the parts big and small that you need to get this to completion.. I cant even remember all the parts required to fix a damn machine let alone build one..

Fantastic stuff Mike.. all power to you !

[delarge]

Wow, this is turning into an awesome project. It's g

[delarge]

Posting on an iPhone. Take 2.

Wow, this is turning into an awesome project. It's going to be a hard slog in the beginning, but I can see the potential for the future....and no paying license fees for parts? Thunderbirds seems to be a popular theme (even if the majority of Americans don't get it) and I can see it translating well to pinball. All going well, this will hopefully mean more machines in the future and parts at the ready.

Cheers!
Adam.

[Homepin]

[swinks]

interesting bracket, assuming some of the new punched and pressed parts, maybe for the flipper ass. etc.

not to be picky but noticed some edges and holes have chamfers / fillets and others don't and the brace in the centre - does your guy that is designing have punch / press experience? Tricky business press work, shrink and and shear points etc. I would be inclined to round out the brace in the corner and have 2 thinner ones with a slight taper and not so vertical. Also design with all sharp edges and have the completed brackets chucked in a large rumbler to remove all sharp edges. Just trying to help as some press re-work can be an undesired cost.

[Homepin]

Thanks for the comments. All drawings I show are preliminary only and the finished items will differ greatly. We will be doing all of the stamping "in-house" on our own machines and will not be farming the work out. Any changes or tweaks will be able to be done on the fly in the Homepin factory to perfect each part.

 

[Homepin]

These are all "run of the mill" parts but still have to be drawn, moulds and dies made and the parts produced for this and future pinball projects.

[Homepin]

I have bought this refurbished Wave Soldering Machine and a three meter motorised assembly line (not shown in the pic) on the proviso it will fit in my service elevator - it will be "touch and go" and might have to be pulled apart to get it to the 5th floor?

[Homepin]

I spent the entire morning organising a modest first aid kit including signage in English and Chinese - sometimes the smallest things take the most effort and time!!!!!

[Homepin]

I now have a component lead cutting machine and a lead forming machine. Still waiting on the cutting machine for resistors but that should be here in a couple of weeks.
That will complete the PCB assembly line equipment. The first pic is the lead cutter and the second two pics show the lead bending/forming machine and auto sorter. All of this equipment together with the auto assembly bench and the Wave solder machine will give me one of the most up to date PCB fabrication facilities available anywhere.

[Caveoftreasures]

Well done Mike.

Thunderbirds are Go ! 

[Homepin]

Another new machine - a vacuum former. This is being overhauled for me and should be delivered in a couple of weeks along with a playfield "bed of nails" hydraulic press for pressing the location points into the underside of playfields.

I hope to be able to use this to make some playfield toys and possibly some ramps although I am chasing a 3D wire forming machine to make ramps at the moment.

[pinnies4me]

Each of these updates reminds me what a massive undertaking this really is. Kudos to you Mike for this project!! 

[ddstoys]

There is a machine to do wire ramps?  Bloody hell how did you know where to start