The Aussie Pinball Arcade
Aussie Pinball Forums => Restorations => Topic started by: DSB on September 05, 2013, 09:11:33 PM
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I thought I'd start to document the work I have done on my machine. This is my first major Restore. Its been a slow process but here is what I have done so far.(Sorry no photos to this point.)
Playfield stripped and sent it for restoration.
85% of the playfield parts and circuit boards cleaned.
Plastics are in excellent condition.
Playfield wiring loom cleaned.
Coils cleaned as best as I could and new paper wraps and sleeves fitted.
Flippers cleaned and re-built with new bushes and coils.
Thing stripped and cleaned.
Book case stripped and cleaned.
New pop bumpers top side, electric chair, main ramp with stainless flaps, book case and stand up targets are waiting to go in.
I have LEDs waiting to go in.
What I plan to do next while waiting for the field! Structurally the cabinet is in perfect condition but I have new cabinet art to install as the original colours have faded. The plan is to sand, fill and re spray the cabinet before installing them. Not sure what to do with the yellow warning lettering on the back?
New coin door to go in.
Hopefully polish the lock down bar, side rails, legs, etc.
and finally the back box boards seem relatively untouched but with hopefully go to Beaky for a tune up.
That's about it, so any advice, tips, comments good are bad along the way would be appreciated
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Good luck with the project. Its very satisfying to bling a game.
I think there are stencils around to allow you to redo the warning. Try Google to see if you can find some.
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I have the artwork for the backbox warning which you could give to a screen printer to make you a screen (which I think is around the $50) if you want it, but the ai file is 3.8mb so would have to email it
http://aussiepinball.com/index.php?topic=10012.0
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This title looks and plays amazing when restored.
Ramp - Buy a new one from www.rtbb.com.au - Don't refit the old one unless it is in excellent condition.
Bookcase - New
Lock down bar and side rails are grained - not polished. If you want the original look, regrain them.
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Great pin TAF, best of luck ^^^
more pics ()
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Thanks Guys!
I will post more detailed pics as I progress, I will most likely start to strip the cabinet or work on the main ramp this weekend.
Swinks- Thanks, The file would be fantastic. I would like to try and keep the machine as original looking as possible, I'll PM you when I am closer to needing the warning label.
Strangeways-Thanks- I already have a new clear ramp to go in but I have bought a few things from RTBB and found him very reliable.
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Got to replace the main ramp this weekend. Here is some pics of the existing ramp. Looks like it has never had a clean!
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I clean and polished the brackets and screws with Autosol paste, Re-grained the guides as best as I could with Scotchbrite pads. Installed new stainless ramp flaps to the new clear ramp which I am very happy with. Cleaned the wiring loom and switches.
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And here is the finished product! I am very happy with it. ^^^ I just need to order some screws which are missing because the original ramp had some odd ones in it. Time to bag and store it ready for the re-build.
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Beautiful! There's a lot of work cleaning up those ball gates and other metal parts ready for the new ramps. Very much worth it though. Good luck with the rest of your resto. ^^^
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very nice work on the ramp, well done ^^^
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Ok I have redone the artwork, instead of just cleaning up file that was given to me, which meant re-writing everything and aligning everything.
There are a few things ever so slightly different compared to the original like spacing is slightly different and the coma's are a little different. The text is all sentences now not individual letters so the file is half the size so can not post up at the thread for anyone to down load and get there own screen made to do all their own restores.
http://aussiepinball.com/index.php?topic=10012.0
The screen shot is just for a reference but the art file is the same but an illustrator file which a screen printer will be able to use and create a screen. The black box is 18.5 inches wide x 16 inches high.
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Awesome swinks! Hopefully I will start to strip the cabinet this weekend. Any idea what I should do with the patent labelling?
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Done..... #@#
Was actually doing it while you posted
go to this thread
http://aussiepinball.com/index.php?topic=11254.new#new
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I have started to strip the cabinet. More bits and pieces in there than you realise. Normal type damage and wear on the cabinet I guess. Also some previous history with a boarding pass and chewing gum stuck on it.
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Wrapped with the circuit boards which are pretty much untouched but they will still go to Beaky for a tune up. Also a picture of how I have been documenting what screws and bolts go in what piece. I have about 200 photos so far.
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Ramps look great. Good luck with the rest.
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Some more progress this weekend. Some very rusted bolts to sort out. First of all I soaked the heads in turps to which after a wipe removed the paint very well. Second a dip in Ranex which cleaned them up perfectly. Finally three coats of paint. After a bit of testing I went with a flat black enamel as it seems to blend nicely with the new coin door and cabinet decals. Also a good use for an old beer carton.
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Have painted the head box hinges which have come up amazing with little prep.
I have also taken Swinks' back box warning and patent file to a screen printer who had no trouble opening it. He will do the screen and print it for $80. Pretty happy with that. $#$
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I have also taken Swinks' back box warning and patent file to a screen printer who had no trouble opening it. He will do the screen and print it for $80. Pretty happy with that. $#$
great to hear, make sure to post a photo here and in the free file thread to encourage others.
project is looking good.
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great to hear, make sure to post a photo here and in the free file thread to encourage others.
Will do! Cheers Swinks
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Small steps at this stage. I have refurbished the lock down bar mechanism. Some pictures of the original. It was rusted down to the base metal so I ended up stripping it clean and spraying it with an aluminium rust spray.
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Some pictures of the completed bar. I Printed the labels with a matte finish photo paper with a sticky back. (Thanks for the tips Freiherr) They look and feel good to me. I'll guess its a wait and see if they long lasting.
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Keep it up champ Excellent work ^^^
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Great work so far - keep the updates coming !
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Very nice ^^^
The ink and label should last and look good over time so long as they are not extensively exposed to sun UV.
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No turning back now! Here are a few photos of the cabinet damage before we started work. I'm lucky enough to have a friend with a shed, some good sanding equipment and most of the tools we needed to strip it. I had a big what have I done moment as the art started to come off. ^&^
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First we sanded most of the artwork off then we filled any big holes with timber dowels glued them in with quick dry araldite. Then after using a chisel to trim the dowels we used Selleys two part builders bog to fill the remaining dings and depressions. This bog was perfect for the job. It dried quick and sanded down perfectly. A bit more sanding inside and out and a couple of beers later I was feeling much better about the project. I'm happy with the result, Very smooth and straight. On to the painting next.
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I have been busy patching, sanding, patching, sanding, patching and sanding the cabinet. WOW! A much bigger job than I had anticipated but hopefully worth the effort! I will try an under coat this weekend. I have decided to go with an automotive acrylic lacquer as suggested by a few on this site. I'll post my results after. In the mean time I have refurbished the lighting back board with white acrylic lacquer from a spray can which has come up really nice. I have also re printed the label. I stuck some clear adhesive on the sticker with the protective its plastic left on the upper side side which gives it the original smooth feeling. I'll see how it lasts, I guess time will tell.
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Looking good Mate ^^^
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^^^ Great stuff! New cab decals will look sensational, TAF is a beautiful looking game when restored. Keep the updates coming.
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No turning back now ^^^
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I have had a go at spraying the cabinet with good and bad results. I used Duxone acrylic lacquer primer and top coat which I matted down slightly. The automotive paint store people were very helpful with my questions and lack of knowledge. What a great primer, goes on thick and sands off easy. The primer does fur the timber on the first coat but after a sand and a second coat comes out great. As you can see the head box has come out fantastic. Unfortunately due to me being impatient and ignoring the recoat time it seems the side of the main cabinet has a few shrink marks as you can see in the third picture. Not to bad but I have plenty of paint left over so I will patch them and recoat. I won't move on until I am happy with the paint. A steep learning curve but I feel I could nail it next time. YES! already thinking of the next machine. ^&^
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Second go at spraying the cabinet. Why do it once when you can do it twice I say! @.@ Decided to redo the whole cabinet to keep it as uniform as possible. Set up the professional booth again %.% Managed to get a few undercoats on and sanded to a nice finish. It seems there is no problems this time. The top coats may have to wait til next week.
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Its been a long process but I have finally finished the cabinet painting. You don't realise how much difference there is until you look at the before and after shots. Makes the effort seem more worthwhile. If all goes well, there will be decals on in the next post!
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Decals are on! $#$ I tried the wet method on one side of the main and the dry method on the other side. For me the dry method was the go. I did the wet method first and though it was pretty good but I noticed some very minor imperfections " ripples" in some spots which were not on the cabinet before I started. So minor that I could not get a picture of them. My guess after much thought was that the water soaked though the paint and caused the wood grain to swell? The ripples came up after 5 minutes after the decal went on. After a about 48 hours the ripples seem to flattened out significantly to the point where I am now happy with the result. Heart in the mouth stuff.
After that I decided the dry method was worth a go. I followed this You Tube pretty much exactly http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=azMylV2PAYM (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=azMylV2PAYM). It worked an absolute treat! I would recommend it to any one considering re decaling especially if it your first time and you are not 100% sure if the paint has sealed the wood. A slow method but there was very little chance of a bubble forming. After a while I felt very comfortable with it.
Next thing is to screen print the warning labels.
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Looks great, DSB. ^^^
After trying both methods on numerous pins I have found the dry method is the clear winner. The main advantage is that the decals are fixed straight away and you can flip the cabinet over and do the other side immediately. Like the vid shows, just line up the cabinet edge, peel away the backing and lay it down a couple inches at a time.
Fortunately TAF is mostly black artwork around the cabinet edge so artwork decal alignment doesn't present too many issues in that respect.
Keep up the pics. Watching with interest.
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Thanks Pinsanity, I spent a lot of time trying to decide which method to use. I'm glad I tried both methods for my interest but I agree with you that the dry is the winner at least for me.
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very nice work ^^^, it is looking beautiful and you should be proud.
looking forward to seeing the warning labels on
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Good work, coming along very nicely.
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Very nice - well done !
I note you have correctly trimmed the decals on the edges. It is these small details that make the difference. Keep up the good work !
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I note you have correctly trimmed the decals on the edges. It is these small details that make the difference
Yes, I trimmed the edges with a super sharp craft knife and a straight edge. Then ran a black sharpie around all the edges wiping off any excess pen marks as I went.
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Nice work ^^^
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Great job, keep up the good work
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:D I have had a great day on the cabinet with it being very close to finished now! First of all the screen printing is done with great results. Thanks to Swinks for the AI files. The screen printer had no problem with them. Here is some pictures of the finished prints.
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Sorry for multiple posts but I have a few more pictures to show. I found on the net a good way to stick the side rails on. Not sure how you other guys do it but I just peeled a small piece of the backing at the top end and folded it down at 90 degrees. Then I bolted the rail at the front end and stuck the other end down with the backing sticking down. Then I simply pulled on the backing and presto, the rail was in the perfect position.
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Last pictures for now. The earth braid went in with no problem. A job I really enjoyed for some reason. !@# The circuit boards are back in. Thanks to Beaky for going over them! He found some corrosion from a leaky cap that I would never of seen. The usual stuff was replaced. caps, rectifiers, header terminals, etc. He also installed a lithium battery which sits nice on the CPU board. I just need to install the wiring loom and some bits and pieces and its ready for the playfield.
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beautiful work, looking brand new
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I found a good way to laminate labels and put sticky on the back at the same time using this Xyron Creative Station. Worked well for me on the tech chart in the back box. Looks and feels pretty much like the original.
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Nice tip on the laminate/adhesive. Thanks, and keep up the good work.
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I have been working on the cabinet and finally managed to turn the machine on! I did look away as I flicked the switch. :lol but it fired up perfectly. $#$ So now I have a gold ROM installed a new topper and some Cointaker LEDs in the back box. I have also been rebuilding the assemblies including the bookcase which is looking sweeeeet. Hopefully the next post will have some big playfield updates. #@#
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Nice tip on the laminate/adhesive. Thanks, and keep up the good work.
Thanks mate. If you are thinking of getting one make sure you buy a laminate/adhesive cartridge with it as I found out the cartridge that it comes with only puts sticky on the back with no laminate.
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Perfect job. You should be very proud at such a excellent result so far.
Machine will look n play brand new.
How many people can say they own a brand new The Addams Family, let alone have played one straight off the production line. Yours looks that good.
What a beauty. I want one ! lol Great job, great work.
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Excellent work, better then new.
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Exceptional work - you should be very proud.
A quick tip before dropping the playfield in. Don't fully populate it as it will be too heavy to lift and you risk scratching the internal paintwork. Put some thin rags or newspaper down the side of the inside of the cabinet.
Better still - If you are not installing mirror blades, go to bunnings and find a roll of adhesive backed felt. These are used for the bottom of chairs and tables so they don't scratch the floor. You will find them perfect for sticking along the wood guides on the playfield. Then you will NEVER scratch the internal paint work. I place them the full length of the wooden guides. They will also protect the section near the swamp with the ball gate - this ALWAYS scratches the side wall of the cabinet.
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Thanks Guys!
Not installing mirror blades so the felt you suggested is a great idea. Thanks for the tip ^^^
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$#$ $#$ $#$
I have received my playfield from Tim at HRP and am blown away with the finish. Smooth as glass. () Here's some before pictures for a comparison of the state it was in.
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And here is some after shots. A massive improvement. Can't wait to start the rebuild. Thanks Tim! Tim has also posted a very short video on You Tube if anyone is interested. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SGrr86huADI&list=PLB4C2CE8C55F257C0 (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SGrr86huADI&list=PLB4C2CE8C55F257C0)
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Sooo jealous ^^^
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All new pop bumpers in. Under side of the playfield populated and the wiring loom on. What a mess, but getting close!
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9 months later and finally the end product! $#$ Putting some protective padding on the sides of the playfield was a great idea as the hood was up an down like a yo-yo there for a while. Played a few games and after a few adjustments it plays perfect. I'm super happy with result. I can say for certain I wouldn't of got this sort of result without the huge amount of info on this forum. Thanks.... I'm off to play now!!!!
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Wow, that game has come up beautifully! Well done, it looks fantastic. #*#
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WOW - Fantastic result - You should be proud @@*
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great work ^^^
nice to be finished, but now you need a new project *%*
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Thanks guys, I have learnt a lot with this project and will do a couple of things different on the next one.
nice to be finished, but now you need a new project
One step ahead of you joele. I have a project Indiana Jones in the garage ready to start! I think I must a bit be crazy ^&^
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Thanks guys, I have learnt a lot with this project and will do a couple of things different on the next one.
What would you do differently???
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Fantastic result Joele it looks great well done
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What would you do differently???
Good question, looking back it is simple now but not so obvious then. One of the main things would be not to order parts as I go. Postage adds up fast! Maybe a list on the wall of parts and part numbers I need as I work, then once the break down is complete find the best supplier for each part and order them in one hit.
Sounds stupid but one of the hardest things for me was simply cleaning parts which also I found to be one of the main jobs of the restoration. Even with the abundant info on sites like this, working out which cleaner and method to use on particular parts. Autosol, Ranex, metho, degreaser, nifty, novus, ultra sonic, tumblers and the list goes on and on. What works with what is something that just takes time I guess. It was bit disheartening to try a product and find that part covered in rust the next day so then you have either buy a new one or strip it down again paint, plate or clear coat it. So frustrating and time consuming!
I would defiantly spend more time on the cabinet prep before painting. A lot of sanding and patching between paint coats increased the paint time greatly. Also had a paint cracking issue which I think was from poor painting technique. I was happy with the final product though but it could be done in haft the time I recken.
And lastly each to there own but after I tried both the dry and wet cabinet art application method the dry is the way I'll do it from now on.
So mainly things that I was only going to learn by giving it a go.
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One day I will buy one. This is awesome