The Aussie Pinball Arcade
Aussie Pinball Forums => Restorations => Topic started by: bsa on September 22, 2011, 02:01:41 PM
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Hello Ive decided to attempt a resto on this machine and am a complete novice so i hope i ask too many repeat or silly questions.
The first point is one that gets a lot of coverage, the play field has a large section of mylar (from the snake pit down) and is mostly in good condition, needs a good clean and wax, however the lamp inserts underneath are low or high or cupped and need attention. Around these inserts the mylar is damaged. I am hesitant to remove such a large piece as this machine has been stored in extreme conditions (wet and dry) and looks like the paint is cracked in a number of places under the sheet. Please all or any suggestions needed I want to get the play field right as i see no point in having bumps and hollows anywhere. Thanks Mark.
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Hi Mark !
Tons of info on mylar and contact removal. Type in either word in the search field and enjoy the reading !
In my opinion, that looks like contact and should come off easy using the hair dryer method. If inserts are raised or loose, you sometimes don't have much of an option.
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I agreed, with the shrinkage line I thought maybe contact, so after much reading i thought i would try a small section with the hair dryer and up it came. Sure enough it pulled out a few inserts and some small specks of paint strangely on the yellow areas only. Not a lot of residue glue however what is there is being stubborn (using shellite). I think the paint that did lift will only require waxing for repair none of it deep. Now the pf looks 2 tone old and new LOL. Still plenty of cleaning to go.
Thanks Mark.
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The shrinkage indicates the covering is contact. At a guess, it has probably been there a long time. Contact is always dull due to time spent on the playfield, and you will find it is much thinner than mylar.
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Love finding out it's contact $#$. So much easier. I'm out at my dads at te moment an I'll see if I can get a photo of whatever they used to Mylar my gorgar it feels like those 3d moving pictures you see it's nasty
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Starting to wish i had left it on, there is this fine film of rock hard glue that will not move with shellite or goof off and these products seemed to have dulled the surface. The yellow paint also didnt fair as good as i first thought and is going to require some thinking the photos show the worst.
There is also this chip of paint off his leg, this goes all the way through and is in a high play area, how would i fix this please. These photos were just on the phone and i dont know if they show the hardened glue. Cheers Mark.
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It's a birthmark n his leg. I'll post a picture when I get home and show you what a bad playfield looks like %.%
These few spots can easily be touched up if you take your time or even left as is and regular people won't even notice.
To get off the hard glue try using white spirit great stuff but smells like muddy water
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Thanks ill get some white spirits tomorrow
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Mark,
Glad to see you found the site (directed from the U.K. site)
There are some great people on here and a wealth of knowledge.
Lets hope you get the Gorgar back to its original state, well a playing machine would be good for starters.
D.
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Like all restorations it just keeps growing, all the lamp inserts were loose so are now out and i have noticed that all the coils have been oiled and are now gummed up and slow feeling so i guess they all have to come out and be cleaned...... why did i think a pinball machine was going to be different to a car or a bike resto &^&.
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Like all restorations it just keeps growing, all the lamp inserts were loose so are now out and i have noticed that all the coils have been oiled and are now gummed up and slow feeling so i guess they all have to come out and be cleaned...... why did i think should a pinball machine was going to be different to a car or a bike resto &^&.
Yes - this is exactly the road you go down once you start tinkering with a machine. The playfield was just a teaser, the underside mechanisms will not be the last thing you look at !
With regard to the residue left by the contact - this is a GOOD ! Much better than lifting paint ! You can try white spirits, or for stubborn residue - Goof Off on a rag. This stuff will remove the glue, but be VERY careful as it can lift paint !
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All coils cleaned today. After some internet reading i am starting work on repairing the paint on pf, a bit of trial and error but starting to get it.
I want to order new bulbs any advice, options are:
-LEDs all round
-44 or 47 all round
-combination of 44 on pf and 47 on back board.
Thanks Mark.
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Keep your chin up Mark, all paint work can easily be touched up, like Nino said at least in was contact and didn't remove large areas of artwork.
As for globes, 47s all round if you have to order new bulbs anyway as they don't quite get as hot as 44s, but output almost the same light.
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Still plugging away and after many trials i have had some success repairing the yellow paint. As the photos showed these were small holes about 1ml round and 1 ml deep every time i wiped the paint over it would drag out of the hole, so i ended up putting the paint in a medical syringe with needle and forcing paint into hole leaving a small pimple of paint, leave this overnight to dry and then i used a damp rag held tight over a stiff block and rubbed down the high points. There were hundreds of these but the process didnt really take that long. Over the next few days i will sand and polish the rollovers, i will try and keep as many as original as i can but some are so cupped they will need replacement transfers, should i cut these transfers to the exact size of the rollover then set the lamp cover and transfer flush or should i leave the black collar on the transfer and stick them to the flush lamp cover leaving the black overlap but will be raised the thickness of the transfer ( i hope that made some sense).
I have some novus products 1, 2, 3 and want to use 2 to clean the pf further my question is can i wax the play field after using novus 2 or should i clean it down again with white spirit before waxing.
Sorry about the newby questions.
I have been in contact with Beaky and will be taking him my boards and display (might give him a call and see if i can take them this weekend if possible). Its all getting exciting but im already thinking about what next....
Thanks Mark
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After the Novus 2, go straight to the paste wax - Novus 2 is a cleaner and polisher. Paste wax will really bring out the colors and protect the playfield surface. Sounds like you are really enjoying the process which is great to hear.
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Yep loving it cant wait to get some wax on.
When you say paste wax should this be automotive like turtle or furniture restorer wax.
I have looked over the underside of the board, wiring appears sound, removed drop targets took apart and cleaned. Looking at the earth wire i think i will clean up some areas as i know from experience with bikes and cars this can cause many headaches.
Any suggestion on the lamp cover placement and transfer, saw a thread here that uses matchsticks to keep them flush great idea. Thanks Mark
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I was unhappy with the quality of the lamp transfers so i decided to try and save as many original as possible with as little sanding as possible then polishing with novus three. Unfortunately there were a few that were so cupped that i had to use the transfer the photo shows the top 3 with transfers and (yes the B did cause trouble). I trimmed the transfers to fit then set them flush to the pf nice and smooth, i will now touch up the black ring. I used the match technique but used blue tac instead of silicone. I was surprised how long it took to get these cleaned, flat and polished. Cheers Mark.
PS enjoying everyone else's threads.
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Yep loving it cant wait to get some wax on.
When you say paste wax should this be automotive like turtle or furniture restorer wax.
I use Mothers pure caunauba wax, it is a hard block but softens as you rub it onto a cloth you then apply and it dries hard to a haze again then you buff. Expensive but lasts a very long time
(http://img2.prosperent.com/images/250x250/feeds2.yourstorewizards.com/1166/images/200x200/mo5550.jpg)
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Im glad i tried to save as many lamp inserts original, as after setting some in place i quickly wiped over with shelite and hay presto the ink wiped off so if anyone has a 5000 W/L cover they could sell please let me know. Dropped boards and display off at Beaky (Andrews) today, nice guy sounds confident all can be repaired.
Cheers mark
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Things have been happening however i would more call it a sympathetic repair than a restoration. Awaiting the rebuilt boards and the repairer (a big job) to see if the cabinet and head marry up, heres hoping.
Just some early shots to show you where i started. More recent shots after Beaky's been. Cheers Mark
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some more