The Aussie Pinball Arcade

Aussie Pinball Forums => Restorations => Topic started by: pinoffski on December 21, 2017, 10:01:21 PM

Title: Williams Blackout Pinball Project
Post by: pinoffski on December 21, 2017, 10:01:21 PM
I have been looking for a Williams 1980 Blackout for a few years ..

With 7050 units made it should of not been a hard search.

I was wrong as this did not come here to Australia.


This is a massive project
Title: Re: Williams Blackout Pinball Project
Post by: pinoffski on December 21, 2017, 10:19:46 PM
I had some concerns as the cabinet was painted hammer tone green and grey

There as no cabinet stencils for this pin
Title: Re: Williams Blackout Pinball Project
Post by: pinoffski on December 22, 2017, 04:55:54 PM
Playfield is in great condition as it has full Mylar
plastics are good .

Title: Re: Williams Blackout Pinball Project
Post by: pinoffski on December 22, 2017, 05:01:10 PM
I have stripped playfield of parts.
Bagged and tagged most bits.
Title: Re: Williams Blackout Pinball Project
Post by: pinoffski on December 22, 2017, 06:14:31 PM
With the playfield stripped of parts .

took the chance to remove the Mylar.

 
Title: Re: Williams Blackout Pinball Project
Post by: Strangeways on December 22, 2017, 10:17:49 PM
An interesting project that will keep you busy for quite some time. A rare title, which I'm lucky enough to have in my collection. If you need photos to create stencils, just let me know. My cabinet is very good, just needs a new backglass.

The key to this project is to not become overwhelmed. Work on different stages over time. Even if it become difficult, walk away and return to the game another day. The end product is a rare and interesting title.
Title: Re: Williams Blackout Pinball Project
Post by: goodolddays on December 23, 2017, 11:59:19 AM
Looks like a nice playfield Dave . Will watch your progress . Have fun with the resto
Title: Re: Williams Blackout Pinball Project
Post by: Pop Bumper Pete on December 23, 2017, 01:11:32 PM
interesting looking game
:)
Title: Re: Williams Blackout Pinball Project
Post by: pinoffski on December 23, 2017, 07:39:12 PM
An interesting project that will keep you busy for quite some time. A rare title, which I'm lucky enough to have in my collection. If you need photos to create stencils, just let me know. My cabinet is very good, just needs a new backglass.

The key to this project is to not become overwhelmed. Work on different stages over time. Even if it become difficult, walk away and return to the game another day. The end product is a rare and interesting title.

Thank Mate ,
I do chop and change from project to project and unfortunately i have projects that are in pieces ..
But i have sourced the parts that are needed so there is no real rush to complete them atm.

I really want to get this one done as it is different need to get it finished  before April as i need to have it in the line up for the comp..
everyone has played a Gorgar , Flash and Firepower .

I have removed paint from blackout cabinet..

I think i got lucky as artwork has good colour
Title: Re: Williams Blackout Pinball Project
Post by: pinoffski on December 23, 2017, 07:57:06 PM
Looks like a nice playfield Dave . Will watch your progress . Have fun with the resto

Thanks Dave ,

I wasn't going to do a restore thread ..

Prefer to do thing's in the background but you must of changed my mind after seeing your thread !  @.@
Title: Re: Williams Blackout Pinball Project
Post by: pinoffski on December 23, 2017, 08:28:00 PM
To give some info on how i acquired this pinball..

I had a blackout pinball lined up and unfortunately it was withdrawn from sale .
As i am on the road for most of the year i allways ask everyone about pinball's.

For a year or more i have been looking for one .

My work mates and i dropped in to a pinball dealer to have a look at some games
and i asked the owner have you got a blackout pinball and he said yes i was shocked ..

He gave me a price and i said i would think about it.
So the next week i was down in the area i had a better look at it and after a lot of negotiation we worked out a price .

I was going to buy it as i had already purchased a backglass a i thought the other one was coming.
Title: Re: Williams Blackout Pinball Project
Post by: pinoffski on December 23, 2017, 08:36:10 PM
Purchased parts and a Manuel as there is no download for one ..

Will scan Manuel if you haven't got one Nino  @Strangeways
Title: Re: Williams Blackout Pinball Project
Post by: pinoffski on December 27, 2017, 07:10:15 PM
Just a small update ..
Finally removed the glue from the playfield .
Was just using Isocol and flour and it was taking hours

I got some De-Solv-it and with flour and using a old credit card the glue was easier removed

 
Title: Re: Williams Blackout Pinball Project
Post by: pinoffski on December 27, 2017, 07:15:25 PM
After removing the mylar i noticed that most of the inserts were loose

They have cupping and will have to flatten them .

I am unsure on how to do this ?

Title: Re: Williams Blackout Pinball Project
Post by: Strangeways on December 27, 2017, 08:43:42 PM
An interesting project that will keep you busy for quite some time. A rare title, which I'm lucky enough to have in my collection. If you need photos to create stencils, just let me know. My cabinet is very good, just needs a new backglass.

The key to this project is to not become overwhelmed. Work on different stages over time. Even if it become difficult, walk away and return to the game another day. The end product is a rare and interesting title.

Thank Mate ,
I do chop and change from project to project and unfortunately i have projects that are in pieces ..
But i have sourced the parts that are needed so there is no real rush to complete them atm.

I really want to get this one done as it is different need to get it finished  before April as i need to have it in the line up for the comp..
everyone has played a Gorgar , Flash and Firepower .

I have removed paint from blackout cabinet..

I think i got lucky as artwork has good colour


You could just wax and buff the cabinet and it will look great !
Title: Re: Williams Blackout Pinball Project
Post by: Strangeways on December 27, 2017, 08:54:08 PM
After removing the mylar i noticed that most of the inserts were loose

They have cupping and will have to flatten them .

I am unsure on how to do this ?



Remove the cupped insert. Be careful if there is art on the insert, as this may cause an issue. Use a block of wood roughly the size of a sanding block, and cut the desired wet sandpaper to fit and overlap the wood. place in the vice. Spray water or windex on the sandpaper. Face down, start to sand the insert, going in circles. Observe the insert. If it has artwork starting to sand off - STOP. If not, keep going. continually check that the insert is starting to level. Change to a higher grit. Start at 400, 600, 800 (to flatten) then 1000, 1500 and finally 2000. Polish with novus 2.

Repeat for all the inserts.

If art is being sanded off - Plan B - Find an insert decal kit.

The other option is to buy all new inserts and decals.
Title: Re: Williams Blackout Pinball Project
Post by: pinoffski on January 07, 2018, 11:56:55 PM
Just a small update
Have removed all inserts now
also touched up some of the playflield
Just the Black only

I will say i am getting a bit overwhelmed with all the extra work
as 80 percent of the inserts were loose after i removed the Mylar

as there is no replacement for this playfield and i just don't want to destroy it ...
with a noob mistakes
 
Title: Re: Williams Blackout Pinball Project
Post by: Strangeways on January 08, 2018, 10:13:34 AM
"Noob mistakes" usually happen if you rush things. You will make mistakes from time to time, that's how you learn. Once you level and re-glue your first insert, your confidence will grow. When the playfield is completely done, you will notice the difference visually, and also it will play better. It is not "extra work" - it is "extra fun". STOP when it's not "fun" anymore. Take a break. Then come back to it. Pinball restoration is a marathon, not a sprint race.
Title: Re: Williams Blackout Pinball Project
Post by: goodolddays on January 09, 2018, 07:09:26 PM
Just a small update
Have removed all inserts now
also touched up some of the playflield
Just the Black only

I will say i am getting a bit overwhelmed with all the extra work
as 80 percent of the inserts were loose after i removed the Mylar

as there is no replacement for this playfield and i just don't want to destroy it ...
with a noob mistakes
 

Keep up the great work Dave . I think Nino is spot on with his advice too :)


I made a noob mistake with my Space Odyssey playfield swap which I must mention in that thread when I update it 
Title: Re: Williams Blackout Pinball Project
Post by: pinoffski on January 10, 2018, 08:07:28 PM
Thanks Dave & Nino
The advice and support is gold..

Removed the bumpers and the plastic that surrounded them with Loctite freeze spray only had minor paint removed

Masked playfield and put in ear plugs in the light globe inserts
for a Refresh to the white that is under the plastics .

have not used the air brush in at least 2 years ..

it is not perfect but i a basically happy with the result

Wife thought the white did not match but after i showed her that that bumpers still have the the old lacquer / coating over it 






 
Title: Re: Williams Blackout Pinball Project
Post by: goodolddays on January 10, 2018, 09:04:30 PM
Looking good Dave .


I will soon be getting to try out some airbrushing myself when I attempt to spray the red back into my Space Odyssey glass.


Have only briefly mucked around with it once before
Title: Re: Williams Blackout Pinball Project
Post by: Strangeways on January 12, 2018, 10:24:03 AM
Thanks Dave & Nino
The advice and support is gold..

Removed the bumpers and the plastic that surrounded them with Loctite freeze spray only had minor paint removed

Masked playfield and put in ear plugs in the light globe inserts
for a Refresh to the white that is under the plastics .

have not used the air brush in at least 2 years ..

it is not perfect but i a basically happy with the result

Wife thought the white did not match but after i showed her that that bumpers still have the the old lacquer / coating over it 






 

Amazing what a difference to the overall playfield when you refresh the white areas.
Title: Re: Williams Blackout Pinball Project
Post by: pinoffski on January 21, 2018, 08:17:27 PM
Today i start to level out the inserts .
I tried something different as i have seen that people use superglue to level out the insert'

I used KBS ClearCoat  with some success .

Was done in two batches the first lot i had some surface bubbles .

And the second batch i had the aircon on at 24 deg and had no surface bubbles .

have sanded some that have not worked out .
 
Title: Re: Williams Blackout Pinball Project
Post by: pinoffski on February 02, 2018, 07:48:32 PM
Have started putting the inserts back in not completed as i am away for work again for the next 2weeks.

Sent the boards to Ken and they arrived back early in the week so i had a present to open today

very happy  #*#






 
Title: Re: Williams Blackout Pinball Project
Post by: Strangeways on February 03, 2018, 01:18:47 PM
Ken does an amazing job saving these old boards !
Title: Re: Williams Blackout Pinball Project
Post by: pinoffski on February 16, 2018, 08:58:14 PM
Progress have now been slow .. !!!

back on the road for work....
unfortunately i broke a insert so i then ordered some but i am not happy with the colour
so i removed one from a flash playfield this afternoon ..

it is a better match
the one on the right is the original and the one on the left is the one from Flash
and then there is the other @.@


 
Title: Re: Williams Blackout Pinball Project
Post by: goodolddays on February 17, 2018, 02:15:10 PM
Lucky you had a spare PF to rob from, Dave
Title: Re: Williams Blackout Pinball Project
Post by: Strangeways on February 21, 2018, 09:42:13 PM
As long as they match your playfield.

Remember that the inserts in your game have been subjected to uniform years of a hot and bright #44lamp behind it. That new insert will more than likely be an exact colour matched with a NOS playfield.
Title: Re: Williams Blackout Pinball Project
Post by: pinoffski on June 02, 2018, 06:05:23 PM
My apologies to the members here as i have not updated this thread for a long time
will update the progress on how i finished this pinball..
Title: Re: Williams Blackout Pinball Project
Post by: pinoffski on June 02, 2018, 06:25:46 PM
I made the decision to reglue the inserts with Loctite super gelfor me with my lac of experience with this product i had some issues

 I was using a steel ruler to level out the inserts and i was not should if they were level with the playfield
so i cut a peice of perpex ..
Title: Re: Williams Blackout Pinball Project
Post by: pinoffski on June 02, 2018, 06:28:32 PM
Some pics of touch upsBefore and after
Title: Re: Williams Blackout Pinball Project
Post by: pinoffski on June 11, 2018, 07:02:49 PM
Playfield clear coated
Title: Re: Williams Blackout Pinball Project
Post by: pinoffski on June 11, 2018, 07:04:47 PM
Putting new posts in
Title: Re: Williams Blackout Pinball Project
Post by: ddstoys on June 12, 2018, 07:41:41 AM
Looking good


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Title: Re: Williams Blackout Pinball Project
Post by: pinnies4me on June 13, 2018, 07:53:13 AM
Never played this game. Love to see a gameplay vid when done.
Title: Re: Williams Blackout Pinball Project
Post by: pinoffski on June 16, 2018, 07:16:52 PM
Playfield almost back together
Was very ambitious hoping in would be playable
It started up ...
Title: Re: Williams Blackout Pinball Project
Post by: pinoffski on June 16, 2018, 08:52:46 PM
I decided to take it to a mate to sort out the issues
He got it running someone had put a new coil in and the diode was the wrong way sorted out GI lights must of had a bad globe as we replace them one by one and the fuse didn't blow..
 
Title: Re: Williams Blackout Pinball Project
Post by: pinoffski on June 16, 2018, 08:59:10 PM
Changed out coin door  back to original one
and removed steel plate was lucky there was no damage under it.

Title: Re: Williams Blackout Pinball Project
Post by: pinoffski on June 16, 2018, 09:07:43 PM
Had some issues with displays so i cleaned all the contacts last night seems to be reliable now.
Title: Re: Williams Blackout Pinball Project
Post by: Strangeways on June 20, 2018, 10:39:36 AM
Nice ! How does it play ? Is it as good as Firepower and other games ?
Title: Re: Williams Blackout Pinball Project
Post by: pinoffski on June 22, 2018, 08:43:04 PM
Nice ! How does it play ? Is it as good as Firepower and other games ?
Blackout is a very simple game. Shoot the targets to complete red, green and yellow and then shot for the hole to achieve Blackout. The left spinner shot is a cool shot through both spinners to complete the Orbit.


Compared to Firepower, Blackout is more fun and good beginner game but is not as challenging for an experienced player it is still cool to play due to the awesome sounds. Firepower will kick your ass and is a lot more of a challenge and is ultimately better as it has multi ball.
I have Blackout on the hardest settings with no extra ball.
Playing on 3 Balls only.
Would be more of a challenge if you could change settings so you would have to shoot down red, green and yellow targets all in one ball to achieve blackout as it keeps the memory of the targets that are completed for the next ball.
Title: Re: Williams Blackout Pinball Project
Post by: Crashramp on July 04, 2018, 06:15:12 PM
Very very nice, great stuff.


 ^^^
Title: Re: Williams Blackout Pinball Project
Post by: pinball god on July 24, 2018, 09:10:50 PM
Great resto thread and happy to see you finally got to the finish line.  Well done mate
Title: Re: Williams Blackout Pinball Project
Post by: pinoffski on July 27, 2018, 11:01:00 PM
Very very nice, great stuff.


 ^^^
Great resto thread and happy to see you finally got to the finish line.  Well done mate

Thanks


as with pinballs you are allways working on them
Now just fine tuning it to play nice set of drop targets needs work and 1 pop bumper is slow

still need to paint spinners and fit speaker ...
 
Title: Re: Williams Blackout Pinball Project
Post by: Inkochnito on August 30, 2018, 05:01:46 AM

Don't forget to add fuses to the bridge rectifiers or put in one of my Bridge Boards.
Nino has them for you if you want it.
http://www.rtbb.com.au/catalog/product_info.php?products_id=3890
It would be a shame to see your work go up in flames if things go bad in the rectifiers.


More info is on my website www.inkochnito.nl (click on the Bridge Board image).

Title: Re: Williams Blackout Pinball Project
Post by: Inkochnito on August 30, 2018, 05:09:25 AM
I wanted to lower the value for the GI fuse, which is 20A original.
If you look closely at the wires, you will see there are four wires comming together at the fuse.
Two of them goto the backbox.
These can be split into 2 strings of 19 and 20 lamps.
That way a 5A fuse for each will suffice.
The other two are for the playfield string and the cabinet (coin door).
The playfield can't be split and will have to be fused with 10A.
The coin door only has 2 or 3 lamps, so an 1A or 2A fuse will do.

Title: Re: Williams Blackout Pinball Project
Post by: Inkochnito on August 30, 2018, 05:11:10 AM
Also a wise precaution is a Special Solenoid Saver board.
https://nvram.weebly.com/repair--conversion-kits.html

Title: Re: Williams Blackout Pinball Project
Post by: pinoffski on September 01, 2018, 07:20:42 PM
Here is a vid of machine playing didn't reach blackout ...
Not the best video quality ..
but i still thought i would share


Title: Re: Williams Blackout Pinball Project
Post by: riverinapinball on September 02, 2018, 10:59:05 AM
Cool looking game!


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Title: Re: Williams Blackout Pinball Project
Post by: Strangeways on September 02, 2018, 07:39:46 PM
REALLY nice game !
Title: Re: Williams Blackout Pinball Project
Post by: symonz on April 09, 2019, 08:59:00 AM
Fantastic restoration which I recently had the pleasure to play, well done Dave.


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Title: Re: Williams Blackout Pinball Project
Post by: Retropin on April 09, 2019, 07:58:18 PM
Just a small update ..
Finally removed the glue from the playfield .
Was just using Isocol and flour and it was taking hours

I got some De-Solv-it and with flour and using a old credit card the glue was easier removed

 

For future reference. White Spirit ( Available at Bunnings) which is a bit like Turps in that you can use it to mix with or clean enamel paint, turns the glue to a loose liquid like state and it can be easily wiped off with a rag. White Spirit will not affect cured paint.. same as turps, so its perfectly safe to use. You can also remove all the mylar  if you are patient enough. Ive used it on the most fragile of playfields and all the artwork has remained intact..

Gav..
Title: Re: Williams Blackout Pinball Project
Post by: Retropin on April 09, 2019, 08:02:00 PM
Nice game BTW.. spinner to both flippers.. my kind of machine!