The Light at the end of the tunnel is definitely visible now... BIG UPDATE .... Lots of pictures because I cannot be stuffed typing
BackboxThe light panel which holds the lights and displays was a mess and had to be stripped. While it was stripped of all parts, I sanded the back section with emery cloth, and painted the front white. Only a couple of coats, but it will make the illumination of the backglass even and more pronounced.. All the light sockets and display standoffs were replaced with new (Thanks Greg).. Back to the reverse side - the ground braind was corroded and had a green tinge to it. I soaked it in Ranex for 15 minutes and it came up as good as new.. So I reused it. I stapled the ground braid with a furniture staple gun - just a mechanical gun - nothing fancy.
Here's the front ;
The rear section with the new sockets;
The rear section with the wiring installed ;
Pascal PI-X4 Board installation"My hands are F%^king killing me"....
Even pin in every connector that connects to the Pascal Board has been replaced. That means that the machine will be super reliable. These are times when you REALLY need the good quality crimpers - as they make life a lot easier.. This picture was taken after the game was working 100 % with all the connectors done and all voltages checked... Note I have a habit of writing the date on the connectors..
POWER UPThis was done in a phased approach..
First test the input voltages.. ok
Insert J2 into the Pascal board - Power up - Great - it works
Insert the backbox connectors to test GI - Worked
Install the playfield, connect the power (GI / Coil) - Worked
Test all the coils AGAIN
So now insert all connectors - power up the machine and she works
I just had to change the Game from it's factory config of "Genie", to "Sinbad"...
So after all this work - I know the game is almost done... Here's some pictures from Today's effort..
Testing the GI and player 1 display - Scary stuff - Three displays out, but I re charged the three that were not working and they are fine.. Thanks to Mick (Humpalot), for the ONLY displays that worked on first power on..
No Flash - All the lamp sockets are new - so they all work 100%..
After a few games - there's My High Score.... Yes the game works and I played a few games tonight !
Playfield ShotsI had a few issues with the light sockets for the bonus count... The sockets were really poor and I had to soak them in ranex and gently sand them, but the earth strap was very poor. I ended up with a length if wire to each socket and then to the ground point and they all work fine. There's a few niggling problems I will have to deal with, but the game is playable;
With Flash..
Without flash...
What a great game to play - brought back a flood of memories...
Just a few things to go and it will be ready...