On to the playfield!

Out comes a freshly restored PF.. but there's some work left to do..

The back still has lots of grungy crap from fingerprints, solenoid dust, etc - and some scorch marks here and there.



Close up



Tee nuts need to be removed. I'm going to replace them as they are about 7 cents apiece, and I want to move forward with the project tonight. I'll clean them and replenish my supply with them.

Another example of stacked S/N decals



These were hand cut - I decided to just leave them as-is. Removing material could impact the structural integrity of the playfield.



After an initial sanding with 120 grit



Inserts are still filthy, and there's some glue residue left from the inserts being glued.



Glue



Insert is dirty



A bit of a cleanup with ole Nino's favorite elixir, windex, on a terry towel



Clean those inserts on games when you shop them, it makes a HUGE difference!

A couple great cleaning tools for getting into inserts - the large swab is reuseable. Rinse it out and let it dry. The 2nd one is white cotton, much smaller, and lets you get into the tightest cracks. Some of the inserts are too small to clean with the big swab. $3 for 50 of them at a local electronics store. They don't fall apart like cheap 'q-tip' brand swabs.

After cleaning just a few inserts...



Inserts cleaned, look very nice. Mantis protectors test-fit



I like Cliffys, but on a playfield with no wear, these are a better choice.

These brushes from pinrestore.com are great for cleaning the holes in a playfield after it's been buffed out - because the compound gets *everywhere*.



You really need all 3 sizes.



One interesting thing about the protos - the 'alternate' flipper locations



European distributors decided ball times were too long. So, a template was sent out to move the flippers apart a bit. I think I'm going to use the 'original' flipper location so the proto will play like a proto.

T-nutted



Installing posts, etc, using the original plastics to make sure things are in the right places.



Through parts are starting to be installed





Unfortunately, I forgot to pull the 4 top-side t-nuts out before having the playfield cleared.. they don't look as nice as tumbled or new t-nuts, but the risk of removing them is not one I want to take - only 2 are visible once the PF is assembled, and they aren't very visible at all.