Attn - Pin2000 Owners. RFM and Star Wars Episode 1

[Caveoftreasures]

Attention Pinball 2000 Owners - Revenge from Mars and Star Wars Episode One.


I wanted to ask some questions and share some information. It seems there arent many pin2000 owners around. I know a couple but hope the numbers are higher ?

BACKGROUND.
I purchased a Revenge from Mars and a Star Wars Episode 1 during late 2010. Both machines were in excellent condition. In fact the SW Episode 1 was brand new (BNIB) and was a brand new conversion kit. Playing a brand new Star Wars was a real buzz. Seeing the playfield played for the first time with everything brand spanking new and shiny and working 100 percent was great. Its what the people on the Williams line would have seen. Pretty cool.

MISSION.
To match the brand new playfield of SW Ep1, and the fully shopped Revenge from Mars, I wanted the factory monitor (screens) 2 carry the same bright colours.
So with the advice of Andrew (Beaky), we purchased all brand new caps n bits n pieces to over haul the factory CRT Monitor Chasis, and get those colours back to the very best we could. After Andrew weaved his magic and removed the CRT Monitors chasis (5 minute job), and after he spent apx 1 hour replacing all the caps, we re-installed the Chasis to the rear of the monitor and turned her on. WHAT A BIG DIFFERENCE ! The colours were dramatically brighter (30 percent) and we adjusted the brightness controls (located at the front of the machine under the translite- 5 small white plastic trimpots) and there is a adjustment on the monitors chasis as well.

RESULTS.
Now, the next step. Andrew purchased a brand new "Degausing Wand" from ebay for a huge price of apx $5.  I didnt know what it was, but I soon learnt it was a electronic wand that plugs into 240 Volts (or whatever volts each country has if u bought one in the USA etc), and u wave it over the monitor whilst the machine is turned on and it decreases and eliminates unwanted magnetic fields.
What this really means, is after a CRT monitor has been used for years, it has a uneven spread of colour thru-out the picture tube/screen. WHAT A DIFFERENCE this degausing wand made. The colours all went back to the same intensity to the whole screen.

QUESTIONS.
What i wanted to know, does anyone on here ever remember seeing a brand new Pinball 2000 RFM or SW Episode 1 on site anywhere, or a brand new one when they first went on sale at any seller back 10 years ago ?
Did anyone here ever own a New In Box RFM or Star Wars Ep 1, or ever buy a New Conversion kit for SW Ep1.

It seems Brand New Pinball 2000 models back in the day were few n far between for private purchases ? maybe only the operators got the majority BNIB ?.
Anyones memory from those days would be appreciated.

P.S-I highly recommend repacing caps on the monitors chasis, degause the screen, adjust your colour n brightness levels, it makes a huge difference.
I will get Andrew to provide a complete list of the parts/caps needed, which totalled about $25 only, the list on clays guide and a few other places is wrong n incomplete,
and will get Andy to provide a link to the ebay link for the degausing wand which is a must.

Any memories from year 2000, 2001 would be great to hear. ! THANKS  

[beaky]

ok i will start with the link for the degaussing wand.
http://cgi.ebay.com.au/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=300493844698&ssPageName=STRK:MEWNX:IT
it cost me $8.05 AU including postage. a lot cheaper than the one i bought back in 1993, it cost me $100. of course it was bigger and had a metal case but this ebay one works fine.

I did find that they where all in tolerance but they where all to the negative side of the tolerance (i.e. a 100uf cap was 90uf)
most of the new caps where +10% tolerance.
all but 2 of the caps where standard 85 deg caps, 2 are 110 deg caps

I have a cap meter but i have no way of testing the ESR of the removed caps so who knows how high the ESR is on the old caps.

I removed & checked all the polypropylen & Polyester  high voltage caps and all where in tolerance


no dry joints where found.

[FirePower]

There's probably not that many Pin2000 owners out there, but a few of us will have arcade games with dodgy monitors in our collections, so without going too far off subject for this forum be aware of some potential dangers involved with monitors - there are high voltages that can discharge through you with lethal results if work on them.

This is a fair guide to cap replacement http://www.alsarcade.com/capkit.htm  including discharge techniques

and http://homearcade.org/BBBB/monitor.html  might help with monitor identification and some parts lists.

[Caveoftreasures]

Firepower, that was a good idea to add that info.

Because I work with electronics everyday, and so does Andrew, he knew the dangers of a picture tube holding some voltage when removing the suction cap style plug that does fit directly into the rear of the picture tube.

Because we carry electrician screw drivers on us all day, everyday, we knew to simply use the insulated screwdriver whilst wearing safety boots to remove the lead.

There will be no need for any Pinball 2000 owner to have a dodgy monitor anymore as the results of cap replacement and degausing will increase the colour and performance of the original chasis moniotor dramatically. Makes it close to being like brand new again. 

Wish i could find some stories of brand new Pinball 2000 owners. 
 

[FirePower]

Because we carry electrician screw drivers on us all day, everyday, we knew to simply use the insulated screwdriver whilst wearing safety boots to remove the lead.
 

You really want to discharge it.  

Brett, keep in mind the readers of this site are wide with extremely varied interests, skills and understanding. A casual comment like this can be very misleading - if people don't understand the significance of the dangers they can easily be led into very dangerous, potentially lethal  situations.

Folks - if you don't understand what we're talking about it's best not to muck around with monitors - get help from someone who is knowledgeable.

It really can be lethal

[Strangeways]

Thanks for documenting your findings, Brett and Andrew - Very interesting.

I would like to stress that the warning Firepower has made regarding the discharging of the monitor cannot be taken for granted. CRT monitors can hold a charge and proper precautions need to be observed. If ever in doubt, please ask before trying to discharge a monitor.

I'll be following this thread with interest as I have a SWEP1 in line for a resto - so thanks again guys 

[beaky]

sorry guys it's my fault, I didn't explain all the details to brett  Here is a link on how to discharge a CRT monitor.http://www.wikihow.com/Discharge-a-CRT-Monitor
 If you haven't done this before or if you are not experienced in doing this get someone who has experience in this to help you.


  

[Caveoftreasures]

Good call guys re the safety angle. 

When Andrew did it all, he did it like he had done it a million times. It took him a minute only, and explained "most" of it, but left the part about arcing the monitor out against the metal chasis etc with a screwdriver which sounds like it also might be a "short cut" which may not be correct for anyone not experienced with these monitors ! 

Anyone doing any work on a Pin2000 monitor/monitor chasis, it might be a good idea to PM Andrew (Beaky) who has alot of experience, or PM me and I can give you Andys mobile number (he works with me most days).

     I am glad the safety issue re Pin2000 monitors has been raised, because most people would not know that even though the machine is completely turned off, and power disconnected, the monitor can still be dangerous/lethal unless dealt with properly. Dont let that all put you off doing up the monitor etc, cause the results are worth while, but u must follow the safety guidelines the guys have mentioned. 

[beaky]

another problem I found with Brett's pin2k was the fan in the power supply is stuffed.
Brett changed the fan on the CPU but I didn't check the power supply fan  
The easiest way to over come this is replace the power supply.
if you remove the back panel turn off & unplug the machine from the mains first.

[Chad]

But I don't totally agree with step 1, If the monitor has a 3 pin plug (not just the 2 pins)I leave the monitor plugged in but switched off at the power point while I discharge it as the discharge needs some were to go i.e the earth wire. Correct me please if I am wrong. If you haven't done this before or if you are not experienced in doing this get someone who has experience in this to help you.

When I use to re-tube monitors at work,  we never left the monitor plugged in when discharging monitors & I can't recall ever seeing anyone leaving one plugged in.
Personally I won't leave a monitor plugged in because if their is a problem with the power point or monitor you could possibly have a live chassis in your monitor which can potentially be lethal.

[Caveoftreasures]

In a commercial environment with many monitors and many people, unplugged would make sense. 

[beaky]

I have removed it from my previous post.

[Caveoftreasures]

at least with all this saftey talk, no one will fry themselves.

i would still love to find a Aussie delivered new Pin2000 owner who could tell of his/;her story. it seems like that might be extremely rare ?