What happened??? Bank A ball - WARNING.. not for faint hearted

[Retropin]

This is killing me. Ive been working so hard on this PF getting it ready for expo - been downstairs till early hours of the morning to meet the deadline. Finally, i got to a point where i decided i could stop - LOL!!! I could have kept going, refine, refine, refine.

Now the paints i use are soft enamels  - ive used them over and over again without a single issue. CC is from the same manufacturer as the paints and GUARANTEED to be compatible.
Remember - this PF is a TOTAL repaint, not one part has not been repainted and was going to be my show piece at Expo.
Well... heres what happened at CC stage



Want a closer look???




ABSOLUTE DISASTER!!! But oddly enough - its primarily attacked the pink that i mixed - bloody wierd!
It could be the paint OR the technique used, as here i cut round the lettering over and over again gradually building up a solid colour with thinned paints.

So it looks like Bank A ball PF is not happening at Expo for me - i have a few other PF's to display but this really was the ultimate restore - it can and WILL be fixed, but it wont happen in time for Expo.
I can honestly say that i stood there in total disbelief as i watched 4 months work turn to melted cheese.... i walked away - shut and locked the door, came upstairs, put my head in my hands... then thought - bollox to it all.. bloody hate pinball. I also came real close to cancelling Expo.
 But a few days later and some reassessing - im still there and i thought id share this complete cock up with you all to show just how soul destroying restoration can be when it all goes wrong right at the end...

 But hey!!! Im laughing now and ill have this bitch of a PF licked soon with another post to follow.

 Watch this space!!!!

[ddstoys]

You poor bastard i seen it and felt sick in the stomach and i didnt even touch the thing.  I wish there was something i could do

[millsy]

Enough to make you cry.  Under the enamel maybe there might have been a contaminate (eg silicone,wax etc) -just a theory. Was the original surface rubbed back to the bare wood or was the original paint sanded back slightly.
Millsy

[illawarra_steelers]

Gav,

Mate - one word - F*CK - I'm so sorry to see this happen.

Just lost for words - as you said she will get done again and you will feel mighty proud when it's all complete.

Hang in there champ

[Retropin]

Oh i nearly did cry!

original surface was rubbed back - not to bare wood. This was done throughout the whole PF and yet its just the lettered areas on the pink that has been affected. Its almost like mixing a red, white and a touch of yellow gives a whole new composite paint - you can see that the black lettering is unaffected - this too has been repainted, but its also in the area where my technique was to gradually build up a colour - is bloody strange!

 The rest of the PF looks bloody amazing with its first CC - its such a shame!

[Geoffh]

Heart bleeds for you gav

What a bummer.

We all know that it won't beat you.

Looking forward to seeing the finished product once you fix it up.

Still looks like you done a mighty job on it 

[Strangeways]

what does not defeat us, will make us stronger.

It is not a problem, it is a challenge.

Deflating, and now I have to go to the fridge and have a beer for you mate. Look, it has happened and there's something to be learned for the next project. Now you have a repair on your hands, so treat it as such and get on with it. You have the skills to have this playfield 100% - no need to rush.

From a purely technical prospective - have you called the manufacturer - so see if the paint was a "bad batch" or something along those lines ?

I look forward to the next update, with the playfield 100% and the reasons behind the reaction. Thanks for sharing - it is not often we see these kinds of posts that we can all benefit from.

[illawarra_steelers]

Could of been worse Nino....could of been your Playboy 

[ajlaird]

Major downer, that must have really hurt to see it like that. Here's hoping you will find a fix.

[Strangeways]

Could of been worse Nino....could of been your Playboy 

Thought didn't really cross my mind - But if it was, I have complete faith that Gavin will get to the bottom of it. These things happen for a reason - it is really the TIMING that upsets me  

It re enforces my thoughts that playfield restoration at this level will always remain a mystery to me.

[SPURR]

Gavin I know how you feel its happened to me. You but your first clear coat on you stand back and it looks great , you apply another coat and it looks even better. Then slowly you notice a small mark on your art work , you say shit whats this and before your eyes it starts growing like a virus , your heart misses a few beats then you fell like hitting it with a axe this will fix it.
It seams to happen when the top coat is applied too thick in some areas. Because this is happened to me in the past I stick to the mylar.

[Astroboy]

Man that sucks. What survived looks awesome though. I feel for you.

[Mr Pinbologist]

oh MAN!! i hardly know what to say.. Thats gotta shit you to tears having THAT happen. so was it just that ONE section?? what a bastard!!

I've had that happen in the past too.. so im another who uses mylar rather than clearcoat for that reason.
But, as others have said, you'll get it sorted out 

[63wizz]

Is this the only area you have painted pink and has been affected.

was this the last color you did before clear coating, maybe the pink had not had the cure time the rest of the PF has had.

any way would piss me of thats for sure.

cheers Ian

[Retropin]

Gavin I know how you feel its happened to me. You but your first clear coat on you stand back and it looks great , you apply another coat and it looks even better. Then slowly you notice a small mark on your art work , you say shit whats this and before your eyes it starts growing like a virus , your heart misses a few beats then you fell like hitting it with a axe this will fix it.
It seams to happen when the top coat is applied too thick in some areas. Because this is happened to me in the past I stick to the mylar.

You are spot on Mark - its the first time this has happened to me though and on previous CC's i didnt even go in light for first coat....never an issue before.. i had complete confidence in what i was doing.
 To be quite honest - i was never that happy with the paints anyway - they take far too long to set, recently in wet weather, i had to wait 3 days for it to cure.
Ive been to my local paint supplier and bugged the crap out of him matching my Pantone inks to Tint range acrylic lacquer, plus a few extra tints for good measure... 4 ltrs of acrylic clear and some inhibitor.

Having walked away from the PF and then gone back - it looks worse than it is. Ive sanded down one side. The pink is now smooth but the lettering remains intact. This will be redone in the acrylics and CC will be acrylic also..alas though, not in time for Expo... instead ill be taking 2 other PF's with me.


63wizz,

The pink was applied months ago - last colour to go on was minor touch ups on the red - this was unaffected