Yep, the old pool table is a great resource!
Once the playfield was stripped, i had plenty of hardware bits to start on the new playfield. Also had a massive tangle of wiring from the harnesses. I separated them out into the 4 harnesses, and washed them in the laundry tub with degreaser and nifti. They weren't filthy, but did have a bit of black gunge that was good to get rid of. After washing, i rinsed lots of times, then left outside in the sun to dry properly. I then stored them away as these will probably be a later job at this stage.
So i had all the T nuts from NBA, and installed them on the MM playfield - the ones on the top side of the playfield were tapped with the hammer to start, then finished using a socket just a bit smaller than the T nut as a drift.
I then installed the timber side rail - cut the NBA one a bit shorter to the correct length, then i put the hinges on underneath the playfield and installed in NBA cabinet. Note that i have also installed the MM roms, so i guess i officially have an NBA Madness now???
I have also started making the backboard. Used 12mm MDF, and got dimensions off Wally who had previously done a conversion - then used the backboard decal to locate the appropriate holes
I've installed the Mantis protectors - this Merlin one is a real pain to install, happy of anyone has any tips? Its sitting a few mm proud of the playfield, and needed to be bent to install, i'm assuming installing from underneath is the best - looks like i will have to bend the front lip down, but haven't worked out the safest way to do that installed without potentially damaging the playfield
Installed the other two Mantis protectors as below - the right larger one was too wide to fit the hole (being a repro playfield) and needed to be bent a fair bit to fit, so it still needs some panel beating to make one side fit a bit more snug - although this will be hidden once the castle is installed.
One thing worth noting now while i remember, is that just going through the process of ordering parts is massive. I have been through the manual 4 or 5 times now and still realising i have missed parts - many that i thought i would be able to grab off NBA, or might have lying around as spares. The manual does not even have many parts listed. For example, the scoop below is listed nowhere in the game manual!!!
And all the tiny nuts, bearings, rods, gears, coil brackets, springs etc that go in each of the various assemblies, all add up in cost, and are a pain to order. Since i do not have the luxury of looking at an existing machine, it adds another challenge to all of this. Reference photos from the net, and that others have given me are a great resource to help out. Of course there are still a few parts that are currently not available, so will be making a few of these up. I should mention at this point that both Wayne and MarkC from Melbourne have been very helpful in purchasing stuff, as well as Tony from pinball shed with a few spares.
