Gottlieb Cleopatra Restoration

[Brettski]

Thanks Nino and Crashramp
You are right Nino, I have no spackle on the inside. I will take care of it when I spackulate the head box!

I was kind of lucky with my first one which was Strikes and Spares as it came with a set of licensed stencils when I bought it and my Sinbad has a really nice original cabinet so no work was needed there. I found this method I used on Cleopatra to create and apply stencils really easy as long as you have a digital image to begin with otherwise I would trace the artwork (if any) and mark it out on white vinyl  then do the rest as above.  My print guy has a plotter that can cut out the shapes for me, we are just having a miss communication on how to prepare the image but should have this sorted soon so no more hand cutting on future projects as long as I have a digital file.

Like you Nino I really enjoyed making my own stencil but I can appreciate it not being practical from a business point of view. Do you buy the stencil and add it to the cost?
I restore my machines for my own collection with no intention of selling, of course this is sure to happen down the track but without being too ridiculous on the amount spent 
I like to do a thorough job and challenge myself at the same time. Cleopatra is coming in a little pricey now with the original buy price of $750 then $450 for a new Pascal 4 in 1 board, other parts and hardware items has pushed it out to around $2000 and then hours of labour but as I said it is for me! :)

Love the input and encouragement on this forum, especially the little overlooked details from Nino, it's these detail that make the difference in the end.

Cheers: Brettski... :)

Thanks again guy's getting closer.

Cheers: Brettski... :)

[Boots]

coming along nicely Brett, you've done a great job with those stencils

[Brettski]

coming along nicely Brett, you've done a great job with those stencils

Thanks Chris,
Helps to have a good digital file to begin with, thanks so much for your help with the image for this artwork.

Would love to get a library together of cabinet artwork in digital format.. something to work on.. :)

Cheers: Brett.

[DSB]

Nice work Brett! You are getting quite a collection. Might have to drop by for a couple of games one day when they are finished. 

[Brettski]

Nice work Brett! You are getting quite a collection. Might have to drop by for a couple of games one day when they are finished. 

Thanks Dan,

If you are ever up the northern end of the coast you should drop by for a game or two.. :)
You certainly inspired me with your Indiana Jones, lets see how you play old school .. LOL

Cheers: Brettski... :)

[Strangeways]

Thanks Nino and Crashramp
You are right Nino, I have no spackle on the inside. I will take care of it when I spackulate the head box!

I was kind of lucky with my first one which was Strikes and Spares as it came with a set of licensed stencils when I bought it and my Sinbad has a really nice original cabinet so no work was needed there. I found this method I used on Cleopatra to create and apply stencils really easy as long as you have a digital image to begin with otherwise I would trace the artwork (if any) and mark it out on white vinyl  then do the rest as above.  My print guy has a plotter that can cut out the shapes for me, we are just having a miss communication on how to prepare the image but should have this sorted soon so no more hand cutting on future projects as long as I have a digital file.

Like you Nino I really enjoyed making my own stencil but I can appreciate it not being practical from a business point of view. Do you buy the stencil and add it to the cost?
I restore my machines for my own collection with no intention of selling, of course this is sure to happen down the track but without being too ridiculous on the amount spent 
I like to do a thorough job and challenge myself at the same time. Cleopatra is coming in a little pricey now with the original buy price of $750 then $450 for a new Pascal 4 in 1 board, other parts and hardware items has pushed it out to around $2000 and then hours of labour but as I said it is for me! :)

Love the input and encouragement on this forum, especially the little overlooked details from Nino, it's these detail that make the difference in the end.

Cheers: Brettski... :)

Thanks again guy's getting closer.

Cheers: Brettski... :)

Yes - I buy the stencil and incorporate it into the repaint quote. I traditionally use Gav's stencils (best in the world), but he is a busy man so I have to wait for his spare time. So I have a lot of games waiting in the queue. I did venture away from Gavin's stencils (Twisted Crap) and they were completely wrong and I ended up spend 10 hours correcting the mistakes. There's another guy claiming to make the best, but he never answers emails, and there are not a lot of customer feedback, so I don't know if he actually sells any ? (Well at lest I know he won't sell to Aussies).

When I repainting as a hobbyist - The Miami Beach and Jacks Open were big jobs, but I found that sitting down and working through the stencils from scratch was fun and it "passed time". now I don't have time at all, so I rely on guys like Gavin to create the stencils. Restorers get a lot of praise if they use the right tools and materials - but the stencils are what makes the work look so good.

[Brettski]

Thanks Nino,
Parts arrived no worries!
Any tips on installing the metal rails, I have never used twist nails before ?

Cheers: Brettski... :)

[Boots]

Thanks Nino,
Parts arrived no worries!
Any tips on installing the metal rails, I have never used twist nails before ?

Cheers: Brettski... :)

Treat the nails like screws
Position the rails on the machine and drill a small pilot hole for every nail then just tap them in.
Don't try and hammer them in like a nail (with no drilled hole) because they will just bend and jam up halfway in.

[Gemini2544]

Nice Work, I restored a Cleopatra earlier this year. I put in a Flippp PI-P1 board in mine keeping the solenoid driver board & Rottendog power supply.
I also had to replace the front coin door panel.  It's a nice game to play.

[Brettski]

Wow, top job!!!

I am almost there but saving the hardest repair for last... The Backglass!!!
Yours looks good! If you know where I can get a good one I would appreciate the heads up.. :)

Thanks for posting your pics, keen to see more if you have them..

Cheers: Brettski... :)

[Gemini2544]

How about this- A before & after.. I repaired my back glass.

[Gemini2544]

I also replaced the front door panel on mine.

[Brettski]

Great work Legbolt!

Looks like you had a lot of work to do on yours as well.. but paid off nicely!

My backglass is in EXACTLY tha same condition as yours before the repair, keen to know your process as I know it will never look great again but love to make it acceptable.
From the pics you did a good job there!

Thanks for sharing your pics...

Cheers: Brettski... :)

[Gemini2544]

Thank's Brettski, Mine was a wreak too! Just take your time & all comes good. The great thing about the Flippp boards to is you can set up a light display show that Gottleib never considered. I was put on to them by Wiredoug from AA.
This is mine on collection.

Should I post the back-glass repair procedure on your thread your do I start a new one. I don't want to hijack your thread. Cheers

[Brettski]

Thanks Legbolt,
Fair call!, Go with a new thread if you don't mind. 

Geez hard to tell which one was worse, almost identical with damage and wear.

I bought a Flippp 4 in 1 and have it sitting here ready to go in, looking forward to the attract mode light display that you mentioned.
My boards were to unreliable to keep and the main board had spider chip issues so it was game over there!

It's been a slow couple of weeks which has been mainly polishing and rust removal etc but coming along, metal rails are done and coin door almost there but I will make another post with pics for the update!

Thanks for sharing your pics and look forward to reading about the backglass work.

Cheers: Brettski... :)