powerflash franken pachi

[Moparformances]

its really coming allong

[digital1]

Will the original hinges work with the thinner material?
I think that would look neat having some parts be original like that.
Will the whole bottom part be original like the chrome door and shooter area?
I can't wait to see more!
Great job so far!

[mudfud]

Will the original hinges work with the thinner material?
I think that would look neat having some parts be original like that.
Will the whole bottom part be original like the chrome door and shooter area?
I can't wait to see more!
Great job so far!

I think the hinges on the back will be fine. they screwed into the back surface of the plywood. if there's a problem with clearance, I will use a 1/8 inch shim where necessary.

planning on the chrome door and shooter tray being original. will replace the bottom wood on the front with acrylic, so the balls falling to the bottom will be visible. plan to put a ramped box at the bottom and have a small door, maybe sliding metal across a hole, in the front to "buy" more balls. (this is the recirculating mod I have been wanting to do, finally)

with this setup, I shouldn't need to reach around back.

also, thinking a clear, square funnel, like the wooden ones from bbrice, on top for reloading. maybe build in some higher plastic walls to hold more balls on the top tray (a la owen's cardboard specials)

I haven't decided if it's worth replacing the second plywood layer with acrylic, I'm guessing not, but I can always replace layer by layer until it looks good.

hey digital, did you see the coca cola cash register on ebay? very nice, hint, hint...

[emmadog]

brilliant idea on the recirculating ball system. when i finally get around to doing this to one of my spare l-man p-flashes i am going to go all clear. it may look a little too busy with all the parts showing through but should still be interesting. i'm gonna cast the tulips and jackpot clear as well. i haven't decided if i am going to tint the clear tulips in the respective tulip colors (red, yellow, etc.) or just paint the indented line (the line painted white on the original tulip flaps) on the clear tulip in the respective color. the former idea will result in much more work as i would like to pour all the same colored tulips at once to keep the color consistent but that would require the extra work in mold-making. we'll see... here's a link with the clear urethane plastic and some things (scroll down on webpage) made with it for commercial applications Crystal Clear® Series - Optically Clear Liquid Plastic | Smooth-On, Inc.

[mudfud]

brilliant idea on the recirculating ball system. when i finally get around to doing this to one of my spare l-man p-flashes i am going to go all clear. it may look a little too busy with all the parts showing through but should still be interesting. i'm gonna cast the tulips and jackpot clear as well. i haven't decided if i am going to tint the clear tulips in the respective tulip colors (red, yellow, etc.) or just paint the indented line (the line painted white on the original tulip flaps) on the clear tulip in the respective color. the former idea will result in much more work as i would like to pour all the same colored tulips at once to keep the color consistent but that would require the extra work in mold-making. we'll see... here's a link with the clear urethane plastic and some things (scroll down on webpage) made with it for commercial applications Crystal Clear® Series - Optically Clear Liquid Plastic | Smooth-On, Inc.

can't way to see your invisible, not just visible, pachi

did you notice that stuff is toxic?

CAUTION: NOT FOR HOME USE. THIS PRODUCT IS FOR INDUSTRIAL USE ONLY - Proper ventilation, a NIOSH Approved Respirator and Protective Clothing are required to minimize the risk of inhalation and dermal sensitization. If breathing is affected or a dermal rash develops, immediately cease using this product and seek medical attention. Read MSDS before using.

[emmadog]

yeah i did notice that-it's the same stuff i have seen on other websites that for some reason are sans the "industrial use only" warning. still gonna do it of course just in a well ventilated area. i prolly won't get around to starting this one for a while though. i'll be traveling on and off until end of march or so but fortunately i have already taken a p-flash apart so that will expedite things.

[emmadog]

Another link: check out all the cool colors you can cast in. a great resource for fabbing up replacement and/or broken parts.
i tried to paste the link but it didn't work. anyway the website is eagerplastics.com. and the colors can be seen on their "transparent dye for clear casting" tulips done from this would be very nice indeed.

[mudfud]

frankenFlash

cut the top and side pieces of acrylic down. decided to replace the lower kick panel with acrylic. this will be the front of a built-in tray to hold the balls, with a ramp and door - haven't decided whether to put the door on the side or the front. opinions?

started work on yet another nail puller idea, modifying a nibbler for sheet metal work. it's not quite right, b/c my dad didn't understand what I wanted and ground too much off the end. will be either buying another tool to modify, or make a new puller head. will start a thread soon on the great pachi nail pull-off.

I found out that just 5-10 minutes in straight vinegar takes the oxidation of the nails fast. swished them around and then rinsed, they look like new!

once I get the nail pulling easier, seems like this is a much faster way to polish up the nails. I will continue experiments on the sumo machine with very oxidized nails.


I should be able to start assembling the parts later in the week. will use the intact PF to compare, step by step. more vids to come.

[ebb]

Thank you for documenting you progress.
Your idea's are inspirational.
I learn much faster when I can see what is described

[mudfud]

the frankFlash is in salinas.

I boxed up the parts, having got every thing pre cut and jigs made for drilling the holes in the acrylic.

hopefully, I measured right and things will come together well.

decided to use brass screws to hold the frame together. will tie in with the nails this way.

pix are the jig that dad made so I can get accurate holes in the acrylic (will sit like a saddle on the end of the long acrylic side frame pieces) and the box of parts getting ready to head south.

I am off today, so it's frankPachi day

[mudfud]

mylar's attached, after cleaning out all the holes with the melted acrylic bits with a small drill and dremel (keeping the paper on for this step)

for smoothly dropping the mylar, I had the OCD wife help me, figuring that one needed at least 4 hands on deck to suspend the sheet and rub it down without bubbles.

it went down nicely, will need rubbing with a fingernail to get the rest of the very small bubbles out. used a pointed, narrow kitchen knife to cut out the holes and the edges. this should give excellent protection to the acrylic, to keep the balls from scratching the cell.

next comes assembling the frame out of 3 acrylic and one wood piece, and transferring hardware and the front frame over. dad made a nice jig for drilling the holes in the ends of the long side pieces. I plan to use 10-24 brass machine screws with a flat top and countersink them.

it's coming along. so far, so good, and no major errors... yet

[mudfud]

a few more pix

p.s. one interesting thing that we onticed was that the nail holes, even though I used the wood template to guide the drill, or maybe because I used the wood template to guide the drill, are at different angles. some of them do angle upward some. some angle outward.

it's odd, but it almost looks like they could have had a bit of the angle drilled for the nails' placement.

[Moparformances]

question??

for originality are u planing on puting the metal corner brackets back in place?

[mudfud]

good Q

yes, I'm going to try to put as much of the hardware back as possible. problem is that the wood is 5/8 and the plastic 1/2, so some of the hardware might not work right. I will adjust and shim, as needed, to keep the "original" look.

[mudfud]

had a couple hours before work tonight, so did the following:

used dad's handy jig to drill holes in the ends of the side frame pieces

manage to get a drill stuck in the first hole... note to self... when drilling into acrylic, keep the drill moving, and pull out the drill to clean off the flutes frequently... anyone know if there's a cutting fluid for acrylic?

threaded the first two holes with a 10-24 size, finding out that the tap is only 1 inch of thread, so revising plans to a shorter, 1 1/2 inch brass screw (was 1.75)

I did take vids of some of the steps... maybe this should be a pachi restoration comedy show, as there were a lot of "amusing" moments...

arranged to go back up to sacto later this week to mill some more slots and grooves in the acrylic to accomodate the hinges and latches on the PF.

still having fun ... off to work to earn more pachi money...

[takethecastle57]

This is a work of art in progress When it's finshed i think that you should see if this could be on a art quality poster and offer it on this sites auction site .

[mudfud]

urrgghhh... it had to happen, I broke a tap off inside the plastic and caused a slight crack, too. guess I was cranking too hard.

so, options are

leave the tap and make a small hole to let it be like a dowel

find a screw remover or left hand drill to get that darn thing out

use some acetone to fill the crack so it doesn't show

this acrylic is a bit tricky to work with. it's softer than metal, but it overheats and melds bits and such into the holes. perhaps I should have been using soap water or something as a cutting fluid or drill lubricant? anyone know what the pro's use?

have to make another trip for brass screws, another tap, maybe a broken screw remover. anyone got a favorite method for removing a screw that is 10-24?

and just after I said there had been no major mistakes, yet... : (

[new in town]

PM me your address...

I just might have a 2 part epoxy called "Bubble Gum" that just might do the Trick. I'll send you a couple of Packs and you can test it to see how clear it is. (after it fully Cures)

The secret is to mix it slowly to keep air bubbles from forming. 3 to 5 minute quick curing time 2 hours fully cured. Good STUFF. I'll send you a syringe to so you can inject it.

[Moparformances]

i love left handed drill bits... some of most favorite things..

but be aware that tap is made from really hard materials.. going to be nearly impossable to drill..

how deep is it in there??

as for filling it... Mrs Mopar uses 5 min epoxy for making glass bead pendants.. its totaly clear.. the hard part is mixing it with no bubbles.. but if u mix it slow in a bowl i thing u would be ok...

[takethecastle57]

Plexiglass, Fiberglass, Engineering plastics with the Plastic Genius: Repairing a Crack in Plexiglass