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Thread: "Cleaning" or "restoration" - how badly am I infected?

  1. #21
    Pachi Puro emmadog's Avatar
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    Good point but on your 2nd or 3rd you'll rethink it.
    EM Pinballs & Arrangeballs

  2. #22
    Blind Shooter bundito's Avatar
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    Default Re: "Cleaning" or "restoration" - how badly am I infected?

    Project Update: Day 48

    It'll be seven weeks tomorrow that I rescued my machine from the antique store for $15. It was a mess of rust, cobwebs, neglect, and nicotine stains.

    I haven't worked on it every single day for those 48 days, but I'm sure I've passed the 100-hour mark so far.

    Work Completed

    I've disassembled and scrubbed the entire back mechanism. Plastic parts got the Simple-Green-and-toothbrush treatment. Lots of paper towels were sacrificed to mop up a quart or so of black Simple-Green-and-grime mixture. Metal components like the jackpot lever, the bells, and the various lift & trip wires got de-rusted. This required various Dremel products (wire brush wheel, buffing wheel, metal polishing compound*), and lots and lots of Brasso.

    I still need to carefully sand the entire back panel. I gave it a once-over with a folded sheet of medium-grit sandpaper, but I really wish I had a small palm sander, or one of those little Dremel gizmos with the triangular sanding pad (shopping list!).

    I started putting pieces of the mechanism back together to check my work, I realized I wasn't happy with the #4x1/4" sheet metal screws I bought from Ace Hardware. Yeah, they fit just fine. Except I bought flat-head screws:



    While the originals are oval-head screws:



    These just looked so much nicer, the oval head forming a nice "bump" instead of being flush with the surfaces. So... rather than wait to go shopping (or order) a box of oval heads, I got out the work gloves, the needle-nosed pliers, and you guessed it, the wire brush wheel. I polished the heads of about 50 original screws last night. Yes, I have gone completely insane. But you know what? They look effin' great. I'm still using the new ones for mounting the panels to the wood panel, where stability is key and visibility is low. But the newly polished oval heads look wonderful.

    As for the front, I've yet to begin work on the pins. I'm not looking forward to this. I used 409 on the play field, along with a ratty cotton t-shirt for a rag. And cotton swabs. Oh god, the cotton swabs. My trash bin looks like a cotton swab mass grave. I found you can actually feel the uncleaned areas when swabbing them. That's pretty gross.

    I removed the three tulips and carefully got to work with the Dremel polish.

    Here's a before (right) and after (left) photo:



    The bottom labels were already worn; I covered them with blue painter's tape while I worked to avoid any further damage. They came out amazing. Except for the fingerprints. Damned fingerprints.

    I got the bottom trays, panels, launch lever, and "hand rest" rod cleaned and polished as well. The grime. Oh the grime. I'm pretty sure I could have scored a sweet nicotine high by licking the ball trays (not to mention the ashtray). Many more blackened paper towels and Brasso fumes.

    I have the front glass removed, along with the entire two-part frame. Several felt polishing wheels gave their lives to bring the frame to a mirror finish. The insides got a serious wire brushing, kicking up a ton of rust dust. This machine was in sad shape. The mounted half of the frame (the non-swinging part) has a couple of "dents" where someone over-tightened the screws and it buckled. I'm thinking about a way to gently tap these out.

    Yet To Accomplish

    Pin Polishing/Straightening/Adjusting : Intentionally saving this for last. Once everything else is in good working order, I'll polish the pins, close the case, and enjoy a few beers with friends while we play.

    Lock Replacement: In a previous post, I described how I manhandled the useless cabinet lock out of the frame. It wasn't pretty, but it worked. Now I need a new one, but I need to do some CAD work (it's what I do for a living) to sort out the needed latch length, cylinder depth, etc.

    Lights! (and switches) Actually, they're going to be LEDs. I already have a tub full of them ready for tryouts. No heat, low cost, small size equals easy to install, etc. I'm pretty sure I need a new Omron "ball tray ready" switch. Mine's pretty crusty, but I haven't tested it yet. I plan to add additional (white) LEDs to illuminate the inside of the back mechanism (it's translucent green with a couple of clear panels). If I get really ambitious, I may hook up an Arduino (or maybe build a simple 555 flasher circuit) to flash the front when a jackpot is triggered.

    New Cabinet: Okay, this will be after the pins are polished. I got in touch with a woodworker friend; he's going to consult. I want an upright design, ideally with shelves or storage underneath. Or maybe even a mini-fridge. More CAD & center-of-gravity calculations forthcoming.

    Fantasies and Dreams

    Ball Dispenser & Redeemer: I know people have built counters. I'd love to build a magic box that dispenses a set amount of balls per player (50?). It'll also count how many you return into a hopper, like a coin-counting machine at the bank.

    Ball Refill Conveyor: I work as a mechanical designer. I have an engineering supply catalog for screw conveyors.



    I can do the math. I can do 3D solid modeling. I can send designs to Shapeways to have them 3D-printed. It's so inefficient to have to manually move the balls from the top to the bottom. It's more efficient for me to custom-build a miniature screw conveyor, right? The catalog designs for moving several tons of grain a minute (36" diameter) should scale down for 11mm steel spheres. Right?


    In Conclusion (For now)

    When I started this seven weeks ago, I asked how I'd know if I was simply "cleaning" or fully "restoring" this rusty, filthy, hunk of junk. The answer is all too clear. I'm addicted now. My pre-ordered, release-day copy of Grand Theft Auto V has only about an hour of play time logged. Who am I? How did this happen?

    Thanks to everyone - past, present, and future - for all the suggestions and advice. I'm working like a nutcase, but I'm having a really, really good time.

    I already know I want an Arrangeball machine next. And maybe then a modern machine. We'll see.


    -Dito

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  4. #23
    Kungishi CarlW's Avatar
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    Smile Re: "Cleaning" or "restoration" - how badly am I infected?

    Quote Originally Posted by bundto View Post
    ....

    ... Yes, I have gone completely insane...

    New Cabinet: ...

    Ball Refill Conveyor: I work as a mechanical designer. I have an engineering supply catalog for screw conveyors.

    I can do the math. I can do 3D solid modeling. I can send designs to Shapeways to have them 3D-printed. It's so inefficient to have to manually move the balls from the top to the bottom. It's more efficient for me to custom-build a miniature screw conveyor, right? The catalog designs for moving several tons of grain a minute (36" diameter) should scale down for 11mm steel spheres. Right?

    -Dito
    Yes, you are insane! Thanks for joining the crowd here. (speaking for myself)

    They do sell those pan head screws at Ace Hardware. Same aisle, they are probably stainless steel. Just a FYI.

    With your cabinet, you probably know this, some machines like to be tilted back at the top about 1-1/8" out of plumb. Test yours out if you want to mount it plumb.

    And last, can you please get started with your pachinko ball lifter? What I'm looking for is a $20 DIY solution. My thought is to use a hobby solenoid to shoot the pachinko ball through a tube.
    Check out the loading mechanism on your machine for ideas on how to funnel many pachinko balls into a single row and ultimately into one at a time, all accomplished with gravity.
    I'm not an engineer; I can't do it!
    PACHINKO - Nishijin Model A, 2005 Newgin Cutie Honey, 2015 TAKAO Queen's Blade 2
    BUBBLE HOCKEY - SUPER CHEXX PRO | MAME - 4 Player Entertainment Center
    PINBALL - Williams Grand Lizard

  5. #24
    Pachi Puro mxfaiman's Avatar
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    Default Re: "Cleaning" or "restoration" - how badly am I infected?

    Quote Originally Posted by bundto View Post
    Fantasies and Dreams

    Ball Dispenser & Redeemer: I know people have built counters. I'd love to build a magic box that dispenses a set amount of balls per player (50?). It'll also count how many you return into a hopper, like a coin-counting machine at the bank.

    Ball Refill Conveyor: I work as a mechanical designer. I have an engineering supply catalog for screw conveyors.



    I can do the math. I can do 3D solid modeling. I can send designs to Shapeways to have them 3D-printed. It's so inefficient to have to manually move the balls from the top to the bottom. It's more efficient for me to custom-build a miniature screw conveyor, right? The catalog designs for moving several tons of grain a minute (36" diameter) should scale down for 11mm steel spheres. Right?
    First can you please upload your pictures to PT instead of posting the photobucket link. As I can't view it because their site is down.

    Second I like the idea of a ball lifter (and cheap too.) I am have been taking a rapid prototyping class at school for a number of years now and have access to 3 3-D printers and a CNC router. They are all on the small scale but get the job done. (CNC router isn't big enough to cut my counter plate though. So I will have to out source that probably.) We have both ABS and Powder printers. We also just got a Makerbot replicator 2x that I have been playing with for the past week. So when you get to the stage of printing out some parts I could help print small stuff. (about 6-8" or less). Also I'm so excited because supposedly next semester we will have a 5 axis CNC router and CNC lathe and a 3 other tools from HAAS. I can handle almost any file type. We use solidworks there and autocad. I also run both here at home and I have the skill to do almost anything in both.

    I have been waiting to build a ball lift for quite a while now just haven't had the time to design it. (maybe in a few months I might but if you get a head start I'll help. )

    100 machines and counting...

  6. #25
    Eye Shooter p.opus's Avatar
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    Default Re: "Cleaning" or "restoration" - how badly am I infected?

    Yeah, you got it bad...That's usually what happens...

    Since I have limited funds, I rent out my services now. I have a client coming over tomorrow to deliver her machine. It's a family heirloom, so I want it to turn out nice. Undoubtedly I will be using everyone here for help. What you learn on this machine will help you so that you can work on others as well. That way you don't need to spend your own money to feed your addiction.

    Or, you can be like mxfaiman and not only work on others machines but have over 100 machines sitting in the garage just waiting to be restored.
    71 Nishijin "A" Bowling, 80's Nishijin Hit Parade , 05 Sankyo Star Wars, 07 Fuji Yamato 1, 09 Fuji Yamato 2
    ----------> ----------> ....And so it goes...

  7. #26
    Pachi Puro pachiwall's Avatar
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    Default Re: "Cleaning" or "restoration" - how badly am I infected?

    Quote Originally Posted by bundto View Post

    Ball Refill Conveyor: I work as a mechanical designer. I have an engineering supply catalog for screw conveyors.



    I can do the math. I can do 3D solid modeling. I can send designs to Shapeways to have them 3D-printed. It's so inefficient to have to manually move the balls from the top to the bottom. It's more efficient for me to custom-build a miniature screw conveyor, right? The catalog designs for moving several tons of grain a minute (36" diameter) should scale down for 11mm steel spheres. Right?
    AAH! The coveted "ball lifter" We all want one. Many have even tried to build one. At least one has worked! Search "Balldozer" to see that one. The Balldozer - My custom made ball lifter If you search "ball lifter" here, you should find many ideas, and the problems they encountered. I wish you the greatest luck if you decide to try to build one! Keep us posted of any results, or failures...maybe another member can see something you overlooked! I will probably never try...But I love to see the attempts of others! Sadly, many have tried...but they make some progress, then we don't see anything else. Clearly, it is a much harder task than it seems! I am not trying to discourage you...as a mechanical designer, I have high hopes for any attempts you may try. I also think that a background like that is a plus . I suggest searching for ball lifter threads so that you will get a broad range of ideas that have been tried and learn what has not worked to give you a good idea of where to start. The auger, or screw method has been tried, and has good potential! If I can find it...I'll link to one that may still be a work in progress!

  8. #27
    Pachi Puro pachiwall's Avatar
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    Default Re: "Cleaning" or "restoration" - how badly am I infected?


  9. #28
    Blind Shooter bundito's Avatar
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    Default Re: "Cleaning" or "restoration" - how badly am I infected?

    Thanks for the encouragement, gang.

    I send my photos to Photobucket because I can send them right from my phone... at work. Our firewall seems to block the built-in forum photo uploader. But I'll keep trying.

    The ball lifter... yeah, it's a challenge. I'm NOT an engineer, just a 2D/3D designer. I like the copper wire approach that guy used - it's a simple enough idea, but also very complicated. It's essentially a hand-made piece of craftsmanship, painstakingly made and refined in tiny, tiny steps. That level of hand work is just so... ugh, what's the word... "imprecise" sounds disrespectful, and that's not what I mean. It starts out as a machine and ends up like a piece of delicate sculpture; beautiful, but also completely unique and impossible to replicate.

    I've been thinking more about this. The "one ball at a time" refill idea doesn't seem to fit the style of a vintage machine. I've got the mechanism on mine working well enough that I can fill the hopper with balls and manually trigger jackpots by feeding the tulip holes. It's a very forceful, dramatic event. 15 (?) balls dump out, 15 new ones instantly reload, and it's over in three seconds. And the solo "played" ball falls sadly out the bottom. Thunk.

    Now I'm thinking they've got to be moved in bulk, or in batches. I was recently watching a documentary on elevators. Yeah, I watch elevator documentaries for fun. Thanks to a properly-sized counterweight, it doesn't take all that much horsepower to lift an elevator full of people. Or a little tub of 50 or 100 pachinko balls. Time to go search out elevator patents. </nerd>

    In other news...

    I pulled everything from the generic Pachinko Palace frame yesterday and assaulted it with the detail sander. It's finally starting to feel "clean" - decades of garage grossness are slowly disappearing. I was thinking about slapping a quick coat of gel-based wood stain on it, because now it's just bare pine. It's so weathered that it almost seems like each piece could be a different variety of wood.

    But it kinda sucks and isn't very stable. Especially when you want to pop the entire playfield open - it wants to keel over. I have a woodworker friend who's expressed some interest in helping build a proper cabinet, but he's busy (and has a few health issues). So maybe I'll pretend to be drawing my boring work crap today, but instead try doing some simple center-of-gravity sketches & calculations. I might have to break out the miter saw to make a better "temporary" cabinet, or at least to add some better feet to the one I have.

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