(Topic ID: 65459)

Show and Tell: Your DIY Homemade Tools

By mof

10 years ago


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  • 851 posts
  • 232 Pinsiders participating
  • Latest reply 57 days ago by SYS6
  • Topic is favorited by 305 Pinsiders
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    Topic index (key posts)

    51 key posts have been marked in this topic, showing the first 10 items. (Show topic index)

    There are 851 posts in this topic. You are on page 2 of 18.
    #51 10 years ago
    Quoted from OuttaSpace:

    I have a platform with a Durock top I solder over.

    pintools.JPG 411 KB

    I like this. Someone should make and sell it.

    15
    #52 10 years ago

    Tumbler media sifter/storage bin:

    Go to Homeboy Depot and buy a storage bin, some vinyl soffit vent (comes in 10 foot lengths, but it's cheap) and pop rivets. Cut out the top of the bin, cut strips of the vent to fit and attach vent strips in the hole with the pop rivets. The soffit vent holes are the perfect size to allow walnut media to past through quickly but keeps those little parts up on top.

    219.jpg219.jpg
    sifter2.jpgsifter2.jpg

    #53 10 years ago

    I've always been a fan of Vid1900s posts but now seeing what he is capable of, I'm just so impressed.

    #54 10 years ago
    Quoted from Blackjacker:

    Has anybody made the "Leaf Switch Adjustment Tool Whose Arms Don't Snap Off Simply From Being Looked At?"

    I've reverted to the good ol' needle nose for switch adjustments, but wouldn't mind going back to something that provides better access.

    I agree! Just broke another one last night! Frustrating for sure.

    Mike

    #55 10 years ago

    How do you get a pin up 15 feet of stairs using only a thumb and index finger?

    http://s298.photobucket.com/user/jgrenuk/library/JoesPinballEscalator?sort=6&page=1

    14
    #56 10 years ago

    By far the best tool I've discovered for Pinball repair...

    Mikepinside.jpgpinside.jpg

    #57 10 years ago
    Quoted from mof:

    Nice! I think you've won for "least expensive" dolly of all time. I have to ask, how do you get by with only 2 wheels?
    -mof

    Balances and moves similar to a wheel barrow, but without the side to side tipping.

    #58 10 years ago
    Quoted from OuttaSpace:

    I have a platform with a Durock top I solder over.

    pintools.JPG 411 KB

    Brilliant! I never thought of anything like that. Someone should make and sell these.

    #59 10 years ago
    Quoted from papazit1963:

    I agree! Just broke another one last night! Frustrating for sure.Mike

    I made one from cutting slots in an Allen wrench that is holding up good so far.

    #60 10 years ago

    Lol i keep thinking of complicated versions of that work platform, never thought of simple WOOD.
    Hmmmmmm

    #61 10 years ago

    I ordered this thing last week, but wanted to have it on my bench before I stared spouting about it. It's better than I imagined.

    Each arm (removable if you wish) is 13" long and I can swap out a different clip if I need with a screw. The base is concrete with a rubber pad.

    I did not create it, but some guy did and made a business out of this. Picked it up on eBay for $50.

    Much better than the crappy "helping hands". This can take some weight and maneuvers very well.

    faz

    The guys ebay store:

    ebay.com link: rjter50

    ThirdHand.jpgThirdHand.jpg
    #62 10 years ago

    Wow, thats pretty ingenious.

    I've used those adjustable liquid sprayers that he is using, I used to use them for directing coolant on the CNC.

    #63 10 years ago

    Used to use loc-line for my reef tank too, way back when, very handy stuff for when you need to direct fluid flow.

    -Hans

    #64 10 years ago
    Quoted from HHaase:

    Used to use loc-line for my reef tank too, way back when, very handy stuff for when you need to direct fluid flow.
    -Hans

    Yep, we use Loc-line on our CNC mills to direct the coolant flow.

    http://www.loc-line.com/

    #65 10 years ago

    Yep, good old loc line. Ues them on my screw machines.

    #66 10 years ago

    Not my idea, just my design. I made Clay's LED tester and put it into a pen case. Its very easy to hold and use. It can be used to test PIAs. I also use it to test bulb sockets and output headers on Bally/Stern lamp driver boards.

    IMG_20140105_110923_275.jpgIMG_20140105_110923_275.jpg

    #67 10 years ago
    Quoted from SchertzPinball:

    Not my idea, just my design. I made Clay's LED tester and put it into a pen case. Its very easy to hold and use. It can be used to test PIAs. I also use it to test bulb sockets and output headers on Bally/Stern lamp driver boards.

    IMG_20140105_110923_275.jpg 309 KB

    Cool...
    Can you show us how this is put together?
    -mof

    #68 10 years ago

    Another way to do the metal post remover is to take a cheap deep well 1/4" socket and drill out some clearance for the post. Everybody's got one of those cheap import socket sets laying around. That's what I did, but if I ever end up with a 1/4" hollow shaft nut runner I'll probably clearance that out too.

    #69 10 years ago

    These tooth pick brushes come in handy when mixing paint for PF touchups. Also excellent for mixing and applying epoxy when gluing inserts.
    tooth pick brush.jpgtooth pick brush.jpg

    4 weeks later
    #70 10 years ago
    Quoted from mof:

    Cool...
    Can you show us how this is put together?
    -mof

    It's just an LED with a resistor soldered to the flat side and put in a pen case. I made another one with the lead and clip built in.

    12
    #71 10 years ago

    Brass tubing, notched and pinched.

    Slide black brake line in until it stops, slice off with a razor blade. Instant post sleeve.

    LTG : )

    IMG_0523.JPGIMG_0523.JPG
    12
    #72 10 years ago

    This is a System-11 Playfield holder. Light weight and fits on the living room table. Anyone working on or even cleaning a System-11 knows how hard it is to get to the back area of the playfield.

    But the nice part is it has stabilizing bar so you can tilt it up and work on the bottom and it won't tip.

    Sys11PFjig1.jpgSys11PFjig1.jpg

    Sys11PFjig2.jpgSys11PFjig2.jpg

    Sys11PFjig3.jpgSys11PFjig3.jpg

    #73 10 years ago
    Quoted from SchertzPinball:

    It's just an LED with a resistor soldered to the flat side and put in a pen case. I made another one with the lead and clip built in.
    » YouTube video

    The video above is now set to public. Sorry for those that tried watching it.

    Jason

    1 month later
    #74 9 years ago

    Anyone create any new DIY tools this year? Let's see some pics/vids!
    -mof

    #75 9 years ago

    The "backboard stand & X+Y-axis motorcontrol" for Johnny Mnemonic.
    Makes it easier cleaning and repairing the hand-mech.

    some piece of wood with holes, a 12Volt adapter, 4 switches is all it takes.
    Repair, lubricate, replace parts, adjust switches and solder at the workbench in stead of in the machine.
    IMG_1143b.jpgIMG_1143b.jpg

    3 weeks later
    #76 9 years ago

    Has anyone made a nice "sweeper" to get all the dirt out from underneath a Williams transformer board in the bottom of the cabinet?

    -mof

    #77 9 years ago

    Does anybody know how to make or where to find one of these. Our friend Brian Kelly can't remember how he came across this 3rd hand too and said it's very useful

    http://forum-s3.pinside.com/201310/1155682/139157.jpg

    #78 9 years ago
    Quoted from mmr61184:

    Does anybody know how to make or where to find one of these. Our friend Brian Kelly can't remember how he came across this 3rd hand too and said it's very useful
    http://forum-s3.pinside.com/201310/1155682/139157.jpg

    I didn't know Bryan was into nipple clamps?

    12
    #79 9 years ago

    20140427_215731.jpg20140427_215731.jpg

    Solenoid tester for WMS 3-7 games. I built this with resistors, connector parts, and LEDs on a prototyping board. This allways me to bench test every solenoid circuit with out blowing fuses or locking coils.

    #80 9 years ago
    Quoted from mmr61184:

    Does anybody know how to make or where to find one of these. Our friend Brian Kelly can't remember how he came across this 3rd hand too and said it's very useful

    Look further up in this thread. I went through the same emotions and settled on this thing:

    http://pinside.com/pinball/forum/topic/show-and-tell-your-diy-homemade-tools/page/2#post-1357593

    works really well. Very strong. A few posters afterward commented that it's loc-line.
    faz

    #81 9 years ago

    20140427_220003.jpg20140427_220003.jpg

    Here is a small prototype board i made to worth with Andre's test ROM for WMS 3-7 MPUs and driver boards. It connects to a display plug and gives a bally like POST flash sequence which helps speed up board repair.

    #82 9 years ago

    Pinball Life or something should sponsor a contest where we all vote on the best homemade tool, and the winner becomes a manufactured product that can be bought.

    The Redneck cart was awesome!

    #83 9 years ago
    Quoted from benheck:

    Pinball Life or something should sponsor a contest where we all vote on the best homemade tool, and the winner becomes a manufactured product that can be bought.
    The Redneck cart was awesome!

    Believe me, guys like me do keep an eye on things in that regard. Some of them in this thread I already make (such as the Williams solenoid testers that barakandl is showing) , some of them are already available commercially, but I've kinda been keeping out of the discussion because I didn't want to taint all the home-brew awesomeness with sale-able product.

    #84 9 years ago

    IMGP4286.JPGIMGP4286.JPG

    Old power supply from a cheap dell computer. Opened it up and removed all the connectors and wires I didn't need, added a switch and a power indicator. The molex .156 connector is a direct fit for Williams, the 4 wire gives me 5, 12, -12 and ground that I make pigtails for as needed.

    -Hans

    #85 9 years ago
    Quoted from mmr61184:

    Does anybody know how to make or where to find one of these

    http://www.nikonusa.com/en/Nikon-Products/Product/Lens-CloseUp/SW-C1-Flexible-Arm-Clip.html

    Dig around Google for things like this.

    LTG : )™

    #86 9 years ago

    Thanks I dug around actually find two places both were out of stock. Thanks for the link

    #87 9 years ago
    Quoted from mmr61184:

    Does anybody know how to make or where to find one of these. Our friend Brian Kelly can't remember how he came across this 3rd hand too and said it's very useful
    http://forum-s3.pinside.com/201310/1155682/139157.jpg

    http://www.mcmaster.com/#catalog/120/2577/=rqzw19

    spring clamps w/ flexible arm (right side of the page) - $36

    #89 9 years ago
    Quoted from HHaase:

    Old power supply from a cheap dell computer. Opened it up and removed all the connectors and wires I didn't need, added a switch and a power indicator. The molex .156 connector is a direct fit for Williams, the 4 wire gives me 5, 12, -12 and ground that I make pigtails for as needed.
    -Hans

    IMGP4286.JPG 48 KB

    I'll admit it.. after seeing this, I'm already thinking about how I'm gonna open up my bench top ATX PS tonight and rip out what I don't need in the harness!

    I've been totally doing it wrong For YEARS! I brought all the wires out to a project box, which I put a switch in, and then I put binding posts for +5, +12 and GND that I use for my logic probe or whatever. Didn't even realize an ATX PS made -12!

    One thing I've done to mine that you haven't, though - I put the GND, +5 and +12 on a 3 pin connector, and made pigtails for every type of CPU board, Sys 3-7, 9/11, WPC, etc. Actually, I made *2* types for every type of CPU board. And then, I made a splitter. Works great, for when I want to put 2 boards side by side and trace signals with my logic probe. And, I made one that just has +5 and GND running to a 2 pin .156 plug for when I want to use that neat-o siegecraft display tester board on sys 3-9.

    #90 9 years ago

    photo-862.JPGphoto-862.JPG

    OK, so it took a couple days longer than planned.. but Hans just saved me a ton of bench space!

    #91 9 years ago
    Quoted from Superchicken:

    These tooth pick brushes come in handy when mixing paint for PF touchups. Also excellent for mixing and applying epoxy when gluing inserts.

    tooth pick brush.jpg 14 KB

    Those are also great for filling in gaps in dimpled screw holes that are stretched.. break 1 or 2 off in the hole then thread the screw in normally for a nice tight fit

    #92 9 years ago

    There isn't usually anyone around to help me tear down or setup a pin. So I needed a tool to allow me to setup/teardown a pin by myself. And on the cheap of course...

    I bought a couple 2x4s and some screws and came up with this:

    20140103_233502.jpg20140103_233502.jpg

    Start with folded torn down pin
    1)put on front legs.
    2)lean over on front legs.
    3)pick up the pin from the back
    4)slide the prop in place
    5)install back legs
    6)lift up on back and remove prop.

    Reverse steps to tear down.

    #93 9 years ago
    Quoted from HHaase:

    Old power supply from a cheap dell computer. Opened it up and removed all the connectors and wires I didn't need, added a switch and a power indicator. The molex .156 connector is a direct fit for Williams, the 4 wire gives me 5, 12, -12 and ground that I make pigtails for as needed.
    -Hans

    IMGP4286.JPG 48 KB

    Awesome, what problem does this solve?
    =)
    -mof

    #94 9 years ago
    Quoted from mof:

    Cool...
    Can you show us how this is put together?

    Here is a link to one I made a while back. Picture of inside which may help you.
    Ed

    https://pinside.com/pinball/forum/topic/test-led

    #95 9 years ago
    Quoted from mof:

    Awesome, what problem does this solve?
    =)
    -mof

    power You get the 12 and 5 volt lines you need to bench power your boards for testing.

    #96 9 years ago
    Quoted from Rickwh:

    There isn't usually anyone around to help me tear down or setup a pin. So I needed a tool to allow me to setup/teardown a pin by myself. And on the cheap of course...
    I bought a couple 2x4s and some screws and came up with this:

    I made this a few years ago for the same reasons. You can probably see I did not go shopping for the wood, just grabbed some scrap lying around.
    100_7333.jpg100_7333.jpg

    #97 9 years ago
    Quoted from mof:

    Awesome, what problem does this solve?
    =)
    -mof

    Lets me power up most boards on the workbench, using a cheap power supply that I literally pulled out of the trash. The modifications are needed to add a power switch and adapt the wiring to what I am powering up. Usually these power supplies have 24 or 28 wires coming out of them, I pulled out all but 6. Really cleans things up.

    -Hans

    #98 9 years ago
    Quoted from HHaase:

    Lets me power up most boards on the workbench, using a cheap power supply that I literally pulled out of the trash. The modifications are needed to add a power switch and adapt the wiring to what I am powering up. Usually these power supplies have 24 or 28 wires coming out of them, I pulled out all but 6. Really cleans things up.
    -Hans

    Nice. NICE. I have a spare supply I've been using for "table testing" lol. I'm totally gonna clip all the other crap and molex it up now.

    #99 9 years ago

    not my made up design but this is great for getting bulbs out of corners and ridiculously tight areas.

    $(KGrHqYOKkQE9g9wry1,BP4dgtkJ,w~~60_1.JPG$(KGrHqYOKkQE9g9wry1,BP4dgtkJ,w~~60_1.JPG

    #100 9 years ago
    Quoted from Frax:

    HHaase said:Lets me power up most boards on the workbench, using a cheap power supply that I literally pulled out of the trash. The modifications are needed to add a power switch and adapt the wiring to what I am powering up. Usually these power supplies have 24 or 28 wires coming out of them, I pulled out all but 6. Really cleans things up.
    -Hans
    Nice. NICE. I have a spare supply I've been using for "table testing" lol. I'm totally gonna clip all the other crap and molex it up now.

    I made this one but really wish I had sourced a different power supply from the start. Dell pinouts/wire colors are different than most others, needed to add the on/off switch,the case is so small I had to relocate the fan to the outside, There is no spare room inside even after fan relocation and I am surprised nothing has shorted. The harness was made to plug into Hans' display output board and a CPU board.100_7334.jpg100_7334.jpg

    Ed

    There are 851 posts in this topic. You are on page 2 of 18.

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