I needed more projects like I need another hole in my head (I'm up to 7 active projects in my new shop if I DON'T include the 1949 shuffle bowler I don't want to mess with and my friend's rough Surf Side that I'm just going to sell for him) but Bad Cats has been high on my list since I got my Taxi and I got what I felt was a screaming deal for it with the Slugfest. This thing is filthyyyyyyyyy. Hopefully I can make a nice player out of it.

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Dirty dirty dirtrrrrty

Finished LEDs, then began the topside teardown. I've got lots of really wonky screw/nut hardware to replace so that should be fun. I think I'm going to bring it down in sections so I can clean/buff/reassemble. I'm still not overly in love with taking things ALL the way down... even though I obviously had to for my High Speed and Eight Ball Deluxe hardtops...

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Those look great. I have a BUNCH of broken plastics so hopefully I can find some decent replacements, but the protectors definitely seem like a solid buy after that!

Yeah it's really not too bad I don't think. Someday I'll get past these nervous feelings regarding full teardown... but I'm not there yet lol.

Starship ramps are definitely on my list at some point. He makes FANTASTIC products!

Hopefully I can wrap up this project in the next couple weeks so we can play the hell out of it. An eventual swap/restore seems likely to me--I love the game!

Opinions on ramps from planetary vs starship fantasy? Planetary is about $40 cheaper. Starship makes GREAT stuff but ramp replacement is already hurting my wallet as it is, figured I'd ask.

Making some more (slow) progress on this dirty pig after having surgery last week. Just ordered orange star posts so I can hopefully start reassembling the bottom section soon and can move up towards the middle.

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Not much progress lately. My shop heater isn't working well and kansas keeps dropping temps into the teens and lower. I did clip the leads to the coil for the 5 bank and rebuilt it the other day. New stickers OTW. I really need to finish cleaning the left side so I can put the rail back on. It's making me a bit queasy thinking about all the parts I have laying around that I didn't expect to have off for any extended period of time. Hopefully I can get some real progress in the coming months, I want to play it!

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I also have a BUNCH of busted plastics I'm trying source good used replacements to replace, so that eats up time too, I guess. Mine ain't gonna be a restore but she'll be a solid player with nice new ramps and a clean, buffed playfield! Lol

My cab is pretty beat but it's definitely not a decal.

I'm actually thinking about selling my Taxi to pay for this Bad Cats. I was brought it and a Slugfest late last year, for $4000. Seeing as my black knight sword of rage is being traded for a LOTR instead of being sold, something else has to get cut instead.

Sounds like you're getting a pretty damn good deal on that Bad Cats with all the extras. Mine is going to be a far cry from anything truly marvelous, but it'll play well and that's all I care about.

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Yup, that's how Iaid it out in my head. Sounds like a great deal, especially if it's already pretty decent.

Very nice work! Bad Cats is one I've seen done up to the nines before and it does come out very, very nice. I'm sure yours will be great!

Side note, I LOVE the brass touches on a few games (IJ, TOTAN, etc) and I'm working on finishing them all on my World Cup Soccer. It doesn't work on *all* games but when it works..it WORKS. Great looking game.

Can't say I've ever seen a switch like this, through a nut and post... honestly it seems like a pretty decent design, that's just new to me. Also, I haaaaaaate allen wrenches.

One side done. Hoping decent weather this weekend allows me to either wrap this up or get close, anyway. Going off how ROUGH the edges are on mine (look at the area with the bulbs behind the left drops -- paint is literally flaking off), I've somewhat given up on trying to polish out every last little mark out of it. Realistically it just needs a swap sometime down the road. Clean and MOSTLY buffed out should be just fine for a while.

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Me? It's not working right now anyway but it seems to angle into the middle of the shop, not into that corner.. even though that's where it's mounted. It's actually nicer outside (41) than inside the shop right now so I have everything opened to bring it up to temp somewhat. It's still awfully cold in there.

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What's the trick to securing the flasher cover on the left? Mine has SHORT screws with star washers but I don't think I lost any nuts from below.. that's gotta be it though...right? Tbh I don't even remember separating the cover from the plastic, maybe it was loose when I got it. Just trying to verify what's 'correct' before I just make something work. I'm assuming my current screws are...wrong.

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Well that's fancy. I have some of those from one of my 69,420 "wow, I'll use this sh!t someday" orders.

I'll throw some in the game tomorrow when I'm working on BC again. Thanks!

Good call on the hex posts. I need to pull the plastic and put some 8-32 kepnuts (another item I impulse bought 63 million of the last time I needed 4) under the posts but that will work perfectly.

Finally stripped the rest of the playfield (well, except the middle) so I can hopefully get this thing wrapped up shortly. Didn't do much real work today as I opted instead to work on LOTR while watching the Chiefs lose.

I tried to carefully cut away compromised mylar in the pop area. Didn't do a great job but it should suffice. I think the rest of this should clean up enough to at least offer up a good player's game, which is my only real goal.

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Damn, I got close today but didn't quite finish. Somehow in my 9 million orders I actually haven't bought a horde of yokes and pop springs so I'm about as far along as I can be until I place another PBL order.

I went ahead and moved it inside because it's supposed to get super crappy out in the next few days.

Still have a few things to transfer over to ramps before they can be placed. Right drops need rebuilt. A few more plastics need polished with novus 2. But... that's basically it and I should be playing.

I'm installing some busted plastics which is less than ideal but I'm just too damn cheap to buy new ones right now, especially considering how crappy my cab, backglass, and playfield (lol) all are.

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I think I'd be willing to hardtop this one sometime down the road, given the rough spots and heavy discoloration in some areas. It should look decent enough with ramps covering a lot of it, but still.

I'm...... close. Waiting on a few replacement plastics and I need to hot glue my pop bulbs to the caps, then I'm waiting for my 3bank opto board to be fixed so I can fix any issues and dial it in. But it's technically playable.

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She's still a bit of a pig but she's getting there. Those Starship ramps are NO JOKE--absolutely worth every dime. I'm impatiently waiting for the full experience of playing it lol

I put Starship ramps in my old Shuttle (AMAZING with the clear SF ramp) and in a friend's Cyclone as well. I swear they transform every game they go in, they're just so damn nice.

I went ahead and put in some 5SMD bulbs under the two pops, I think those will be just fine without messing with the stupid rings. Back in the parts bin those go...lol. I put all but the most broken plastics back in, hopefully I'll have the rest soon so I can finish THAT up.

It's playing enough now that the glass is back on, albeit with no right drops (present but not accounted for -- lol) and a few switches still needing some adjustment (ramp entry, mainly). I'll probably move over to my problematic Lord of the Rings for the weekend now that new parts have arrived, then back to cats once the opto board returns.

It took me way longer than I'd have liked to admit (roughly 3ish months) and I do wish I had completely stripped the topside, with all metal thrown into my tumbler, rather than doing it in sections like I did...but I'm pleased enough with the outcome to consider it a success. I'm not sure what it is about this game that I love so much, but it just makes me smile when I play it. Glad it's in the row.
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My friend gave me the inspiration on some of it but I do absolutely think the orange posts and clear rings help to brighten it up a lot. I'm looking forward to seeing yours progress because it looks pretty nice already!

Disagree on too much orange, I think it plays great against sunlight white 2SMD, but that's just my opinion

I ended up with the solid orange skirt against translucent orange body/cap. I probably would have used a translucent orange skirt too if I had bought some, but all I had otherwise were clear or white. I think the solid orange came out decent. My friend actually suggested I stick with the solid orange and a white body, which probably would have looked good too. As you mentioned the white/orange combo, like in the flippers, does come out really nice.

I can't really pinpoint it but there's just something about the charm with this game that makes you want to play it a couple times. It might not be the one to get 15 plays in a row but it is one I can see myself gravitating towards for a quick, lighthearted game--nothing too serious or overly stressful. High Speed always used to be that game for me, prior to bringing Bad Cats in. Gotta love system 11.

Aux driver boards (second pic) are always nice to have laying around as long as the relay is good. Lots of later sys11 games used them. I'd be interested in it (working or not) if they aren't.

Interconnect board. Not sure they ever go bad really. I've never needed to replace or service one.

Replied

Side note, these ramp entry microswitches are going to be the death of me. So very inconsistent... and somehow they seem to be capable of being both too loose AND too tight, locking them on and causing them to play the sfx over and over. Gah!

I don't even know anymore. Lol

Duh, I'm realizing now how dumb my response was. Yes, GI routes through here and therefore all your usual associated issues could exist. Though, that's unlikely to destroy a board I'd think. Most pros (not me, but I have a guy!) should be plenty capable of removing destroyed header pins and soldering in new ones...I'd think.

I'm having issues with a few flashers: left tiger ramp (right bulb is out but will work when i plug in the board from the left side), both seafood wheel, and bulldog. Bulbs are good. Everything else seems fine in the game. Wiring doesnt look noticeably hacked anywhere that I can see. Any ideas?

Ditto. My glass is...eh. But it has a scrape on one part of it and I'm not in love with it. But I'd only replace it if the new one were REALLY good (because it's a lot of money, and neither my cab nor my playfield are all that great). My friend bought a non-mirrored CPR glass for the Mata Hari I'm hardtopping for him and IMO it looks like absolute crap. Beats the completely missing glass we had, I suppose, but it's...not good. And AFAIK he paid full normal going rate (350ish) to buy it.

On the other side of things, I bought a mirrored Eight Ball Deluxe glass from Shay and it's FANTASTIC. Absolutely perfect in every way. I'm not sure they do more than a handful of glasses but man, those guys do great work. I liked my Meteor CPR glass but I guess there are people who complain about that one too. I don't know, it's definitely a YMMV sort of deal I think. Would definitely like to hear some firsthand experiences on this one.

You one baaaaaad cat...

How much do you want for your original? My buddy is in NC a lot, maybe he would pick it up for me.

Mine isn't ROACHED but I've got a big gouge on the right side (by the tiger) which makes me nervous about putting LEDs behind it. Feels like it will just accentuate the flaws if I do.
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Can't wait to see what I can do with it with some triple thick and some paint! My sister told me earlier she had made it back and my glass is ready to pick up tomorrow.

Thanks again, I appreciate the opportunity!

Immediate improvement in my game. My glass really started to crumble on the bottom just taking it out...so I'm pretty sure that's going to just get framed/matted and hung up. This new one is just fine as-is in my not-perfect-anyway Bad Cats cab.

Thanks again Jason!

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Is the opto bad?

I'm struggling coming up with what's even a "reasonable" price for a Bad Cats these days, everything is just completely nuts it seems.

Seems like an awful lot for one that hasn't even been swapped. I mean, I love my Bad Cats as much as the next guy but for anywhere NEAR that kind of money I'd be hard pressed to say no. $6K?!

Ditto, no funds and no space.. and no deals to buy anyway. I'm actually at least one pin over my established basement limit (8 in the main row) after deciding to keep my "quick flip" Galaxy and putting it on the side. Something is going to have to leave before long I'm sure. I didn't really want to start filling my new shop with FINISHED pins just yet..I want the working space for fixing. But I know my wife is less than pleased with my current 8+1+1 (slugfest was approved to move to another corner) arrangement...

Eh, whatever. It'll sort itself out lol.

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What's the budget and what kind of condition? I'll keep a lookout.

I remember when I started looking it wasn't that hard to find a pretty nice one in the mid-3s. Seems they've gone completely off the deep end now..like the one listed currently for 6. Absolutely silly.

If I see anything pop up, I'll let you know!

As would I, but a touched up (and not particularly well, IMO) original, otherwise with factory mylar...for 6K? That's a yikes from me. At that kind of price I'd expect a PROPER restore with mylar removed and clearcoat, or a swap. That's just my opinion though. I certainly could be off base on my evaluation.

My game has an original playfield with factory mylar and it looks/plays well after I tore it apart and rebuilt it..but it's definitely a "player" game IMO. I definitely don't look at it as a $6000 game.

Yeah, and my intention was just to say that I think $6000 represents a "restored" price (swap, mylar removal/touch up/clear, or hardtop--not available for Bad Cats, I know) and this particular playfield..isn't. I've never actually done a swap on a game (although I've done several hardtops) but I don't consider myself a restorer, and my listing prices have never attempted to fetch restored prices. But again, my point was only that I can't imagine 6K for a Bad Cats that was anything less of "restored".

IIRC they're 5-40 x 3/4" with nuts on the bottom...right? Maybe it's 1/2", but I'm pretty sure they're 5-40.

5, 4, what's the difference? Oh.

Glad it got sorted out above!

I'm still praying for a bk2k overhaul. I want to love mine but I just...can't.

Cats is easy to love imo. Bk2k just feels like it could be so, so much more..

No playing right now while my boards are off being rebuilt but I did catch some mild hilarity earlier while playing LOTR. Enjoy the progression, courtesy of my idiot, Layla.

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