Glad to be a member of this club. I'm very proud of my BR. Bought it in parts, clearcoated both fields myself (my first cc project). Very happy with the result!

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I love this game. It is truly something else. The gameplay, the music, the light show, et cetera. It all blends together so perfectly. Wow.

I just put my beloved BR at my parents place. I'm moving into a smaller appartment and they have the space for it. No way I'm selling it. I see it as an extra reason to visit them once in a while .

After placing it there I played a few test games. MAN this game is great.

To all of you that have a mylared BR: I definately recommend clearcoating it. If done right, the game will play all the better for it. Mine 'feels' like a WPC-game now. Hard to describe, and different strokes for different folks, but I LOVE it.

I'm not sure what the possibilities were, back in 1988. Maybe some were shipped with mylar and some without. But I've also heard stories that mylar was shipped seperately with the game, so operators could make their own decision to install it or not.

Either way, examples both with and without mylar exist (and the XR7 clearcoated sample games, of course). I actually sold my first BR fairly quickly after buying it, because that was a non-mylared game with damaged insert decals. This was before the time that insert decals became available.

Power sponges in combination with Naphta and lots of patience will get rid of some of the yellowing and ball swirls. It does weaken the top layer of the paint a bit, so be very careful. Once clearcoated, the field is protected again. Good luck!

Yup, mine has super bands on all flippers. And silicone rubbers from Led4pin.eu everywhere else. It looks and plays beautifully.

Thanks for sharing that image, JLP! It's very helpful!

I need an extra digit
hmmm...

Interesting! My hill rod motor is noisy as hell, too. Did the regreasing help?

Also, how did you open the gearbox? Does it open by removing these screws?

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Like others said, when you pull the mylar off, you're definitely going to have to deal with replacing insert texts. And probably with a lot of other stuff as well.

Years ago, I bought my Banzai Run as an abandoned project: in pieces. The previous owner had pulled off the mylar, and lots of inserts were damaged because of it. It took me very long to get the playfield back to the quality I wanted.

Considering the inserts, I took out every single one of them, cleaned them, sanded them, polished them, cleaned them again, glued them back in the playfield and put a decal on them. After that, I had to retouch the imperfections of the decals. This was before the existence of playfield protectors, so I had to clearcoat the playfield to protect it and the new decals from damage and to make the surface flat again.

My Banzai Run does look beautiful in the end, but this was one hell of a project. I don't think I'd want a project of these proportions ever again.

Backup ball lifter is in the house. I know I'll sleep much better now.

Thanks a bunch swinks and transprtr4u for making this happen!

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Yup...
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If my memory serves me well, I always get to put in my initials when I score over 10,000,000. So I don't think it remembers the actual score for longer than until you start the next game.

Do you know how to score the Extra Ball during Multiball? In my high scoring games, nailing it is usually a big factor.

I only score 10,000,000+ when I'm *really* in the zone. Think I've hit it about 15-20 times in the 7 or 8 years since I restored the machine.

Mine is at 6.5 degrees, 3 balls and Factory Settings (apart from Special = Extra Ball and Finish Line = at 20 laps instead of 25).

Its playfield is clearcoated and therefore the game 'feels' more like a WPC than a System 11. Fast too.

Banzai Run is probably my favorite game ever. I just love everything about it.

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Check the ramp for cracks where the ball hits it on its return from the upper playfield.

Also, examine the lift mechanism and its magnet assembly well. This is prone to breakage when the machine is handled incorrectly.

And the price? In this current environment? Pfff... I'll let somebody else answer that question. Although I can say that a clean original machine without any playfield wear is a rarity nowadays.

Good luck on your pickup! Share some pictures.

Pinball Solutions seems to have a led set in stock. Haven't dealt with them, so I can't say anything about their quality or service level.

https://www.pinballsolutions.eu/product/led-display-for-williams-banzai-run/

Aaaand it's gone. Hope you snatched it, Golferron54

I bought my BR in parts years ago. Like: literally every one of its parts was apart from any other, up until the last screw. A previous owner who planned to restore it had already removed the mylar. Insert decals had partly come off from removing the mylar.

It did come with new insert decals, but to get them on properly I had to remove all the inserts from the playfield to sand them individually before putting the new decals on. Although I was quite determined to restore the machine (it's an all-time favorite), it was quite the project.

It's now beautifully restored with a clearcoated playfield. And: it was worth it. Not only because it looks the part (colors really do pop without the mylar), but also because a clearcoated playfield plays so much better than a mylared one, in my opinion.

Go for it if you really love the machine, are willing to put time in it and think it's a real keeper. If you're not sure about that, do think twice. Like I said, it's quite a challenge.

Pm

It's not supposed to be like that. Adjust the lane guide and/or the leg levelers.

Nice write up!

Ps. Holy shit, almost 2 weeks later and I'm your first thumbs up? A shame this club is so dead