may be worth checking these guys out. Found them mentioned in another thread. I have never used them or know what they would charge to re-chrome the plastic helmet.

http://mmmetalizing.com/

Who made them last, Starship Fantasy? I'd try contacting them, they did the ramps and plastics.

I still commit to checking the booth at TPF for you all. At worst I'll put the bug in their ear that there are several people wanting one. Only 1.5 weeks away now.

I think there are many people who would love to get a BOP Helmet right about now. I've crawled the webs looking.

I emailed Larry at Startship Fantasy to see if he was going to repro the Helmet but he wouldn't give me an ETA. I sent him another email today.

How many folks are looking for this BOP Helmet right now? Perhaps we can gather the troops and email Starship and show him we have adequate numbers to make this worth his while!

I'd be interested in a new helmet

Yeah, for repros, if enough people email the person that makes them, they will rerun them. They have to see the need is out there. So email Starship Fantasy!

Question: Why do we need to load 3 balls into BOP when it only has a 2 ball multiball?

I can't remember the full explanation, but it's something to do with the ball locking scheme of the game if there are more than one players

BOP - Helmet - Metalizing option.
If I get it Metalized.. I'm going to need a replacement decal is what I'm guessing.

You could try this technique from Rays tips..go to about 3:40 where he talks about decals

I thought it also had to do with allowing the game to account for a stuck ball in the game that couldn't be cleared by the ball search after several attempts. I could be WAY wrong though.

I have witnessed this companies system in person, and although it is a very expensive machine, the process is very easy and unique. The object you are refinishing looks like chrome ... not SHOW Chrome like on a restored classic car but I would say better than any BoP helmet I have seen without wear.

http://alsacorp.com/chrome-fx-machines-spray-chrome-paint-systems/

Now they also have a system that is available in a spray ca.... wait hold on and open you mind to new technology .... {this is not Krylon} yes, spray can(s) that can duplicate the look of the $5000 machine above .... but on smaller parts and scale.

I am really thinking about checking it out but the cost of the kit is still $150 so not effective for one, but if you had other things you needed to "chrome".

************** Warning *****************
Pro Tip

I will be doing this little mod to my Bride also ..... Jack*Bot getting a little love

What you see here is Black chrome "mirror blades" ... normally only available for a few select machines because of clearance .... until now

Official Mirror Blades = only few select machines = $100 to $200 ....

Automotive Vinyl Wrap in many colors and patterns along with Chrome and Black Chrome .... 2 hours to install (2 preschoolers not a big help) ... comes in a cut to fit roll, I bought a 2' x 5' piece and I had some leftover but I could have got a second machine done if I had cut more careful. These are also completely removable with just a little bit of heat applied.

Under $20 shipped from eBay. I have bought from a few different companies including some from China. It all works the same.

The texture you see is transferred from the surface you are applying over. So in the future I will be sanding smooth with 400 to 600 grit but even without sanding after the reassembly it looks very nice.

The reason I am posting this here, ... I have thought about using this product on the Bride helmet. It can conform to complex shapes with the use of a heat gun and a lot of patience and practice. I have used gloss black and flat black and a few different carbon fiber colors on other projects including my Mame machine and my car.

Enjoy

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No luck as they didn't have any. The guy working the booth said a couple of months, maybe... He also said for everyone that is interested to contact them so they know the demand (starship fantasy).

Thanks 85Vett for looking .... I have sent a request to them for one already. How was the show?

Show was outstanding. Tournament went smooth too this year.

Long overdue but I finally got around to installing some Comet Pinball "Matrix" LED strips that MustangPaul recommended. It's always bugged me how imbalanced/dark the left side of the game was and rather than just toss a few purple strips in there, I decided to light the ramp. This was done by strategically placing strips below it at a distance that would diffuse the light and not show the individual LEDs. I originally started with white but the bleed off was too jarring so switching to purple gave me a nice side glow and lit the ramp just fine. I documented the whole thing and may post a separate thread if there's any interest.

Anyway, had I known about Art's new frosted strips it would have been much easier but I'm stoked with how it came out. Like Paul said, his pricing/products/service are top notch. While I was in there I also lit up the flippers (3SMD LED), gave the pop bumper area some attention and finally got a crystal clear, zero flicker LED setup to work on the helmet lights. Productive weekend!

Video:

.

BOP_Comet_Pinball_LED_Strip_Before_and_After_(resized).jpg
LeftRamp2_(resized).jpg
FullShot2_(resized).jpg

Thanks Paul! Yeah dude, not only is the Matrix stuff great (love the plastic cover/casing on the LEDs and double sided tape) but it's cheap enough that I just bought all sorts of extra spare parts/colors so I can mess around with things to get them just right. As for the sound of my game, I'm not sure what to say as it's basically stock. I did just get a new Galaxy S7 phone/camera and it takes some pretty darn good pics/video so maybe that's it?

Refresh my memory on the shooting lane idea, I seem to recall it being talked about. Like a long strip under the rubber to coincide with the colors of the skill shot or actually on the shooter mechanism/cover area?

Your game looks fantastic! +1 for Art being the man, great innovative stuff and an even greater person!

Yeah, that side does need some love. I was half tempted to light the right shuttle over there (usually only flashes) or maybe find a way to light the logos under the right ramp, but I really like your idea. Excited to see what you come up with! As for the Beatmaster, does he actually have them in purple? His ad still shows the basic blue/red/etc so I never looked into it.

Thanks and agreed!

I threw 4 color changers in the face inserts on the speaker panel...looks niiiice and ads a bit of animation to the bg area.

I also put a color changer (slow) in the last Face on the DMD board. I used white then blue then purple and then the color changer .... all "bendies". In the helmet I had to give her a little color, I have Red Purple Blue then the rest white

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You know, that would work very well for me given that I power my machine off/on with a remote that cuts power at the main plug. Good call!

The remotes I use fwiw: http://www.amazon.com/Etekcity-Wireless-Electrical-Household-Appliances/dp/B00DQELHBS/ref=sr_1_2

Woo hoo! Just joined the club last night. Everything on top of the playfield recently replaced and all new. Mylar removed and playfield looks very nice. Cab has had some touch up done but in my opinion it looks very nice. Here's to looking forward to really getting to know this classic game better. A local buddy has a totally restored BOP which is first what wet my whistle to join the club you folks.

I might try talking my buddy into touching up my playfield a little and giving it a clearcoat. Tim, if you're reading this, be prepared!

I don't think they do. I'll have to take a look. Also my friend who did a full restore might be able to point me in the right direction too. Can you provide a link for the protectors, please?

Work great to cover up previously chipped and cracked ramp entrances also.

http://www.passionforpinball.com/bop_ramps.htm

I'm thinking of make a few plug and play kits of my interactive shuttle ramp and face lighting.

Attract

Gameplay:

I already have one request, and I *think* I can do them for around $100 (plus shipping), but I am probably a month or two away from getting everything together to make these. Just PM me if you are interested.

Thanks Paul. Yes -- it would be a complete plug and play kit. Pops . . . this set up only has two channels for addressable LEDs (one for the shuttle ramp and one for the face). To just light those up, Comet's matrix would be a good option.

Sign me up for a kit! Ill try and find u at Zapcon and chew your ear a bit about it...

Okay -- it looks like there are 3-4 people interested (cloud9, fuseholder, mustangpaul, and spitfiren8). I'm going to cap it at that for the first round. This will let me make sure I can build the kits, write the instructions, and work through any feedback. Also this will let me figure out if I am too optimistic about the work involved with making these.

Anyone get a chance to speak with Starship Fantasy? I tried to reach out to him but I'm guessing he's been at Pinball conferences.
Love to see a new helmet created from original mold. Hell I'd love to see a real chrome helmet for this game.

This game really should rank higher than 58.

He makes them for sure... But starship is his hobby, not his day job unfortunately for us. Keep digging... There's a French pinball company that may still have a few helmets, but they keep going up in price

Freaking bride of pinbot non2.0! That is amazing, I hope I can buy one!!!

Beautiful work!!!

This is great. I'm all over it if it pans out, PM sent.

Hey all. Thanks for the interest, but having made kits before, I want to make sure that I can handle the work before committing to too many people at once. I'll start a waiting list (or a second batch):
chosen_s
morydees
peclark
nwpinball
jrawlinson_2000
Les73gtx

I just replied to you, but would also like to say that if you need any help, I would be more that willing to help see it move forward. Beautiful work, brilliant!

I'd be in for one of those kits if you do a second round.