I am about to have a Centaur (full sized original) shipped to me from a private seller via Michelle at NAVL (or whatever the freight company is called).

Does anyone have packing / prep advice for this model of machine to help ensure it arrives cross country unscathed? I was assuming the following:

- legs on (firmly)
- bubble wrap behind and in front of the back glass
- balls out (insert pun)
- head box down with padding between it and the playfield glass and steel trim.
- mummify in stretch wrap

Is that about it?

New question: as a soon-to-be Centaur owner, every game has its things that always go bad and need to be bullet proofed. This is my first Bally of this era. I had a Black Hole for example and the repairs on that game are legendary. So what should I check and preventively do for this machine, especially electrically? Are there some recommended pin repair web links pertaining to this series of Bally? The owner says everything works but those are often the famous last words.

Exactly what I was looking for. A Vid guide. Thanks!

I'd like my Centaur cabinet completely upholstered in genuine black leather with metal studs all over it. Sort of like this.

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Regarding the amazing voice in the early 80's Bally games, especially Centaur and Elektra for example, A number of people attributed the voice to that of Chicago voice artist Ken Nordine. I wanted to clarify this is almost certainly not Ken Nordine. I'm a huge fan of these games and of Ken, but I am about 99.99% certain the voice Bally used is the same guy they used in 1982 for Williams Sinistar - Mr. John Doremus. (He was a Chicago radio and voice talent that passed away in 1995, while by the way Ken Nordine is still alive and in his 90s).

They have similar voices, both deep. But Ken Nordine has a more throaty voice while Doremus has a more nasal sound. Keep in mind the voices in the games are some times slowed down or otherwise modified. Especially in Centaur, you can really mess with the voice.

Here's a link of John Doremus doing a cheesy 80's promo video for a private school. Fast forward about 1 minute into the video and then listen. It is clearly the Centaur guy's voice (without the reverb). It would be really cool if someone who knows how to make new roms sampled some of his words in this video and created new callout roms for Centaur!

And of course, here he is in Centaur:

And here he is (factually, as matter of record) as Sinistar:

Do you mind telling me where you got the lighted red flipper buttons? I did not know these were available for Bally games of the early 1980s. Thank you.

I just got myself a Bally sticker for my coin door. What is the difference between the correct original sticker and an incorrect reproduction? Mine is on a silver background material. I assumed it is NOS by maybe not?

Does anyone have recommendations for the specific touch up paint that works well for the Centaur cabinet silver and red colors? I'm terrible at color matching.

Hi. I got my Centaur 1 and am going to repaint the legs. They look to be dark metalic gunmetal gray. Can anyone confirm that is the correct original finish for this machine? I thought they were supposed to be black but it is hard to tell from photos. Thanks.

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Thanks Hougie.

I tested a small area of the playfield with melamine foam and alcohol. ...the right side cheek of the girls face. Cleaned up and whitend up quite nicely! Just tedious work and very risky if I over do it.

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Regarding the ribbed red posts (Centaur 1), Marco sells one that is 1 inch or another that is 1 and 1/8th. I pulled a few pieces on my machine that all seem to be 1 and 1/8th. But someone previously said BOTH sizes are on this machine. Can anyone verify both sizes are used? I can't seem to find any 1" posts.

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Thanks for the paint information. I went with Rustoleum just because that's the brand I normally use. The result was good, though the metallic aspect was a little more sparkly than I intended.

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I ended up buying the Bally sticker from Marco and also from the guy on Ebay. Here's the comparison of the two. The Marco one is on the top. It is significantly different and is far better is most regards, so my advice is buy from Marco.

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I have not yet hooked up the Centaur that I bought but can someone tell me if these 2 MPU Roms are supposed to be the factory version or the home version? Also are those 4 little red wires orignal or put there to accommodate the new Roms?

Thanks for your input!

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I have a quick question about Bally stand up targets. I'm fixing up a Centaur and noticed there's no foam cushions (weather stripping) behind any of the targets. I'm used to seeing foam on all my Williams stand up targets. Did Bally just not do that in 1981 or is my foam just missing from all the stand ups?

Thanks.

I'm restoring a Centaur that I purchased last month. This subject about the ball size in the Queen's chamber is an old one but did it get confirmed? There didn't seem to be a consensus if the Queens chamber uses a special ball size or not. The balls in my machine are all sort of new, so not original. They are all the same size. I'd just like to make the game as original and correct as possible. Thanks.

Yes, turns out they are home version ROMS and they are awesome. Glad someone else put them in so I don't have to. Everything works great. I just wanted to know before I powered it up.

Incidentally, it was really weird since the batteries had to be re-installed, the game settings defaulted back to virtually no sound effects. I thought the machine was really messed up but then I saw in the manual that you have to change the sound settings to option 3 or something like that to turn all the sounds on. Another person perviously in this thread learned the same thing. Weird, but what a relief to know it was just a setting.

All the balls in my machine are really new looking, so I'm guessing the original bingo ball was replaced with standard. And I can see why...$15 for a Bingo Ball. But still, it would be nice to get the game back to original condition.

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Thanks for the tip! What Marco does with a great web site and lots of parts, PBR makes up for with a clunky web site but awesome prices.

Dan

The wireform fell off this switch that is just at the front right edge of the playfield. Found the wire in the cabinet but no idea how it is supposed to interact with the ball. The position of the switch mounting does not seem to allow it to interact with any balls. I assume this is somehow for the multuball system. Anyone with a photo of the correct looking swtich and its wireform would be a hero to me.

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Thanks Hougie. Good idea to borrow one from the coin mech.

Nice Playfield. Is it original or a reproduction?

That's extremely impressive! I just sent out my playfield (pictured) to HSA Pinball for a level 1 restoration and clearcoat. Before sending, I cleaned it all down with IPA and melamine to remove as much of the yellowed lacquer and ball swirls as possible. I'm kind of nervous (actually very nervous) about repopulating all the guts on the underside correctly. But I figured putting the parts on an original PF is probably easier than a new REPRO PF as all the holes should all be in the right places. I will send an update when HSA returns my restored PF to me, but that could be months from now. They stated a fee of $500 for their service which seems like a good value based on the high quality work they do.

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That picture explains it perfectly! Now I understand that the wireform actually wraps 90 degrees around the switch body. Thank you VERY MUCH for taking the time and effort of the picture. I probably broke off the wireform while lifting and lowering the playfield one of a hundred times.

I was working on improving the sound quality and even with a nice Polk subwoofer, there' just not enough high range sound. Biggest problem is obviously the lack of a speaker above the playfield. For starters, I put in a fresh base speaker. I ended up ordering a 6" Pyle speaker for the base cabinet, model PDMR6. Was $17 from Amazon. It is a drop in replacement for the original speaker and is at 8 ohms.

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Next, I ordered a 4" Pyle PLX42 speaker from Amazon. Was $19.00. I mounted it from the rear (neck) of the cabinet so it faces the air vent grill. I used 4" #6 machine screws, though 3.5" would have been better. I just split the audio output wires from the sound board between these two speakers, upper 4" and lower 6". The game sounds significantly better now. Not really a need for an audio balance. The balance is pretty much ideal as-is. I'd recommend this easy modification. The speech is much more understandable.

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I'll never understand why they only put that one 6" speaker in the base cabinet with such a cool sound board being used. It makes no sense at all.

I decided to send my Centaur playfield to HSA for a professional level one restoration. Their price seems reasonable. It took about 3 months for them to get to it, but now it's done. Here's before and after pictures. On the before pictures, I had scrubbed down the playfield with lots of melamine foam and IPA to get as much of the old yellow lacqure off as possible. Also I scubbed off about 95% of the dirty ball swirls. I lost a little artwork in the process, but HSA touched it up nicely.

FIRST, THESE ARE BEFORE PICTURES...

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AND THESE ARE AFTER PICTURES...

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I am most impressed by how bright and "young" this original playfield looks after it is all cleaned up and clear coated. While a new repro playfield would be nice, the advantage of having this original board is that all the holes are drilled and positioned perfectly. HSA provided very reasonable pricing, understandable and fair turn-around service, and their communication was very good. I would use them again any time.

Also here is a web link to HSA showing many more before and after pictures in better resolution.

http://www.hsapinball.com/HSA_PINBALL/hsa112816centaurs1.html

After hardening a little more, HSA shipped the playfield and it arrived tonight. Here are a few more pics with close-ups. The clear coat is amazing. I'm thrilled. The repair and silk screening of the center inserts with the numbers 40 and 60 on them is especially impressive. To think, this board started out yellowed and full of filthy ball swirls.

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Does anyone need a good set of Centaur insert decals for a really great price? I have this set that I purchased months ago but did not use.

I paid $68 delivered. I will sell them for $25 delivered (USA domestic post office).

- these are from Pinballcenter.de in Germany. Unlike pretty much all the sets you get from the USA, THESE have 56 decals INCLUDING the blue lane switching spiked "balls" and the all-important "WHEN LIT" (blue insert between the flippers) that the USA sets are usually missing.

- they are very thin, very dense ink, very durable. I'd say quality is quite good overall.

- this set is missing one of the two "RELEASE" decals.

- the keyline circles for #50 and #60 are not ideal. They are die cut properly but some of the ink is missing at the left edge. All the Centaur decals from this supplier have this and it normally should not show up once installed.

See pics and if you want to buy them, please PM me.

Thanks.

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I was told previously in this forum that it is a steel bingo ball and they are very affordable from Pinball Resource. Marco has them but wants about 4 times the price.

Regarding that one bulb socket under the playfield that acts as a fuse or whatever; does that socket need to remain as a light bulb or can it be converted to an LED along with the rest of the game lighting?

Since September, I've been restoring my Centaur that I purchased via Pinside. It was all original without any bad hacks. Largest restoration project I've done so far, due to the decision to do a complete playfield restoration and auto-clear coating. The longest part was waiting for HSA to do the playfield restoration, which took 3-4 months including shipping. It was my first playfield swap and scared me to death, but turned out to just be time consuming, but not too difficult. I started by molexing all the coils on the major assemblies such as flippers and drop targets. Then I removed these assemblies and set them aside. I made sure to keep track of exactly which screw goes where, so there would be no mix-ups or lost screws. To move the wires and lamp sockets, I used the "spatula method". I detached all screws and staples from the old playfield and laid it next to the new playfield. Then I slid a sheet of clear, thin plexiglass under the old parts and shifted the whole thing over to the new playfield. The actual move via this method took about 5 minutes. The wires are fortunately sort of stiff, so it all moves like a big tree branch and kind of maintains the correct position for everything to be in.

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Once I stapled down all the braided wire and replaced a bunch of lamp sockets, it was pretty quick to just screw down all the parts. when I put it back in the machine...IT WORKED! The only problem was that a bunch of the switches for slings, standup targets, and roll over targets needed adjusting or correcting. Some of the solder tabs were bent and touching, some of the capacitors or diodes were bent and shorting, and the gaps were not right so some switches were locked closed or would not close. Messing with the switches took quite a while but the self diagnostic mode helps find the faulty switch pretty well.

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I put in all new CPR plastics, rebult the flippers, new bats, new rubber, new posts and bumper caps and lane guides. I also lightly regrained some of the major stainless parts with sanding sponges. Put in LEDs and an Alltek light board. New balls, cleaned the inside of the cabinet really well, etc.

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Other things done...

New score & instruction cards, cleaned the apron, cleaned the switch contacts, cleaned the wire harnesses and boards in the back box, repainted the legs, new leg bolts and feet, touched up all the black cabinet paint, added chrome trim to the head box, re-stencile painted the silver lettering on the cabinet sides, new line cord plug, new base cabinet speaker, added a speaker in the neck of the cab under the head box, cleaned everything, rebuilt the coin door with a new stainless face plate, got the mechs fully working including the Susan B dollar slot. Too many things to mention or remember. Parts from Pinball Resource, Pinball Life, and Marco. Now I finally got to play this machine properly and I absolutely love it! My previous experience with Centaur at a barcade was bad because of stuck flippers. This game is a keeper for sure. I think the only thing I'd like to still do is re-cap the audio boards to eliminate some of the background hiss.

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I also added the chrome "pointy" shooter rod which looks great and is very affordable. But I kept virtually all the original parts just because these machines are becoming so collectible. One additional idea for a mod (in the future) would be to add some small chase lights on the wheels of the Centaur motorcycle behind the back glass. That would add a sort of animated look.

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If anyone needs some tips on parts or tricks, please let me know. I'm no expert, but it's all still fresh on my mind.. until my next project : )

By the way, I sanded the stainless lockdown bar and side rails with various 3M sanding sponges (wet) and they really came out great. Took out most of the small scratches and looks really fresh. Then put in a new glass.

Thanks. I needed one.

Can anyone confirm if the game makes a sound when this pictured white stand up target is hit? It is in the upper right side of the playfield. For some reason, it scores but makes no sound on my machine and that seems odd to me. Every other switch initiates a sound effect. I was thinking maybe the capacitor on the underside of this switch is bad??

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Regarding the topic of the ball size for the Queen's Chamber, some people say it is a special 1" 1/8 Bally Bingo Ball and some people say it is a regular 1"1/16 pinball. I decided to order one, which is quite affordable at Pinball Resource. When I contacted them about this for Centaur, they said they did not think Centaur used a Bingo Ball. I ordered one anyway because some people say they've seen these in several machines.

In reality, it would be hard to find a Centaur with original balls in it. Unless the balls are nice and rusty after 37 years, the balls were probably replaced in whatever machine you look at. I can see how almost anyone would not notice the Queens Chamber uses a special ball, as this bingo ball looks almost identical. So if your machine has all regular balls, it may be because someone replaced those balls at some point and didn't have the research information saying this was a special ball for the Queens Chamber. Anyhow, here you can see the two balls side by side. The difference is 1/16". Can you tell which is the bingo ball?

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So of course the Bingo Ball is the one on the left. Just kidding. It is the one on the RIGHT. Anyhow, here you can see in the next photo how the balls look against the top plastic over the Queens Chamber. As you may be able to tell from the picture, the regular ball just drops right through the top slot of the plastic. The bingo ball does not pass through the hole. It is a captive and will not fall out if the playfield is raised or the machine is transported. With the regular ball, I've actually had the targets reset and "pop" the regular ball right out of the chamber.

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Here you can see the regular pinball as it sits at the front of the Queens chamber. The curvature of the smaller ball is not quite right in terms of fitting the "hook" of the clear plastic. It is almost falling out.

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And lastly, here you can see the bingo ball as it sits at the front of the chamber. The clear plastic "hook" (on the right side of the ball) conforms to the circumference of the ball very well. And the bingo ball works great during game play. So in conclusion, I'm convinced the bingo ball is the correct ball to have in the Queens Chamber of Centaur. Here's the part number from Pinball Resource.

BAL118 1-1/8” Chrome Steel Ball
-Standard size ball used on Bally Bingo games.
$3.52ea

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The white Twilight Zone ceramic ball would be really cool. But it costs almost $50 according to Marco's web site : (

Well, you are right! I compared my original chamber plastic to a new one from CPR (with liners still on it). Pictured, the original one on the left has a 1" slot while the new laser cut one on the right is almost 1/8" wider at the slot. So a regular ball would stay within the chamber with the original plastics. I guess since the literature and manual do not really mention use of a special sized ball, this bingo ball thing might just be an urban legend. Oh well.

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All my other games are Williams Sys 11 and WPC/WPC95. This is my first real Bally and I'm extremely impressed with these early 80s games. I know this is a loaded question, but aside from Centaur, what are one or two of the other really good 80's Bally's? I'd like to get another one. Xenon looks great but the game play and sounds seem pretty repetitive. So many are for sale = not a good sign. Same goes for Space Invaders. Embryon looks really interesting...is it good? I'm also interested in Medusa, but it looks like all the game play is at the back of the playfield and hardly any good action below the zipper flippers. Advice from owners? What are the keepers?

If anyone would like to buy a new set of Bally licensed, Premium Metallic Centaur Plastics I got from Classic Playfield Reproductions, I have an extra set that I'd like to sell. Price is just $84 and if I ship to you in the USA, shipping will be an additional $14. Just PM me if interested. Most retailers are out of these Metallic versions with no more in production. CPR charged me $153 including their shipping cost. Most of these still have the paper and plastic liner sheets on them, which creates the illusion of them looking dull and yellowed. But that is just because they were laser cut and the laser heat yellows the liners. The plastics themselves are clear and glossy and look great. Complete 16 pc set.

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I had no idea until just now that there's also a 3rd variation of Centaur from Italy, called Fantasy. I wonder what the game sounds were like on this. Very little information on it.

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Not trying to offend any owners, but is there a general consensus as to which Centaur is preferred by collectors? The original with large backbox or the second version with Rapid Fire cabinet?

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Dang! And I just got done going through flaming hoops to find a good used one playfield, pay for it on Ebay+ shipping, clean it up real nice, send it out to HSA Restorations and pay for that, pay more shipping both ways, taking about 4 months for all of that... when I could have just bought a new one from CPR for roughly half of what I spent. I thought these CPR playfields were long gone!!

Yes, and not to diminish all the great Centaur II machines out there. The back box shape does not affect the game. But when I started looking to buy a Centaur, I noticed it was mostly Centaur II for sale. Considering there were only 1550 Centaur IIs made but they are about 2/3rds of the For Sale market, it seems like people prefer the larger original Centaur cab. As with any collecting hobby, the purists will assign value for differences perceived as preferred. I would have thought the less common Rapid Fire cab would have increased value. I will say this; the Rapid Fire cabinet looks extremely cool on Centaur with the badass leather, studs, and motorcycle theme. I just don't like the smaller back glass.

This is great work. By the way, why do people end up needing to replace their magnets in the first place? Do they get locked on and burn up like on Addams Family?

Do you think it would be wise for Centaur owners to install a fuse in series with the Magnet power wires? - like the fuse kit commonly sold for TAF. What rating would you suggest?

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Welcome. If you have questions on the swap, let me know. Did one in December. Also I'm getting repair work done in 2 weeks on a non-working S&T board right now, so what I learn about that might be helpful.

Great acquisitions! RESTORE CENTAUR CENTAUR CENTAUR

Yes, Pinball Resource has them in stock for $4 each under Playfield Parts > Drop Targets. I think all of the sellers get them from Pinball Resource.

Correction - Pinball Resource appears out at well. But Classic Arcades shows them in stock for $36 a complete set of 8.

I'd like to know this as well!

That cabinet is awesome, but I'd hate to be the one who has to handle it when moving it. OUCH!

I just noticed on my solenoid expander board, there's a line printed on the PCB where a jumper normally would be. But mine appears to be clipped off. Is that normal for this game or did someone do a hack. I hate it when people start clipping off componenets that were part of the original design. Here's the board with a pen pointing to where the wire / jumper was clipped off.

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Here's another solenoid expander board (from Medusa) where the wire-jumper is not clipped off.

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I have learned something new! Thanks for the explanation.

If anyone's interested...

ebay.com link: Centaur Pinball Playfield Play Field bare wood w Insert Decals Star Inserts f

I'm sorry your experience was not a good one with my recomended mod. I have all original boards with new capacitors, no hiss or distortion. Plenty of power coming from the game's amp circuit; only have the volume turned up about 1/3rd from zero. The two speakers are wired in parallel and simply divide the sound signal between them. The base cabinet, projecting sound out the bottom toward the floor, acoustically tends to resonate more of the low frequency sounds, but muffles the speech. By having a small, mid range speaker in the neck, behind the vent screen, you get the higher frequency sounds from the voice of the game projecting across the playfield glass more clearly. It's crystal clear on mine, but who knows what all the differences might be.

I did try a Pioneer powered subwoofer for boosting the base sounds, but it really does not provide a good result in my opinion, due to the say-it-again reverb. The game would really need to have the speech and music/sound effect channels separated in order to have a powered sub working effectively.

I could post a video of the sound quality, but I really don't think sound demos via Youtube are effective demonstrations.