Congrats! It’s a lot of work for sure and the proof is in the pudding as you get to enjoy this for years to come.
(Topic ID: 206157)
Linked Games
FunHouse
Williams, 1990
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Danville, CA
Quoted from Kerry_Richard:Nice job Steve... that games looks beautiful!!!
Quoted from PtownPin:Looks great Steve....looking forward to seeing it live
Thanks. You guys are welcome to check it out any time.
Quoted from Davi:Nice... Tasteful. I like the overall lighting.
More pic please.
What about the start button?
The start button is an "outie" (not recessed) I guess all sample games were that way. I still need to pop an LED in there (and the coin door)
I'm very happy overall with the lighting (though I do have an LED OCD on the way).
For the most part I color matched with comet 2SMD frosted standard LED's (except for yellow inserts, warm white looked best there IMHO). For GI and white inserts, I went with natural white (I feel like the brightness/clarity of the color just brings out all the artwork in the game).
For the bigger blue "STEP" inserts (and the bigger red ones), i went with 4SMD LED's since during my LED testing earlier on I felt like the frosted 2SMD's I used in the other inserts wasnt providing enough light/spread here.
For the pops, I went with the comet pop rings. I have to admit, I was a bit unsure on this one but glad I took the plunge. I think they look great. They really draw your eye to a chunk of the PF that I feel is kinda ignored.
Also, you may notice blue lights on the ramp and subway entrances (hard to tell cause the camera washes the colors out a bit).. this was just because I ran out of the right color lights, lol. but I kinda like the blue.
A few more pics
20180912_204536 (resized).jpg20180912_205514 (resized).jpgQuoted from pintechev:Congrats! It’s a lot of work for sure and the proof is in the pudding as you get to enjoy this for years to come.
Thanks! I ended up dremeling out the other hole on the steps ramp (where the other rivet wouldnt fit) and using one of the fake pinbits rivets there. Seems like that actually worked out pretty well, but I am going to pick up a rivet press regardless. Gotta have the right tools.
Quoted from pinheadpierre:Congratulations!
....riveting ramp flaps at Starbucks. LMFAO! That's not something they see every day....
yea, haha, I'd like to say people were staring and giving us weird looks but they really wern't (chalk it up to living in the bay area i guess)
Quoted from arcadenerd925:Well, here i am.. 25 days after my "I'm going to get it done by the end of the weekend" proclamation.
I thought the easy part was done... The holes in the new PF are drilled, dimpled... screw some shit in, hook some stuff up.. BAM. done.
one word.
nope
by the end of the weekend I was frustrated and defeated. Nothing went wrong, I didn't crack the clear, skid the drill across the PF or anything like that. It's just that... every part of re-populating the PF took 20 times longer than I thought it would.
I decided to disappear for a bit and just try to sort this out over the next 3 weeks.
I had to:
- Widen holes that were the wrong size
- Drill through the holes that were the wrong size and did not go all the way through the PF
- Route down the recessed area underneath the steps ramp so it would sit flush (not sure whose fault that was, probably the repro ramp)
- Tweak several of the repro plastics so they would fit (the one behind the trap door is missing the flange that fits under the trap door hinge... WTF)
Next up, game time. time to get that bad boy off the rotisserie and back in to the game, that actually went fairly smooth. but of course more fun was to follow.
When doing the cab, I had routed out a bit more to the left of the steps ramp shooter as I had heard it doesn't line up to the new PF. Once I put the housing on I could see I still wasnt dead on and steps ramps shots where just bouncing around the posts instead of going up the ram. UGH. so i busted out the dremel and took a bit more off... THEN, the housing over that shooter lane kept holding the ball in a funky spot, so i had to bend that too. (similar follies on the right side housing as well)
The icing on the cake.... re-attaching one plastic I forgot about while the PF was up in the service position.. I dropped the nut and it fell down the back (oribt shot against the ball guide). There was no way to get to it without taking the ramps off (or the PF back out). fuck that, heh, At 11pm and with no patience, I used a magnet rod that i bended and tweaked so that it could go around Rudy's head and get to the nut. Of course, I couldnt get the nut to stick, but i moved it enough to where I shot a ball back there and it hit the nut off to the side.. when I brought the PF back up, it fell out the back and into the bottom of the cab. lol. that whole process took 1 hour of my evening (and the success of it was pure luck).
At that point, I was ready to turn this beast back on and see if it explodes..
Nope. it just turned on, lit up and I swear I heard angels sing.
Suddenly all the trials, tribulations, shit, crap and stuff that was way harder than I thought it would be suddenly faded into the back ground.
it worked
i did it
it didn't explode
the usual tweaks needed were minimal; 3 lights had to be reseated, one pop bumper switch adjusted, left flipper gap was too close and that was about it.
(there were a few plastics i did not replace since they had riveted pieces on them, will save that for another day when I get a rivet press in)
Last night I just stood there and played game after game for roughly an hour and just enjoyed what I thought would take 2 weeks (but ended up taking 8 months)
Much props to those that helped me get this done (too many to list), specially Bryan Kelly (whom I owe a 6 pack of livermore's finest, which is next on my todo list) as well as mschonbrun for meeting me at starbucks to rivet the ramp flaps in.
After I enjoy this thing a bit more I will take some time to think about the process in general and things I learned that I feel others would benefit from if they happen to be doing this for the first time as well.
These are crap pics (before i fixed a few of the pastics) but it's a start:
[quoted image][quoted image]
Congrats on finishing! I am about 2 weeks behind you. I am about to repopulate my new playfield. I appreciate some of the items you listed as key learnings. Sounds like the incomplete or undrilled holes were the biggest issue. I too have a Mirco pf and I hadnt heard of any other people having these types of issues with the holes.
My biggest fear is cracking or lifting the clear coat.
- Were the hole issues mostly on the top side or bottom side?
- What size bit did you use to expand the holes?
- Any issues installing the metal wire ball lanes down near the flippers? Mine came out easy on the old pf but i am wondering if I need to bore the holes a little bigger on the new pf or just push them right in?
- I saw your post about the dimples for the little screws behind the trap door that hold down the plastic. Did you end up drilling those? What size bit?
Thanks for any more details you can give.
Quoted from Elicash:Congrats on finishing! I am about 2 weeks behind you. I am about to repopulate my new playfield. I appreciate some of the items you listed as key learnings. Sounds like the incomplete or undrilled holes were the biggest issue. I too have a Mirco pf and I hadnt heard of any other people having these types of issues with the holes.
My biggest fear is cracking or lifting the clear coat.
- Were the hole issues mostly on the top side or bottom side?
- What size bit did you use to expand the holes?
- Any issues installing the metal wire ball lanes down near the flippers? Mine came out easy on the old pf but i am wondering if I need to bore the holes a little bigger on the new pf or just push them right in?
- I saw your post about the dimples for the little screws behind the trap door that hold down the plastic. Did you end up drilling those? What size bit?
Thanks for any more details you can give.
- Side: All issues were top side for me
- What size bit depended on what was going in there. I pretty much just eye balled it. However, one thing I did do was use my dremel to clear the "clear" out of the way where I was about to drill. This worked out very well. I used this set as suggested by @mschonbrun (it is a must IMHO) : https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B001BK0TRM
- Wire ball guides: Mine too came out easy. The holes are too small in the new PF (at least for the ones in my game). I thought, maybe they are that way so there is good pressure to hold them in... I opened up one a little bit with the dremel so I wouldnt crack the clear and carefully tried to hammer it in with my rubber tipped hammer.. nope. Luckily, did not mess anything up. So i just found a drill bit slightly smaller than the gauge of the wire, cleared the clear around the holes with a bit (from the above set) just a hair bigger, wrapped the bit with tape so I knew when to stop.. and drilled away. Guides pressed fit in perfect after that.
- The holes that hold the plastic down behind the trap door: Mine had no holes! lol, but they were dimpled (that one threw me, heh). Luckily they lined up with the new plastic. Instead of drilling, I just used a really narrow dremel bit from the above set and just poked it through basically (those screws are soo small). My main issue was with the repro plastic. In the original piece, one ended is routed down and fits under the hinge end that gets bolted to the PF. The repro piece was just cut off (no routed flange). I assume this was out of lazyness on PDI's part (no offence, you guys do great stuff), and I get it, routing plexi or acrylic is a total PITA. So I ended up just putting down some washers under the hinge so height wise it still matched up with the plastic behind it.
- Biggest PITA by far was having to route down more the area where the steps ramp screws in on the left side (where the flap is). However, this may have been due to my repro STEPS ramp. Previous owner just slapped it down and put some mylar on the flap so it would kinda work. I was keen on having a nice flush smooth entrance to that ramp. So just make sure, before you get too far, that you put the standoff's in for that ramp and stick it on there just to see how things line up.
Other than that, I assume that each step will take considerably longer than you thought. heh.
Quoted from PtownPin:Not sure it its my eyes or what, but Comet LED's seem far better than other brands....I just replaced all the LED's on my TZ and it made a big difference
Agree'd, no offence to Cointaker (I've used them before) but I prefer comet as well.
Curious as to how your TZ looks. With TZ right next to FH it looks super dim (not having LED's) so that is next on my list.
Quoted from arcadenerd925:Agree'd, no offence to Cointaker (I've used them before) but I prefer comet as well.
Curious as to how your TZ looks. With TZ right next to FH it looks super dim (not having LED's) so that is next on my list.
Check it out anytime....I purchased the Comet TZ set, and installed everything, but the post lights on the upper play field. As you know TZ can be a bit of a dark game. The kit included a bunch of spot lights (6), and flashers for the back box ... this addition of the spot lights made a big difference
Thanks for the reply. Really appreciate your details. I just went and looked at my new plastics and mine definitely don't have the little flange either. So that is a great tip to use a washer instead.
I just ordered that dremel kit. That is going to scare the shit out of me but I think what you say makes sense. I will make sure I am not hung over the day i do this. Sounds like I will need a very steady hand!
One more question - did you put any mylar down? I was planning to replicate the mylar piece in the pop bumper area. Also was going to put a little strip where the ball kicks out. But wondering what you and others have done. I know the clearcoat is much better than the old laquered playfield that Funhouse originally came with, but I guess I dont want to take any chances. Curious what others think.
yup, steady hand. just go slow and start with any holes in the back that need to be cleared or expanded so you get a feel for it. The vast majority are just going to be holes you have a post or star post going on top of, key is mainly to not let it get away from you and say streak across the whole PF. Doing the holes for the wire guides will be the ones to be extra careful on (I used a medium speed, did not want to spin soo fast that I was burning the wood).
As for mylar, I probably went a little overkill but saw no downside to it. When I bought my PF install kit from Kruzman (similar bits to the ones in that kit + syringes and some super glue) I also bought some of his "low tac" mylar.
The idea being, I would replicate that mylar shape covering the pops area with my wifes cutting plotter (Cricut). Drawing to the right shape to fit that area was a total PITA, so eventually I gave up and just cut rings. So all the pops have rings around them. I also did the drop on the left side from the steps ramp outlet, where the ramp habitrail drops into the left lane, outside the right scoop and even way in the back right where the launched ball comes off the steel ramp and on to the playfield/orbit.
I ended up messing up one mylar sheet (and my wife threw one away that I left out, arg) but the "Fellowes" backing on the sheet lead me here, heh:
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00134DIII
It sticks really good but its not permanent adhesive like the rings and sheets you'll get from Marco. For me, this was preferred, I'm ok with swapping these out when I do a major shop job a few years down the line depending on how much it gets played.
2 months later
Quoted from Elicash:Did you use 1 SMD or 2 SMD for your LED GI and Insert lights?
I went all 2SMD for everything. Pardon the caps (this is from my restore spreadsheet, heh)
TWIN 2835 SMD INTENSE BRIGHTNESS https://www.cometpinball.com/product-p/2smd-ct-ft.htm
The majority of GI i went frosted, I actually ran out and ended up using clear lenses ones up on the steps ramps under the "hand pointing" signs and I ended up really liking it.
Same bulb (frosted) for the majority of inserts, with the exception of some of the bigger ones (blue S T E P and some of the big arrows) I went with:
4 SMD SUPREME BRIGHTNESS https://www.cometpinball.com/product-p/4smd3528.htm
I did not bother with the fancy non-ghosting premium ones since I went with a LED OCD board (100% worth it, I would highly recommend)
2 years later
arcadenerd925 I recall a post from you somewhere here referring to doing a light sanding and clear coating of the backside on your Mirco playfield. Did you ever do that? If so, how'd it go? I'm trying to decide if I want to do that or not. I'm going for a collector quality restoration so I'm leaning towards it.
Quoted from PinballPat:arcadenerd925 I recall a post from you somewhere here referring to doing a light sanding and clear coating of the backside on your Mirco playfield. Did you ever do that? If so, how'd it go? I'm trying to decide if I want to do that or not. I'm going for a collector quality restoration so I'm leaning towards it.
Ron kruzman brushes a little clear poly acrylic to the back.
Just a little to seal the wood againt black fingerprints.
A foam brush would do it, and keep it out of the inserts.
Quoted from pinballinreno:Ron kruzman brushes a little clear poly acrylic to the back.
Just a little to seal the wood againt black fingerprints.
A foam brush would do it, and keep it out of the inserts.
Excellent, picked some up this afternoon at Home Depot while there. Gonna give it a try.
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