How to melt flipper rubbers and ruin your day

After hauling home dozens of project games over the last 20 years, today was a 1st. I picked up a Gottlieb Pro Football that was unmolested in a heated garage for the last 40 years. The flipper rubbers which are likely OE were broken and touching the PF. After a 1.5 hour drive home in 85 degree heat and sun they melted on the PF when I got home. I sure the PF glass increased the heat. Quite the mess.

I'm hoping either careful use of a heat gun or freeze spray will remove the residue without PF ink damage.

Never again. I will pull every flipper rubber in high heat.

PF (resized).JPG

PF1 (resized).JPG

#2 2 years ago

???

freeplay3

Pinside+ Addict

Waterford Township, MI

7y 115K 1,632 6

Never move a game with out one covering the glass. I have warped way to many plastics and ramps.

BLANKET (resized).png

#3 2 years ago

JMP

Jrotten

Pinside+ Frequent

Highland Lakes, NJ

4y 52,800 777 5 1

Goo Gone may help. Good luck

#4 2 years ago

GTW

Gotemwill

Pinside+ Frequent

5y 62,300 914 1

OP
Quoted from tomdrum:
Never again. I will pull every flipper rubber in high heat.
[quoted image][quoted image]

Or you could just cover the game with a blanket so it’s not in direct sunlight.

Honestly if that’s the worst that happened you’re pretty lucky.

#5 2 years ago

TPD

tomdrum

Quoted from Gotemwill:
Honestly if that’s the worst that happened you’re pretty lucky.

Hardly. This is a 4 on the scale of the worst. It's fixable.

#6 2 years ago

TPD

tomdrum

The result of 48 year old flipper rubber hitting the sun and heat.

#7 2 years ago

ZAC

zacaj

RPC

Rochester, NY

11y 158K 10,385 85 122 1

I've had a few games with the rubbers melted like that (never happened while I had one though). I could never get it off completely and some had stained the playfield

#8 2 years ago

???

phil-lee

Pinside member

8y 91,550 4,209

I faced this recently and could not remove it all the way without tearing up the original paint.
Perhaps someone knows a secret.

#9 2 years ago

TPD

tomdrum

I used a plastic razor blade and most came off, chipped right off leaving minimal residue. Thank God.

#10 2 years ago

STK

flynnibus

Pinside+ Frequent

11y 134K 13,218

OP
Quoted from tomdrum:
The result of 48 year old flipper rubber hitting the sun and heat.

Wow - i’ve seen em melt but never like that! Wild

#11 2 years ago

KSN

2manypins

Pinside+ Addict

Hanover, VA

12y 80,800 2,002 7

If you don't have a blanket you can take the Playfield glass out and put some newspaper or cardboard over the Playfield to protect it, then replace the glass

#12 2 years ago

MDF

frenchmarky

Pinside member

Moreno Valley, CA

5y 79,800 3,108 7 30

It's as if the rubber got nostalgic and reverted back to when it was just some yellow chemical goop inside a vat in the rubber ring factory.

#13 2 years ago

TPD

tomdrum