Mata Hari
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then I saw how dirty she really was... I know there are a lot of posts in here on cleaning up old play fields but i want to do this right. This is my first play field restoration so any help (or even heckles) would be appreciated! Products to use or avoid, techniques that work or destroy, paints to buy and where , anything you got!!!!
Finally able to start on it today. Using mean green, 90% alcohol, magic eraser, novus 2, naphtha, and canned air (duster to freeze and remove Mylar.) Need to sand down the shooter lane and kick out hole. Then I'll move on to color matching Americana Acrylics.
My god, Mylar adhesive is the worst. If Vader wanted Luke to turn to the dark side he should've just had him clean Mylar off a playfield. I almost took a hacket to this thing. 3 blisters later and I'm ready to start painting.
Ok I started painting the playfield, using Americana Acrylics. Going great except the sheen is obviously different. Original paint has almost a semi gloss but the acrylic is flat. Will doing the clear coat help hide this?
Thanks Luzur that makes me feel a little better about it. Also good to know the "shitting your pants with fear feeling" is normal!!! I'd be done painting by now but I can't for the life of me get this yellow/gold/straw color matched. About 90% of my time is trying to color match. 10% painting with a needle and magnifying glass haha
Obviously not done. I still can't match the gold/yellow color. Still need to touch up the fuchsia and finish the bullet. Then I can end with the rest of the black. Not happy with my 9000 but I'll fix that after I figure out the yellow.
Again reittirating that I've never done this before- when I'm finished touching up would I be better off trying to clear coat this thing or would having the whole board (minus kick out hole and shooter lane) covered in one sheet of Mylar be better (safer) for my level of experience?
I think I'm done with the painting. Not sure how I feel about it. I've never painted anything like this before other than in grade school lol. Little concerned about the difference the original glossy look from the playfield paint versus the flat look of the touch up. Everyone assures me that the clear coat will help hide it. Either way it looks a hell of a lot better than what I started with and I know it's not going to look like a CPR.
So after wiping it down with naphtha to see the look of a clear coat I was feeling really good about it!!...... Then the naphtha evaporated and all of the black paint turned to a hazy dark gray. All other colors are fine but now the black looks like hell. Repainting it at the moment. But what the heck happened???
Cabinet sanded and ready for primer. Back box primed and painted yellow. Tilt panel painted red. Slowly but surely tackling my first restoration. Still waiting to get the PF back from getting clear coated.
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What grit sand paper are you guys using to smooth out the cabinets after spraying with 2x rustoleum? Also after sanding are you spraying another coat of paint?
I don't like the rough feel/look I'm getting. If you zoom in on the top left corner of the back box you'll see what I am referring too with the yellow.
Maybe just a light sanding with 600 or 800 grit or something, just not sure what sanding does to gloss paint, if it makes it obvious you sanded or not, any help is appreciated.
Quoted from pinkid:A playfield protector would work too. Not everyones cup of tea, but I have one on several games including Mata Hari and it works for me. Removable if need be too..........
Not the biggest fan of protectors although I know a lot of people like them.
The playfield is getting clear coated at the moment, so I've moved on to the cabinet and back box. Hoping to finish stenciling by the end of the month. Just looking for some advice on smoothing out the spray paint before I get to far.
Quoted from mrm_4:What grit sand paper are you guys using to smooth out the cabinets after spraying with 2x rustoleum? Also after sanding are you spraying another coat of paint?
I don't like the rough feel/look I'm getting. If you zoom in on the top left corner of the back box you'll see what I am referring too with the yellow.
Maybe just a light sanding with 600 or 800 grit or something, just not sure what sanding does to gloss paint, if it makes it obvious you sanded or not, any help is appreciated.
Sanded down the scratched up apron. Painted with Krylon Fusion Sunbeam/Saefty Yellow. Closest color I could get to match the Bally’s logo in the sticker. Also got the coin door ready to go. Just need some decent weather to finish up the cabinet and bb. Maybe next weekend.
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Thank you! This is taking way longer than I thought mostly because of the cabinet. I tried painting a few weeks ago and it’s just too cold still. Paint does weird stuff when it’s only in the 30s and doesn’t set right. So I’m forced to wait it out.
The playfield is almost done with the clear and looks so good. I have a few pics of progress but I want to wait to get it back before I show that off.
I also just got all new plastic for the pop bumpers.
New legs, new lockdown bar, new side rails and tons of other things. I’m just stuck in the cabinet phase...
Labeled everything for the playfield swap. Got the drop target banks ready to go (blue before/red after) and assembled all the pop bumpers. Even soldered resistors to the sockets so the LEDs don’t flicker in the 1000 point controlled pops.
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Thanks!
Yep, using Rustoleum 2x. Still going at it. Learning a lot about this paint. Check this thread out too.
https://pinside.com/pinball/forum/topic/help-major-recurring-problem-with-rustoleum-2x
Quoted from wayout440:Americana (as well as others) also make gloss versions of their paints. Realize too, that the playfield has been aging, and exposed to the constant battering of the ball. I cut my teeth on playfield painting with my worn out Mata Hari. You're doing a great job.
Thank you! I got sneak peek of my playfield. It’ll be ready in about 3 weeks or so. Needs another coat or 2. Can’t wait!
Ok left side done! So glad I went with PinballPimp stencils. So easy to work with.
Wet sanded all the metal brackets and got the boards back in and stapled in all the new cards. I’m missing the cage/guard that goes around the transformer and also the plastic that goes over the top left heat sink of the solenoid driver board. Anyone know where to get these?
Quoted from Arcane:Where did you find these?
Thanks
Yves
Quoted from Arcane:I see that you re-printed the various cards in the Lightbox. You could use manila paper for a more realistic appearance.
I figured I should try to make it look somewhat new where I could. This game turned 40 years old in March. If I do this right, in 40 more years the cards will have a nice natural fade to them.
Quoted from Arcane:I am getting a Mata Hari this coming weekend. Your thread will be a source of inspiration for my restoration.
Thanks
Yves
Thanks for the esteem boost! Good luck getting the pin.
Not sure of the official title of this board but it was too dirty to put back in so I stripped it down, made some new shadow boxes for some parts that were broke and painted it.
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Got the bulbs back in, cleaned each socket by soaking in vinegar over night, stretched each spring out, clamped the fittings to be tighter and then Qtip’d them shiny with 90% alcohol. They all work like a charm now.
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Quoted from swampfire:I love everything you’re doing here. I wish I was retired so I could give mine the same attention.
Thanks! I’m pretty sure my wife is gonna torch this thing when I’m not looking. It’s gone to being 95% Mata Hari 5% wife on the attention scale lol
Finally got the yellow done on the cabinet. Put the backbox completely back together. Need to make new dust covers for the displays. Sounds like I may have found a shield for the transformer and possibly the plastic guard on the rectifier board just waiting to hear back. Also sanded down the metal lip at the bottom of the back glass. Put felt around the light traps to protect the paint from getting scratched off the back glass.
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Yves is giving me a run for my money with his MH. Check it out so far! Looks like it’s gonna be a winner.
https://pinside.com/pinball/forum/topic/ycv-bally-mata-hari-the-eye-of-the-day
Got the last few missing links added to the backbox. Plastic guards for the rectifier and the SDB and the transformer shield. I’m pretty sure all parts are now installed. I mean if we are splitting hairs I think I need to add the “patent pending” sticker lol
Also finished the felt around the displays and shadow boxes. Red and black felt. Along with adding new dust covers for the back of the displays. If I’m missing anything back here, please let me know so my OCD can take over again. 
216B44DA-E9EA-4591-8575-30C41165D915 (resized).jpegimage (resized).jpgimage (resized).jpgQuoted from Deez:Why do you have that weird waviness in the light shield along the bottom of your light board?
You know exactly why it looks like that Deez
Haha
I couldn’t help myself, I came across these warning labels and custom dust covers for the displays today.
Also found the rest of the cabinet labels for voltage warnings, patents pending and fcc test disclaimers.
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Pics are not in order....
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Quoted from Arcane:Matt,
Do not forget the neck of the machine, which is black on three sides (rear side being yellow).
I painted mine using a brush and semi-gloss black. It saved a ton of masking and headaches....
Yves
Yes that’s on my radar. Thanks for the reminder!
Quoted from pinkid:Looking good. You do great work.
Thanks. First restoration so I’m winging it for the most part.
Finished the Black on the left side tonight. Thought it would be a breeze... I was wrong. The paint dried extremely fast and I ended up having to exacto the paint away from the stencil to avoid ruining her face. I then went around all the black in her face and hair with a fine brush to clean up the outlines. Took about 2 hours but I’ll be damned if my Mata Hari ended up being a “Butter Face” lol. I’m loving the final result. Getting there is sucking my will to live.
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Quoted from Arcane:Beautiful Matt, beautiful. You are almost there.....
Yves
Thanks Yves! I need to hurry up or you’re gonna beat me lol
And the cabinet is done! 
Can’t wait to get everything back together on it. While watching paint dry I decided to felt the playfield track/rests and the top of the neck so the backbox and neck don’t stick together.
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Booted up fine. Only issue is I lost the upper portion on the back glass GI. Gotta figure that out. Other than that SHES ALIVE!
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Follow up:
Found the GI issue thanks to Deez
I need to replace all the connectors. That nasty green wire was the culprit
12207188-4CFB-4B22-84B2-0CC955031042 (resized).jpegA235BF08-ADCA-4971-9E82-D9D2C1B8FF51 (resized).jpegQuoted from Skidave:Amazing work. I've been watching your progress...
Where did you get the rubber / plastic pads for under the legs (where it touches the ground)?
Thanks!
I got them from Marco. Looks like they are out of stock at the moment tho.
Just got home late from getting the playfield and my god do I want to stay up all night putting it back together. I know I didn’t do the best at painting this thing but annex did one hell of a job clearing it for me. Thanks again Andy!
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Quoted from Arcane:Matt, this is a superb playfield: what a shine and the painting underneath is very clean and well done.
I like your free interpretation of the top saucer, painted in black. I may actually do that on mine as the wood is a little bit damaged. I think it brings a dramatic element to that playfield, and the contrast between the steel shiny ball and that black hole will be perfect.
I bet you cannot resist putting it all together.
Were the rails fixed by staples or screws on your machine? Mine have these horrible staples and I am replacing them by screws, using the mounting holes of the playfield.
Yves
Thanks Yves, yeah those god awful staples were used. I replaced them with screws. In this previous pictures the rails are not attached I just rested them on the playfield to get a feel of how it'll look. I'll post some more pics as I set it back up and show the screws I used. I'm off work next week so I'm thinking that I'll be able to finish up this project soon!
As for the black up top, I initially did not want to do that at all. I screwed up the top ply of the field trying to sand a groove out and sanded too deep to the next ply. I was sick to my stomach thinking I ruined it, but decided to just black out the arch and the saucer. After seeing all that sleek black covered in clear coat, I'm actually glad I screwed up haha.
Quoted from pinheadpierre:I don't know how long it's been since the final coat of clear was applied to your playfield but I strongly recommend following Vid's standard recommendation of a 30 day waiting period after clearing before repopulating. You can cause all sorts of awful problems by rushing it. Don't ask me how I know this!
Yes thank you for the reminder on that, I asked last night if I should wait before I start doing things and Andy said its fully cured he finished it up several weeks ago so I should be good to go!
Quoted from zombywoof:I've been quietly following your progress on this. Keep up the good work! It's nice to see Mata Hari getting some well deserved love on Pinside. Please be sure to post some game play video when you get it reassembled. I know how wicked fast my MH is after a fresh wax job. I can only imagine what yours will be like with that clear coat.
Thank you
and yeah I was thinking the same thing about the speed, Im going to wax it before I start repopulating so its easy to wipe off finger prints and what not, but this ball is going to be flying for sure when its played.
Quoted from Skypilot:Andy introduced me to pinball and started me down this crazy road. He now clears all my playfields,NOS,Mirco,CPR....I put his clear coat up against anyone’s.
Marvin gave me his number a few months back and I'm glad he did. I told Andy I'll definitely be using him on my 2nd project. Still need to figure out what that'll be though. Something Solid State for sure.
A little more progress on the playfield...
It’s taking me what feels like forever to finish this. And it’s definitely coming with heart ache.
I was extremely worried about hammering the screws in for the pop bumpers. So I drilled out the threads and used a razor to score where the fins will be driven in. I screwed them in by hand all the way down to the fin and then hammered the rest down and it went perfect!
Then I realized.... shit I should’ve drilled a countersunk hole for the head of the nail to sit in so it would be flush to the field and so the ball wouldn’t hit the nail head before touching the pop bumper skirt.
So I gently tapped the screws back out. Got all out but the second to last one cracked the clear. I almost threw up from how pissed I got. 
Went and got a 5/16 bit and started drilling into the clear, everything went perfect, and then I got to the last hole and CRACK. Messed it up again. I haven’t felt self induced rage like this in my life.
2 days later, I tightened the nuts down from the under side of the playfield and a few of the screws that I didn’t make countersunk holes for (because they aren’t in the area of play) pulled down into the clear perfectly. I DIDNT EVEN NEED TO DO ALL THIS COUNTERSUNK STUFF!
I suck, and I have proof!
Well anyway here’s where am at with things. Maybe I’ll finish it maybe I’ll just burn it, or finish it then burn it. I can’t decide.
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I’ve been asking about the Mylar in the heavy traffic areas and basically the response I’m getting is it’ll be ok without it on this, especially since there’s almost a 1/4” of clear on it haha. Ive been going back and forth on the decision and I think I’m leaving it without. Also I hammered those guides behind the flippers down like they are supposed to be. More pics tomorrow. I’m almost done.
Finished the playfield swap stayed up til 4am just cleaning and soldering away.
Hey Atari_Daze I finally put those coil wrappers to use!
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Surprisingly everything worked fine when I turned it on. I was excepting smoke and fire lol
Only issue is far left pop bumper isn’t firing. Need to figure that out tomorrow. Switch works, points register, chime digs, coil doesn’t fire.
Once I figure that out I’ll install the apron and plastics and seal it up and play the hell out of her 
Quoted from Mitch:What will you charge to do a game for me
Ha! I’ll take that as a compliment. This was my first try and it took me way to long!!! After about a dozen more tries I’ll give you a quote 
Ok all CPR plastics with plastic protectors inplace and also installed the apron. As for pieces and parts I believe she is all back together.
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While my wife was taking a nap I snuck down and took a few “intimate” pics with the lights off. I love the look of a clear coated playfield. I wish a camera could somehow attach to the ball to get a tour from it’s point of view.
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Been a while since Ive done anything to this machine other than play it but I decided to get a flipper rebuilt kit. I now see why people do this part, I didnt know what i was missing with this game until today. The power in these flippers is amazing now. Easier to aim and now I can nail the orbits and actually get a full orbit on each side. Really wish I did this during the restoration, but I guess this is what happens when you decide to do a restore only being in the hobby for 10 minutes. My wife loves the flippers now too as you can see its her first time getting a better score than me.
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I always wondered what was stapled next to the coinbox in the cab when I was doing the tear down of this thing.
Then I came across this picture of a Mata Hari and it just looks like some kind of dust cover.
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So I decided to recreate something similar to what goes over the display boards.
Quoted from phillyfan64:mrm_4, this is absolutely stunning. Amazing job!
Minus those bent up drop switches lol
Thanks man! I love this machine
https://www.marcospecialties.com/pinball-parts/BFKIT80
I just used the Marco kit. Looks like they’re out at the moment. I will say this though. The white plastic circular bushing the flippers slide into seem to have a slightly wider hole on the replacements giving the flippers a slight bit of play. I’ve been contemplating putting the old ones back in.
Quoted from phillyfan64:Sorry didn’t mean to highjack your restoration thread! I got them rebuilt. Combo of Williams EOS switches with fishpaper taken from the PBR switch. Just like Vid’s guide suggests.
[quoted image]
No problem man I’m glad you got it figured out!
Quoted from Mathazar:mrm_4 - how did you paint your saucer black....spray, brush, or both? I like the look and before I put down a hardtop on my MH, I'm thinking of painting mine black as well.
Funny story about that... it actually came from an accident I had when I started sanding the arch. There was a piece of the pf splintered at the top and I tried to sand it out and made things worse.
Like most of my ideas, I get frustrated and jump to the extreme. I decided to paint the arch area black and with that decision I painted the saucer too.
To answer your question I did everything with a brush. You cant tell because of the 800 coats of clear. But I did this restoration before knowing airbrushing was better or knowing of waterslide decals. Would love to go back in time and tell myself to do things differently but I’m still happy with this machine.
I love the black saucer look. I say go for it, Arcane is the only one I know that did it after seeing mine, so I say join our club. Just make sure you clear it afterward.
Quoted from Mathazar:Here's what it looks like a few seconds after applying naphtha:[quoted image][quoted image][quoted image]
Might want to sand the surrounding areas more to make them match. Or use lacquer thinner on the wood to see if you can get the rest of the top coat off. Maybe even get a blonde-ish colored matching wood stain to see if that would help and just restrain all the barewood.
Honestly the pics with the naphtha don’t look that bad.
I might be the wrong person to ask haha. I freaked out and painted it all. 
Sometimes I forget I own this sexy little She-devil. Might be the bourbon but I felt the need to take a few intimate pics.
EF77F4E2-92B8-4103-B400-730E7B74C562 (resized).jpeg4D567856-5D58-4BD7-AACE-9A6ADC7F20FB (resized).jpeg5459685B-31B3-4C63-A667-7C4A510F68CA (resized).jpegE1417FFE-06B5-45DE-9E08-5EEC9615B1B9 (resized).jpeg39157530-77E2-49E7-826B-BA0D3B4403B9 (resized).jpegAE294DFF-479A-4D17-8CBD-46F959A750D8 (resized).jpegQuoted from HoakyPoaky:Hey I was reading your thread again today. Where did you track down the new cards for inside the backbox? Mine fell apart when I removed them.
Having a hard time finding the Bally apron decals too
Quoted from Mathazar:Do you have one squirreled away or do you need to wait for Outside Edge to come back online (hopefully next month)? I'm waiting as patiently as I can for them to come back with an EBD...."supposed" to happen later this year.
Kind of fell into one.
My buddy @fattdirk called me in an uproar that outside edge had one at the Cleveland show. After some soul searching of about 4 minutes I decided to get it.
Sadly the playfield that I have in the game now has some major ghosting issues with the clear coat. Major bummer but that’s the way it goes sometimes.
I’m excited to be working on my baby again tho 
Hey @mathazar what did you end up using to fill in the wood for the saucer? Plastic wood or some kind of bondo, also what paint and clear did you use? I was considering just 2Xing the saucer gloss black and using Krylon Crystal clear. I like the poly idea for the barewood.
How’s the saucer holding up? My current playfield is beat the clear couldn’t handle the impact of the ball hitting the backside of the hole.
The clear is separating from the playfield on almost every insert and in places that don’t even make sense. My theory is this playfield had a bow in it with the center arched up and as time goes on the playfield levels and the clear is separating. And let’s be honest, I sucked at painting this thing anyways. I didn’t know about water slides. As for the saucer. My issue is the clear cracking not the paint. If you clear the saucer without painting the ball is still slamming into clear coat over and over.
2F828E0F-5F5F-4124-BF70-E15E232562DE (resized).jpegA3261F34-B96C-42C2-ACA3-6ACF4F3ADCC0 (resized).jpegA406BC41-E602-4D31-9A42-DA20CEE1506F (resized).jpegAF1C889D-CACC-438D-98E2-6786E88A2EB7 (resized).jpegC0D74E84-6BBC-4A2E-9C46-0420C59A1285 (resized).jpegF40200C2-8497-4ABA-8AD0-56CAA3EEA0FD (resized).jpegF4DCEA6A-2344-406D-BF8E-A5CAA1F9B310 (resized).jpegThe playfield in the game now will be awesome wall art for the Mata Hari I’ve spent about $1.7 million dollars on, once it’s finished 
I decided to test something with Ace Hardware’s brand of Enamel. I noticed this stuff has a different feel to it compared to Rustoleum 2X when I was doing my Shangri-La cabinet. It sprays thinner and dries super fast and over all seems to bond better.
So at 4pm after being pissed off at The Browns I painted this board. Super fine mist after super fine mist one minute apart. Probably 15 layers when all said and done. At 7pm I held a pinball at 7 feet off the ground and dropped the ball about 6-8 times.
Notice the wood is dented from the impact but this paint is unscathed. Nothing removed from the wood and nothing on the ball. I’m sold on what I will use for the saucer.
0469E1AB-A226-45A3-9335-2C4A2136057C (resized).jpegD4FD63C4-ED5F-422B-97A2-78C56AE276D9 (resized).jpegCEA0DEB6-1731-4660-AB2C-B6CB0B9CBE28 (resized).jpeg21D871E2-FFC4-4FA2-9D70-142AB1334376 (resized).jpegOr I might just poly this thing as is and leave my own “Black Saucer Club” the more I think about it there’s nothing you can do here for a chewed up saucer on this game short of creating some kind of metal fitting. Which would be a major pain. No matter what the ball is slamming into this and crushing the wood, smashing new clear coat, and removing paint. Another issue is direct hits to the middle cause the ball to smack the plastic arches and bounce into the glass. Decisions.... 
33F8B2E5-F450-4FE8-8794-A92B85B8D79D (resized).jpegThe more I look at how this looks the way that I painted it, the more I wish this was some kind of saucer fitting laying in the hole. It almost appears as if it’s a piece of metal placed over the saucer. 
This would be an amazing mod, to have a thin piece of metal molded to the saucer, adhered to the playfield like you see in my pic and then the hard top installed over top of it.
Still have a little more prep work for the playfield before I lay the hardtop down. Need a new orange insert for the extra ball, gonna clear coat the groove of the shooter lane, and I still need to figure out what I’m doing about the saucer. I took the kick out mech off of the current pf and put it on the replacement pf. The wood is beat down so shallow that the fins and the hammer stick out from the wood. Not sure how bad that’ll impact the play of the game. I’m thinking a single washer between the underside of the pf and the kick out device should be enough to keep the fins and hammer flush.
Is mylar pliable with heat? I’d like to mylar the saucer but due to the odd shape it would need to be several pieces unless I could get it to shape properly. Maybe there is a flexible substitute?
Quoted from HoakyPoaky:There’s no solution out there for large saucer protection on these games? Even if there was something to put on the surface of the saucer, it’s probablygoing to interfere with the hardtop laying flat.
If something exists I haven’t come across it yet. I wanted to do something like this with mylar but the irregular shape foiled that plan.
927626DD-BE8B-444B-A8DB-4ACFD8D253DC (resized).jpegC54B3F43-F6F2-4308-BBC7-E0D8AA7F1399 (resized).jpegB8D131D1-B08E-485C-AD86-A2BFDAE14FFC (resized).jpegA few posts back I drew up a design to completely replace the saucer with 3D print. Just don’t know if I have the stomach to experiment with it
Quoted from HoakyPoaky:I wouldn’t drill a huge hole my field to install a 3d printed saucer. Too scary I’d screw it up.
I’d practice on a scrap piece of ply and dial it in before I did it on a true PF. So I guess it wouldn’t be that bad if I worked out all the kinks before going to town on the real deal
Ok so the extreme idea of creating a 3D printed saucer went out the window. Just painted it and cleared.
Now I’m hoping I stumbled across a secret weapon. Time will tell but I’m super impressed with this clear enamel I bought from Ace Hardware. I laid down coats by spraying in 2 passes left to right waited 2 minutes and then up and down probably about 10 times. Waited 2 days, wet sanded with 800 grit, then laid down more. I repeated this entire process 3 times.
This clear coat dries super fast and is sand-able the next day. It levels it self REALLY well. Every time I was done spraying I felt terrible wet sanding but I needed to do it to help level the sunken areas in the wood. I just finished it today and I’m happy with it.
I’m gonna let it cure a couple weeks before I install the hardtop. Then when I do my PF swap the week I’m off for thanksgiving, I’ll give it a wax. But after the final coat I’m not sanding or buffing this. Looks good to me.
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First coat
7FD3DBC8-653B-42A8-8709-4D0221F5AE54 (resized).jpeg
After wet sanding
6F44D493-A019-47D9-831E-04676F4DEB3A (resized).jpeg
Final coat from today
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Just checking to see how it looks with the hardtop laid on it. EA04F7CD-8F06-481A-8C54-79D5DD628AD7 (resized).jpeg
Quoted from Mathazar:Wow....that looks fantastic!!
Thanks!
I’m telling you, this clear enamel is a god send hiding in plain sight!
Quoted from HoakyPoaky:Thank god you decided not to drill. I was really concerned for you if that went wrong.
But your saucer looks really impressive. Did you use the same technique on a test piece of wood to check how it holds up to abuse? I’m just curious how this differs from your last attempt where the clear started cracking.
I’m curious how thick that square layer of clear is around the saucer, and if it’s going to cause any issues when laying the hardtop over it since it’s not a completely level surface. Maybe you’re planning on sanding that before permanently putting down the hard top?
As for thickness, it’s level with 2 pieces of masking tape. Probably a bit thicker than a sheet of mylar. So the edge isn’t going to influence the hardtop. I did the same drop test and it looked the same as the black paint.
In theory it’s no different. My buddy that cleared it originally used auto clear at his body shop he owns. So it’s the same clear that goes on Mercedes and BMWs. The real problem is the type of abuse this particular saucer gets. So if a professional grade clear cracks I imagine that a cheap rattle can from Ace will probably show its own version of wear. BUT what I’m trying to show at this point is how amazing it turned out and what I’m not showing (off camera) is how I’m using it on a piece of ply to show what a whole playfield would look like. My hopes are that this could be a new option for clearing playfields. Extremely cheap, a lot safer, really easy.
Or it’ll be a complete failure haha
And it failed...
I held the ball from half way up the playfield and let it roll and the clear cracked like a windshield. Which really bugs me because I did this drop tests. But I guess as this cures it get really hard and looses flexibility. Glad I figured that out before installing the hardtop.
Back to the drawing board.
6D93DDD2-3A45-4477-A46F-B8A4765DD61C (resized).jpeg06C95E80-97A8-42C3-80AE-B17F6380122A (resized).jpeg854F01B5-809E-4ADF-9ED2-F0938F0C2A68 (resized).jpegWell trying to sand this is pretty much impossible. Looks like absolute shit. Also this playfield’s saucer is too shallow anyway. I’m not sure what to do. I’m sick of this game. About to light it on fire.
592B7F34-4D55-4295-881B-41C16BB474C1 (resized).jpeg65D5CA80-E910-43E8-8716-CF9C1E48A643 (resized).jpegmy obsession with this game is seriously unhealthy... literally all i can think about is Mata Hari's hole 
So, my plan is to replace the saucer. Before I do any more to this playfield, everything from here forward will be separate materials.
Plan A - Get a 1/2" piece of maple or oak and make a 3 3/4" square and recreate the saucer
Plan B - Have this printed with glossy black filament
Either way I'll make the replacement first then decide the best method of surgery to cut out the existing saucer and add the new.
Once its finished the hardtop will hide all scars and I'll be back in business.
Saucer Dimensions.pdfI think this saucer is just blown out all together on this particular playfield. The fins and the hammer stick up past the edges of the wood. What do you guys think? Even the screw for the top of the assembly peaks out of the top of the saucer.
2AA74349-251A-4173-84E3-B9E4B947EF91 (resized).jpeg6BF4017F-AE99-44E0-B834-FA279626FAF9 (resized).jpeg85CCD43B-DCAC-4248-A66C-BF37F7DB4D44 (resized).jpegQuoted from bssbllr:Man use that epoxy look back at old threads I used it to repair holes on my dh that we’re worn on one side worked perfect. The stuff turns out like original with a little sanding it would look great. If you sand to much you add more. This stuff dries quick but it’s like playdough try it first you will be pleased.
I’ll stop by Lowe’s in a little bit
Found the JB Weld Kwik wood. Drilled some holes and roughed it up with 80 grit. Feels like chewed gum as it hardens. I ground in a thin layer then built on top of it. Really easy to shape. Eager to see how this turns out.
1186A6FB-EC62-4739-A4ED-316D3B18B040 (resized).jpeg1F486B1C-02A6-4078-8DA0-3067BE305E74 (resized).jpeg9D3800B4-9EFB-4F36-B5A5-D44AD6F49B7D (resized).jpegOk an hour later and the saucer is shaped and looks amazing. Holy hell...
I’m going to fine tune it tomorrow. But sheesh I can’t believe this stuff. You guys were right. Praise Vid once again.
395C98F5-6AB0-4AD7-8CC9-604D8745FB35 (resized).jpeg3F0456CB-CDFC-4C59-BC21-04F1BFB29856 (resized).jpegC210AF33-7932-466F-B54C-4D98AC92A04A (resized).jpegThe saucer in the playfield currently in my machine is shallow and this play field it was deep, you can see that i built it up with about a 1/4 inch worth of the epoxy, I'm going to sand it down a little more to get the shape right but for the most part I'm trying to keep the bowl to stay higher to hopefully help with impacts at the back, with direct hits.
I think tatman9999 's Viking has a great example of saucer depth. Just enough to change the ball path.
Saucer (resized).jpgQuoted from bssbllr:Just keep shaping it to get the look you want. I would try to keep it as original as it was to keep the ball from doing things it’s not suppose to like not sit or bounce out of the hole to much.
Right, here's a CPR Mata Hari saucer, you can see how high the bowl is, very shallow in comparison to what i had before I added the epoxy. I think I'm almost there with the shape.
CPR playfield (resized).jpgOk finished sanding. Got the saucer pretty darn close to perfect (at least for me) and got it painted up again.
Deez told me to man up and just buy the spray max so now I have to.
AB64C34D-75CF-469B-B005-4DD5316696FD (resized).jpeg
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The playfield in there now has a decent saucer. Still low in the back. I “think” it’s a couple things. The corners are at a perfect trajectory for the ball to hit on up the middle shots.
This playfield is BURIED in clear so almost 1/8 of an inch (little less) of clear is absorbing a lot of impact.
Hard to say how this will hold up on the new. My hopes are that the ball wont hit in the same edge and because of how it’s shaped I could probably install some type of a metal ring that is flush with the edge to act as a cliffy.
192F89B7-2D6B-4B96-A60F-669E8AC54008 (resized).jpegB5BBD13E-DCC2-4267-A7E0-837CF083BFB5 (resized).jpeg
Saucer Protection (resized).jpgQuoted from bssbllr:Mylar ring?
I was kicking the idea around for using mylar a few posts back... thats also an option
Quoted from HoakyPoaky:Is that a test fitting or is that installed? I hope you post some photos of your prep work & process
That’s installed, there’s not much prep outside of what I’ve already captured. Just got it lined up, clamped it down a little above halfway and peeled back the masking for the bottom. Laid it down then peeled back the top and BOOM! It only takes a few minutes to lay down. I did clean up the insert windows from behind because they were a little cloudy. And I put the pop bumper screws back in before I laid it down.
Ok let’s edit this:
I guess if I list everything I did it would be the following:
Sanded entire playfield
Polished inserts by wet sanding at 2000 grit
Painted the outside edges of inserts that might have the edges exposed
Applied gloss wipe on poly to inserts
Cleared all exposed wood with Ace Hardware clear enamel
Painted and cleared saucer
Damaged the saucer testing cheap clear
Sanded saucer down a second time and reshaped with epoxy
Repainted and cleared saucer with SprayMax 2K
Cleaned all the clear plastic of the hardtop from the back side to remove smudges from handling or extra adhesive from production
Wiped playfield with a tack cloth and sprayed it with duster
Lined it up how I wanted splitting the difference in registration
Clamped it down
Checked registration again
Reclamped
Checked registration again
Reclamped
Checked registration again
Reclamped
Went back to check registration again and yelled at myself for being a perfectionist
Vomited out of nerves
Peeled back the protective layer from the adhesive for the bottom half and laid it down
Then peel the back and laid it down
Then stood back and laughed at how ridiculously easy it was
Quoted from Mathazar:How did the holes on your hardtop line up with the holes on your playfield? I had 4 holes on my MH playfield that were completely covered and a couple of dozen partially covered. Nothing my dremel couldn't fix, but like you it was my first time through it and I was nervous as hell, but after 20 minutes the dremeling was done and upon reflection really simple to do. I can't wait to do my next one....hopefully Eight Ball Deluxe in December.
As far as I can tell I only have one hole that is off just enough that I can’t get the lane guide in. Outside of that they are all pretty much on except the pop bumper area. The screws were a bit off and the cut outs for the bodies are going to need trimmed back. But it’s all just FRACTIONS of an inch. It was almost a perfect registration. I’m really happy with it.
Quoted from bssbllr:That playfield looks amazing great job!
Thanks cant wait for the swap!
Swap #2 lol hopefully this is the last time
Quoted from HoakyPoaky:I have some questions but don't have time to ask now. Looks awesome & you've motivated me to get moving on mine.
I just need to figure out how to restore the shooter lane & the visible wood areas of my playfield. I've got some dirty deep ball grooves in mine. I haven't found a good guide for cleaning, sanding & best option for protecting those areas.
Also curious how polished you were able to get the inserts with the wet sanding method. Do they get super glossy with that method vs just rattle can clearing them?
oh and how many inserts did you have to paint edges black? I assume this become evident when you test fit your hardtop?
I got the inserts pretty glossy then used one smear of "Wipe-on Poly" instead of clear coat to give that wet look. The whole reason I'm doing this swap is because the clear ghosted off the inserts so i didn't want to clear them again and have it happen under the hardtop.
The black paint i determined about 4 or 5 inserts needed it but after I lined it up only 1 of them REALLY needed it the rest the slightest bit of black paint helps one the edges of one side, not really even needed. Oddly enough the white 5x bonus arrow the lower PF was the only insert that seemed off.
As for the shooter lane I just used 80 grit with my finger or thumb depending on the spot of the groove i was in and sanded it clean then smoothed it out with finer grits up to 220, nothing to extravagant. I almost hit the limit though on how deep i was getting, I didn't alter the shape of the lane but if i would've kept going it would've started getting too deep. Which wouldn't have mattered anyway after the fact because of the plastic explained next.
Because of how the plastic of the hardtop lays in the lane the ball is cradled by the plastic the whole way up the lane so the ball never even touches the wood. (I don't think this was on purpose I think it ma just be the way this particular one was cut) Knowing this is what drove me to clear it early on with that cheapy stuff. Looks amazing! Then i made the bad decision to use that same stuff on the saucer and we all saw how that ended. I then ended up using spraymax on that one piece.
If i was going to do this again, i would've just cleaned up the inserts and did the wipe on poly the same then just put a strip of tape over them all and just spraymaxed the whole PF. But even that isn't necessary, even on bare wood the Hardtop sticks and ISNT letting go. That adhesive is insane.
D0748C5B-89D7-4A99-A606-09B23C495A37 (resized).jpeg
24946704-48DB-4DC2-A7E9-B862A6C7B380 (resized).jpeg
79EEFC75-BABF-4358-A10B-C8D0C8654983 (resized).jpegQuoted from HoakyPoaky:Awesome info everyone. Thanks!
What's this wipe-on poly you're referring to?
Initially I was going to use it all over the whole playfield but I like the deep gloss of clear coat. This stuff is pretty nice though. Used it on 3 of my EMs after cleaning the shooter lane.
image (resized).jpgSucks I even have to do this but at the same time I love working on machines. Just another learning experience.
Tear down for the hardtop
DA32255C-0F60-4E17-B55C-E60CEC5D3692 (resized).jpeg6A4F42DE-3FC5-4200-AA23-3556A2DA7BCB (resized).jpegB7E18E6D-9FE1-4738-90E1-E37F2F77E75C (resized).jpeg1FA75D85-5A81-48F9-AE99-94B60F9720E7 (resized).jpegI’m swapping playfields. The playfield in the pic is the one I clear coated. The hardtopped playfield is laying face down on my pool table 2 feet out of frame of the pic.
Finally after 2 years she’s done!(again)
Swapped the clear coated playfield out with the other playfield with a hardtop. I really lucked out, put it in the machine and everything fired right up. Only had one outlane switch to adjust because I squished the leaves together on accident. Plays so fast and smooth!
So far the saucer is fine and I nailed it head on a few times. That SprayMax stuff is the way to go for sure. Also decided to let go of my obsession of incandescent lights. I love them but they burn too hot and are just too dim. So here’s my revamp of my first restoration with a Hardtop and warm white LEDs!
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Quoted from Mathazar:She's looking really sweet once again! Congrats! So what's your next obsession going to be?
I love my MH hardtop - with the complete tear down, drop target/flipper/pop bumper/sling rebuilds she's fast and furious like new. I'm gaining experience and confidence with the Black Jack cabinet restore/repaint I'm doing now that I think my spring project is shaping up to be restoring my MH cabinet next.
Thanks man! And I’m enjoying watching your BJ thread.
I’m not sure about the next. My Shangri-La is done and I should have my backglass from BGResto in the next couple weeks for that one. I might redo do the mech board for it just to keep myself busy. I think in order for me to take on a new project I’ll have to put one of my babies on the chopping block to make room.
Quoted from HoakyPoaky:Looking great man. The hardtop looks fantastic. Where’d you get the plastic protectors? I was thinking of just putting clear washers on mine.
I actually got this lead from phillyfan64 forever ago:
https://www.pinbits.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=27&products_id=609&zenid=f9svtqrlm4mf3qg43mgtf6dii1
Quoted from phillyfan64:You can probably do a playfield swap in your sleep by now. Just kidding. Good luck with this one. She’s a beauty!
Quoted from Atari_Daze:Oh she is so nice! I just had to check this one out again when I saw your check mark, I thought no way, it's done?
Freaking fantastic man, really nice job!
Thanks guys! Yeah I’m glad it’s done I’m sick of working on this thing hahaha
Not gonna lie, I turned all the lights out and just stared at her all lit up like a xmas tree for about 30 minutes last night. 
Quoted from Arcane:Yeap, that stuff is marvelous. I am very happy I used it on my Mata Hari and Playboy playfields.
Oh!! The Heresy.... but it is your machine and it looks fabulous.
Yves
Thanks Yves, glad to see you pop up in threads every now and then!
so far I'm happy with the spraymax in the saucer, if I could do it again i would've cleared all the shooter, apron, upper arch, and saucer. I'm jaded with clearing the inserts because of ghosting. I know millions of play fields are cleared with no problems with inserts but the ghosting inserts are what caused me to go hardtop so I just sanded them and glossed them up with poly. i would recommend on the back side of the hardtop make sure all debris is removed from the clear parts of the insert. I thought i had mine clean as a whistle but after i was done little pieces of dust or debris magically appeared. I can barely see it but because I'm such a perfectionist I'm constantly looking for stuff like that.
With the actual laying down process i would recommend clamping right around where the snake head are and peeling the protective backing from the lower half just up to the 1000-Special inserts, lay down the exposed adhesive then remove the clamps and then peel the rest of the backing off and laying down the top.
When you're done you're going to chuckle at how easy it was. The biggest part for me was just making sure no bits of dust would get under the insert windows. Just take your time lining up the registration.
Quoted from HoakyPoaky:Seems like everyone who has attempted to paint & clear the saucer all end up with some damage to the clear at the back of the saucer after playing. The only time I've read this not happening is when spraymax clear is used. But mainly it needs to be applied correctly. It would be really depressing to get damage like that after the hardtop is installed, because I don't think there would be anyway to repair the clear damage afterwards.
Care to elaborate why? Didn't get the right results with the wipe on poly?
I just didn’t realize how easy to use and great the stuff is.
Quoted from Dono:I can tell Artoo is totally enraptured in your nice example...
That's certainly a unique name for a cat, love it. I'm sure there's an interesting story there!
Just a huge Star Wars fan haha
(R2)
anyone care to comment on a fair asking price for this game? Im not selling but i am interested in knowing what a restored game can be sold for, or if i did list how much i could get away with before the Price Police showed up and started bashing me with their virtual Billy-Clubs.
I'm not even going to post how much I have in this game, but its a few grand...
"They go for $10,000 on eBay!" There I got that joke out of the way....
Quoted from jbovenzi:My opinion is: Much less than you have spent on restoring the game.
You have a beautiful restore there. The game looks great. The other issue is that how many people in the hobby will spend for a Mata Hari?
I went overboard on redoing a Bally Rolling Stones. I will probably get half to two-thirds back of what I spent.
My guess is $2200?
Yeah that’s probably pretty fair. I know with restorations you never get back what you put in but I’m too new in the hobby to have seen enough restored pins for sale to see how much they compare to the median sale prices.
This is interesting:
https://pinside.com/pinball/forum/topic/fs-mata-hari-cpr-playfield-installed-with-cpr-plastics
$2800 Mata Hari
Not sure if this supports or opposes the prices suggested.
CPR playfield and Plastics total would be $1000.00ish
I guess it’s in line with the mind set of paying for parts mostly.
Just thinking based on math of parts knowing what I paid and estimating what PanzerFreak probably paid.
I’m glad the sale is pending!
So Saturday I booted this baby up and went to play a game, waited for it to boot and do it’s opening melody and just as I was about to hit start it rebooted itself. I played 10 games with no problems and even got distracted and left it on for about an hour and it stayed on. What would cause such a random reboot after having no problems for the last 2 years? Connector?
Quoted from PinNickleby:Yep, something going around with MHs. Mine rebooted right in the middle of a game last week. Power cycled it and the GI lighting lit up but the Alltec mpu didn't boot, nothing on the displays. I reseated the J4 connector and haven't had the problem since. I will be rebuilding my connectors soon.
Good ol J4. I only rebuilt a few connectors for the rectifier board during the restore I need to set some time aside and tackle a few more.
Quoted from eagle18:I got ocd with both my MH and EK when I was working on them and replaced every connector on all the boards and even the displays. Took some time to do it, did a little everyday, but haven’t had any problems. Now that it’s over I’m so glad I did it.
I’ll probably do that this winter to kill the boredom. I was also going to replace the caps on the driver board eventually too with this machine.
Been a while since I’ve shown the ol’ gal some lovin. Decided to buy some illuminated flipper buttons from Zitt
C6E1075C-26C1-440D-A703-022626CF0AFF (resized).jpeg5EE3BD6E-2ED9-4948-BB87-2A2E77ACF238 (resized).jpeg68F9F863-43A9-4227-806C-E1268254CDB0 (resized).jpeg48F58B98-0494-4E2B-9691-E80E8A8A9D1F (resized).jpegI think we’re all familiar with Mata Hari and the dagger from the playfield. I thought it would be cool to recreate that image but with photography instead of illustrations.
E7B42384-0B0E-414C-B334-0FA887F211C5 (resized).jpeg
I found a similar dagger and a pic of Margaretha and played around with the imagery. Gave the dagger a little golden glow.
EC3AB445-383E-41F5-A4B1-F6E29B6B0EAD (resized).jpeg
Now I have a center price plate instead of the metal blank.
EE7E3532-51E8-47C1-8424-E92ADD58522C (resized).jpeg30CAC761-C1EC-47B8-9A36-51573783DC03 (resized).jpeg
I think my inexperience with boards I had when I restored this game has caught up with me.
My voltages are all over the place and she won’t boot. I pulled the Driver Board and swapped it with the Alltek that in my xenon and she booted up fine.
So I’m going to replace the caps c26 and c23 and the +5 voltage regulator to see if that brings things back to normal.
Also did the ground mods from Vid’s bulletproofing thread.
84251F69-1FE4-4807-A88A-ECB44B7845C1 (resized).jpeg8EF30878-F76F-42F7-AA11-D71F4FE5226F (resized).jpeg3614425A-B32E-458F-92B8-4F1DA2F94A18 (resized).jpegQuoted from Dono:That's beautiful! I'm not sure which one is better, but you nailed it. Really like the way the colors and the lifelike imagery match the "look", "feel" and "attitude" of the game. Very well done.
Thanks! If I ever come across a super cheap Mata Hari project I would like to recreate all the art with that same concept using all altered photography instead of illustrations.
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Pittsburgh, PA