Already did...thanks!

(But I have to get the rust and corrosion off first...these sanding balls don't even make a dent in that stuff...)

Chapter Seven: Baby Got Back(Box)

Got a lot done this weekend. After three revisions of Bondo'ing, sanding, and painting, I finally decaled and screened the backbox...

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...added all the ground braid and cabinet hardware (and put the hinges on backwards )...

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...and discovered a NOOB TIP O' THE DAY: You can take all the pictures you want and log where every screw goes, but also be sure to jot down the length of each screw. I used one of the longer screws to install the knocker coil and it punched through my wife's beautiful paint job on the back of the box. I had so many F words coming out of my mouth it sounded like air escaping from a tire. After a quick patch job, it was time to continue. It's a great feeling when you get to the point in the cabinet restoration where everything you have left to do fits on one table...

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So I decided to attack the speaker panel first and disassembled the whole thing...

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After a cleaning, painting, and speaker replacement, it was back together and ready to rock...

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I didn't notice how scratched up the display panel was - when the machine looked like crap, you couldn't tell. But when it's all prettied up, it's obvious. I'll have to get another one.

Does anybody know how to repaint/stencil the speaker grills? Or where I can get replacements? They could use a once-over as well.

Finally, it was time to put in all the boards and connect all the wires. This was easy because I had used the labeling system outlined in the earlier post. But I was left with one unmarked wire. Uh-oh...

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So I had to check the schematics to figure out where the white/white connector goes and found out that it went to the original display panel. (Mine has an XPin display.) NOTE TO SELF: In the future, if there are any connectors that DON'T go anywhere, those should be labeled as such to avoid confusion later.

Continuing on, I said a silent prayer, crossed myself, and turned on the machine to see if it booted...

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It did! The only issue was that the subwoofer wasn't working. I found that a wire had pulled loose from the IDC connector, so I fashioned another one and all was well. It was on to the light panel, which I disassembled, tumbled the metal parts, and painted...badly. (I've found that I REALLY suck at spray painting. I didn't even know you're supposed to shake the can for a minute before starting. Yes...I was the object of ridicule this weekend. )

The refurbed light panel was reassembled, LEDs put in, and installed. I did a quick light test...

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And replaced the translite, and the cabinet is done!

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Except for this thing, which is making me long for the solace that death will bring...

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But that's for next weekend!!!

Sorry, Jared! Is this better?

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I'll post some outdoor shots next weekend before I wrap it up to move to my basement. Don't know if you can tell, but I've been doing this in the bay usually reserved for my wife's car...and she'd like it back!

My wife wants to know when you're coming down. Our house is your house...kids, too!

Not sure if I can make it...I have a retirement party to go to that day. If I do go, it'll be early...like at opening. Jury's still out, but thanks for the interest in seeing my ugly mug!

Also wanted to mention that John Wart did a fantastic job on my boards. They look spiffy clean and work beautifully!

Hey, buddy! I did consider doing just that. I even talked to Terry about lockbar receivers and when I described the FH one, he said (and I quote), "Sounds like you've got a problem." So they don't make them, and when I A/B'ed the PBL receiver with the FH one, it seemed to be a little thicker in spots and I didn't want to take the chance of cutting it (so I couldn't return it) just to put it on and find out in two months when I drop the playfield in, it doesn't fit for some reason.

I polished the old one up today and it doesn't look half bad. It's not the sandblasted and plated ones Hutchins does, but like I said...this ain't no HEP restoration. I still think the machine looks great though, especially for a first time!

I didn't even think of that! Thanks. I even bought a little crème broulee torch at Bed Bath & Beyond to flame polish the subway (I figured that's a safe place to practice since nobody sees it!). But it's worth a shot on the front of the panel before buying another one.

Many thanks for all the wisdom and tips on here. I'm pleased to report I put the finishing touches on the cab today and will post pics (3/4 in good lighting for Jared!) very soon. (What the hell does 3/4 mean, anyway? Corner shots? Or 1/4 of the machine is cut off in the pic? )

You don't know? I didn't know I was being used as a guinea pig!!!

I did already. But the first batch had a problem. Joe's sending me a new one. GREAT customer service!

Chapter Eight: Rudy's House

Okay...quick update by request. Le cabinet c'est finis! (I obviously don't speak French.)

Here are some shots of the cab (including what I think are 3/4 shots in good lighting for Jared!). It's not perfect, and if you want to zoom in on any shot, you'll find those imperfections. But like I titled the post, this ain't no HEP restoration. It's my first try, and I actually did better than I thought I would and didn't blow shit up (which is always nice). Still have to address the speaker panel. If anybody knows of a way to touch up paint on the speaker grilles, please let me know.

Compare these pix to the before shots in the initial thread and it's a dramatic difference. Enjoy!

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Intermission: Rudy Awaits...

Here are some before pics of the playfield. I actually had to blow some of those helicopter seedlings off of the PF before bringing it outside. It looked like somebody had played this Funhouse in the woods. Pretty bad shape. I'm going to spend the weekend remembering what my wife looks like and I'll start tackling this next weekend. (That being said, I'll probably start tomorrow.)

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That's okay. Makes it look original.

Awwh! That's the nicest thing anybody's ever said to me!

Ah, F**K!

You're right. I'm pretty sure yours turned out far nicer. Good to have you back, Bryan!

Thanks, Rob. Worked on the PF a little bit today and got a headache trying to figure out what size and where all the T-nuts go in the new PF. Then I realized that some dickwad literally super-glued in all the posts/studs, so I'll have to replace all of them...when I figure out exactly what size they all are. What a nightmare. Anyway...I've been catching up with life which is why this thread has gone silent for a while. The cabinet is in its new home in the basement and I'm prepping the new PF before tearing down the topside of the old one.

More pics and updates as they happen!

I...love...you... Thanks so much.

I might have found that thread if ROBIN WOULD FIX THE TOPIC SEARCH BOX AT THE TOP OF THE PAGE!!!

Chapter Nine: Topside Tear-down

Now that I can post photos again, time to get caught up (this'll take a few posts to do...).

So, as far as I can tell, there are actually three stages to a playfield swap: The tear-down, the cleaning, and the rebuilding.

The tear-down took me a couple of days to do because I did it REALLY carefully. I took a picture of every area I was working on from multiple angles, followed by four corner-playfield shots (as suggested by Bryan Kelly). I logged every disassembly, ordered by number on my computer (there were 20 steps on the topside and 20 steps on the underside). Every piece of hardware I took off the PF was bagged and tagged with a number corresponding to the number in the computer log.

Even with all that caution, I'm sure I'll have screwed something up along the way.

I prepped the new PF by sanding the underside and clearcoating it with one coat of satin to keep dirt off (thanks, Skypilot!). Then I put in the t-nuts and waxed the entire playfield (because I'd never be able to get into those tight spots again!).

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Turning to the old playfield, I removed Rudy to start things off. First out, last in so that he doesn't get damaged with all the dicking around with the teardown and rebuild. (The Rudys they're making now are so dark he looks like he's from the Indian subcontinent.)

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Then I took off the habitrails, mirror, and ramps. The diverter assembly had a set screw that was stripped and rusted in place. So I had to drill it out, and I realized as I went that I should also log in bold type what parts I knew I had to order so I could find them easily in the log. Thanks to Jim McCune for reminding me that I had a manual with all the part numbers. I was wondering what that book on my bench with "Funhouse" on the cover was for!

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Playfield plastics went next, and suddenly the Funhouse didn't look quite as fun anymore.

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Gates, tall hex posts, and ball guides were next.

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Then all the playfield posts, side rails, and any other part (like the trapdoor plastic) that could be removed without accessing the underside first (like pops). You can see by the picture above that quite a few screws broke off when I tried to get them out. Any screw that went into a T-nut seemed to be super-glued in (which I've heard is a standard pain in the ass for this game). So I have a bunch of screws and posts to replace for the rebuild. With that done, that left the playfield almost entirely stripped, and it was time to move on to the underside.

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