(Topic ID: 152509)

Replacement wedgehead backbox

By EMsInKC

8 years ago


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  • 31 posts
  • 14 Pinsiders participating
  • Latest reply 8 years ago by Model237
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#1 8 years ago

On Monday I picked up two Sky Jumps. One of them has fairly significant water damage and rusting in the head. I'm pretty sure I can deal with the rust, but I really haven't figured out yet if I can salvage the backbox itself.

If anyone has a head from this period that I could purchase, or know someone who can reproduce one, I'd appreciate it. I'm going to try and see what I can do with it, possibly this weekend, but if I think it's beyond help I'll be on the lookout.

The cabinet has some on the lower front, but I think that I can repair.

#2 8 years ago

I have one you can have. PM Sent.

Marcus

#3 8 years ago

Bump for above reasons!

#4 8 years ago

Scott,

I have one that would need some work but is not so far gone to be unusable. And you would be painting it anyway.

Let me know.

Mike

#5 8 years ago

Just curious, does anyone sell reproduction backboxes? If so, how much?

#6 8 years ago

I have a local cabinet guy who could make some. Maybe $100 each and then $40 for shipping?

#7 8 years ago

I was thinking maybe there's a business opportunity offering repro backboxes, broken down in an Ikea-style flatpack for ease of shipping. Made from the correct woods, etc.

Hard for the receiver to glue up nice and square though.

#8 8 years ago
Quoted from Model237:

I was thinking maybe there's a business opportunity offering repro backboxes, broken down in an Ikea-style flatpack for ease of shipping. Made from the correct woods, etc.
Hard for the receiver to glue up nice and square though.

There's not really much to them. If they're made correctly anyone with any woodworking skills can easily assemble one.

#9 8 years ago
Quoted from EMsInKC:

There's not really much to them. If they're made correctly anyone with any woodworking skills can easily assemble one.

It does take 1 or 2 clamps

But yea, we are ready to build some, was tempted to make up a batch of 5, either fully assembled or as a kit. 3/4 cab grade plywood. Interest? Thinking 100 each

cowboy_(resized).jpgcowboy_(resized).jpg

#10 8 years ago
Quoted from pinhead52:

either fully assembled or as a kit.

Flat pack shipping idea of Ingvar Kamprad (Ikea) made him millions of Krona.

#11 8 years ago
Quoted from Darcy:

Flat pack shipping idea of Ingvar Kamprad (Ikea) made him millions of Krona.

Muh, muh, muh, my .. Krrrrrona!

#12 8 years ago
Quoted from pinhead52:

It does take 1 or 2 clamps
But yea, we are ready to build some, was tempted to make up a batch of 5, either fully assembled or as a kit. 3/4 cab grade plywood. Interest? Thinking 100 each

cowboy_(resized).jpg

Was that an attempt to use every clamp you own? LOL

I'd certainly be interested in a kit. Got any idea of the price yet? I do own clamps...

#13 8 years ago

Is that your work or the cabinet guy? That's a small fortune invested in parallel clamps! I'm going to have to settle for pipe clamps on my upcoming cab glue-up.

Sure, if you're making one might as well bang out another few, if there's demand. I don't personally need one, but it would be a great resource. My 64 Gottlieb BB was all solid poplar glued up from 6"+ wide pieces. I wonder when plywood took over.

Btw what kind of cab is that? Looks like varnished wood. Is that original? I think it would be neat to concoct a "fine woodworking" pinball, maybe a steampunk brass and mahogany kinda deal.

#14 8 years ago

Or if someone has developed the G-code for CNC - just farm it out to a local shop for cutting!

#15 8 years ago

I am the mystery guy. Can't use CNC for bevel cut unless u have a super fancy CNC. Since its a wedge head and not square clamping is more "fun" and joints need bevels.

Wasn't just using clamps for fun in the pic. There was a dowel where every clamp was. It was such a small piece of wood on an edge I wanted it super strong so it had many many dowels precision aligned. And when you try to use that many dowels they better be perfect and you have to use strong clamps to close the joints tight.

#16 8 years ago
Quoted from laanguiano:

I am the mystery guy. Can't use CNC for bevel cut unless u have a super fancy CNC. Since its a wedge head and not square clamping is more "fun" and joints need bevels.
Wasn't just using clamps for fun in the pic. There was a dowel where every clamp was. It was such a small piece of wood on an edge I wanted it super strong so it had many many dowels precision aligned. And when you try to use that many dowels they better be perfect and you have to use strong clamps to close the joints tight.

The Wood Doctor has spoken.

See you at TPF!

Marcus

#17 8 years ago

I don't speak often, but when I do it's Dos Equis. Stay thirsty my friends.

#18 8 years ago

Hey Wood Doctor - nice work. Are those turning blanks in back?

#19 8 years ago
Quoted from laanguiano:

I am the mystery guy. Can't use CNC for bevel cut unless u have a super fancy CNC. Since its a wedge head and not square clamping is more "fun" and joints need bevels.
Wasn't just using clamps for fun in the pic. There was a dowel where every clamp was. It was such a small piece of wood on an edge I wanted it super strong so it had many many dowels precision aligned. And when you try to use that many dowels they better be perfect and you have to use strong clamps to close the joints tight.

Well, it certainly makes my collection of clamps look pretty sad.

That cabinet looks eerily like a DAC I restored and recently sold. Whoever owned it at some point in the past decided it was furniture and not a pin, sanded off all the paint and stained the cab and backbox. I had to sand it again and repaint it in the original design.

If you're the guy who'll make the backboxes, I'm sold just by those clamps.

#20 8 years ago
Quoted from Model237:

Hey Wood Doctor - nice work. Are those turning blanks in back?

Yes they are!! Good catch. They are waiting in line to get on my tilt a whirl.

#21 8 years ago
Quoted from EMsInKC:

If you're the guy who'll make the backboxes, I'm sold just by those clamps.

Ha-ha.

#22 8 years ago
Quoted from Model237:

Btw what kind of cab is that? Looks like varnished wood. Is that original? I think it would be neat to concoct a "fine woodworking" pinball, maybe a steampunk brass and mahogany kinda deal.

The stained cab was and now is again a Flipper Cowboy, very sweet game. laanguiano fixes the bones and I repaint and bring them back to life

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#23 8 years ago
Quoted from EMsInKC:

Was that an attempt to use every clamp you own? LOL
I'd certainly be interested in a kit. Got any idea of the price yet? I do own clamps...

For the kit? Maybe $90. Once you have all the pieces cut it doesnt take much. However the kit is really not to feasible. The face goes on last and a router is used to cut it down to the shape, may be a little tricky to cut face exact before hand.

#24 8 years ago

Very nice! Never seen a Flipper Cowboy in person.

As much as I like natural wood, it just looks wrong on a pin.

#25 8 years ago
Quoted from pinhead52:

For the kit? Maybe $90. Once you have all the pieces cut it doesnt take much. However the kit is really not to feasible. The face goes on last and a router is used to cut it down to the shape, may be a little tricky to cut face exact before hand.

Yeah, it might be hard to make a kit work. Easier to just ship the thing already assembled - no risk of things not lining up.

Maybe depends on the type of backbox? My '64 Big Top bb is a relatively sophisticated piece of woodworking, and the solid wood construction probably needed final adjusting due to moisture content differences, knot holes, etc.

Did the later, all-ply cabs get simpler for ease of assembly (i.e. less labor)? My '67 Sing Along is still solid wood, but simpler than the 64.

#26 8 years ago

Sorry, I was told the head was from 'Play Ball' so I immediately thought Gottlieb. Anyway the artwork is cool, anybody have an idea what mfgr and year this is from, I can't seem to find it on IPDB.

Dana

image_(resized).jpegimage_(resized).jpeg

#27 8 years ago

I'm really surprised there are not enough parted games around to make the backbox thing a non issue. Odd.

#28 8 years ago

Play Ball is a wartime conversion from Victory Games. Gottlieb's 'The Champ' and 'The New Champ' were used for the conversions.

http://www.ipdb.org/search.pl?name=play+ball&sortby=name&searchtype=advanced#3298

#29 8 years ago

Original wedge head cabs were made of poplar and often planked, using several pieces glued for each side. Call me a purist but I believe there is an acoustic element to the old EMs and replacing original construction with different materials other than what was originally used or slathering bonds on cabinet elements can have a detrimental effect, agreed, this is an extreme approach. The older EM wedge heads used a cheaper layered wood and are problematic, air pockets etc. I have pics of some wood repairs on FB https://www.facebook.com/Preservation-Pinball-and-Paint-383113651705319/?ref=bookmarks

Good luck either way.

#30 8 years ago

My 1969 Target Pool"s head had a lot of moisture and heat damage. The front plywood was delaminating and half the side was twisted and split.
I fixed it without using any clamps. I used weight instead of clamps and a simple cheap table saw to cut a new side.
the repair turned out perfect.

Here's a link to the project:
https://pinside.com/pinball/forum/topic/my-new-target-pool-project

#31 8 years ago

Wow Steve, I hadn't seen your Target Pool resto - great work, holy crap! I'm headed in the same direction hopefully with my Big Top - cab wood repair/replace, repaint, webbing, everything.

My head had similar moisture problems, but with solid wood swelling at the edges instead of plywood delamination. I opted to keep the original wood and plane it flat again (jointer made is easy), but I would have swapped in new wood with no regrets. It did require some bondo to get it smooth again, also to fill other voids & dings. I expect you'd have to slather a few pounds of bondo to get any noticeable difference in acoustics, but to each their own. I prefer a smooth-ish finish if I'm going to go the effort, and I consider I'm bringing this thing back from the dead anyway - the damage done before I got there!

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