I just got done clear coating three F-14s, so I've got them on the brain.

99.9% of F-14 playfields are messed up, so don't feel bad.

First, those are not decals (unless someone put decals on your machine). The inserts are silk screened with the graphics at the same time as the rest of the playfield at the factory.

If the inserts are popped in every direction on the playfield, you can heat them up with a hair dryer and push them out. Then it is easy to sand off the ink.

If the inserts are solidly flush with the playfield, then I hate to even tell you how to remove the ink, because if you don't really read and understand the directions, you can make some big mistakes.

Let's see some pictures before you start...

cleared2.jpg

The inserts should be smooth so the decals can stick to them and not show air gaps.

It would be pretty hard to shatter F14 inserts - they WANT to come out, LOL.

Seriously, sometimes I blow off the playfield with the air gun and F14 inserts just fall out. One of the worst glue jobs and playfield clear coats ever...

I just knocked out all the inserts in my F-14 last weekend. Everything but 2 1.5" arrow inserts came out great. I really didn't treat the two that broke any differently. I think the heat from the bulbs make some of them a bit brittle. They both broke on the narrow part, right in half, width wise.

So, be careful. Vid is right though. Those inserts practically fell out.

I've restored maybe 20 F14s, have another 3 on the way and 2 in the shop right now - I could probably make a friggin career out of them because they are always so trashed.

You don't have to hammer out the inserts. Heat them top and bottom. Using a deep well socket (from a socket wrench set - yes, sometimes you will need a metric size) of the largest size that will fit into the insert hole, gently press them up and out. If you get any resistance, stop and heat again.

You should be pressing on the edges, not the center where the plastic has been sanded thin.

Where can I buy all the plastic inserts of the F14? Any direction is very much appreciated ☺️