So here we go again with another bowling themed machine to bring back to life. RonSS Why did I let you talk me into picking up this new project ? I picked this machine up it was in 1 families basement for the past 40 years about an hour south of chicago. Overall the machine is in pretty good condition and was about 90% playable to a degree. Had some scoring issues and some cosmetic issues and a couple structural reinforcement issues under the lane to get fixed as shown in the last pic. 1st issue i'm tackling is cleaning her up because the 3 people who lived in the house smoked like chimneys so it is covered in nicotine tar. It smells pretty bad from that so i'm looking for a product to help mitigate that awful cigarette smell. I also have about 4 spots with duct tape residue which i'm thinking goo gone will remove? Currently i've just been cleaning with 409 and draping Downy dryer sheets on it, i'm sure there has to be a better product for this? As soon as I finish scrubbing every inch I will be moving on to the internals. I will be starting with all the steppers and score reels in the recessed part of the backbox behind the backglass. After all that is done I will be moving to the switch banks, relays, steppers and score motor all mounted on the backbox door. The machine is pretty dirty as i'm sure there has been no love given to her for quite some time. Looks like the last time she saw action commercially was 1974 from the tax stamp still on the backglass. I'm taking the guru @mopars advice and not plugging her in until all listed work above at lesst is finished. So come along and join me on my journey as I embark once again into the world of EM's that I don't know much about still even after my 1st shuffle alley resto. Any and all advice given along the way will be greatly appreciated and hopefully I won't have to begging for very many parts but if I do plz steer me to the right spot to get them. I've already reached out to Bowlerguy (Chris) for a couple items and luckily he is a local guy so that will be a huge help. I will however be looking hard core for a 3ft extension piece so I can convert it to a 16ft bowler but that won't be an issue until this old bowler is back up and running 100%. So wish me luck and call me crazy but here we go. I'm sure i've missed a lot but a big thanks in advance to all of you, Bill.
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I get that a lot

Jumping right in and getting these internal components cleaned up and really they aren't that filthy. Thankfully they stopped using that nasty grease on the 60's machines that they used on the 50's machines. That stuff is a bear to get off all those little parts.

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Yeah and meanwhile i'm cussing you as I scrub these stepper unit parts and reassemble them.

Thanks I will pick some up tomorrow as this ashtray smell is awful.

Been a pretty productive day. I did a whole lot of cleaning the exterior today which took about a half a roll of paper towels. Also knocked out everything on the bottom row which was player 6,5,2 and 1. Took those player steppers apart thoroughly cleaned all parts and reassembled. Filed and cleaned all contacts on those A,B and C reset relays also.

So as I was finishing up bolting the player 1 stepper in I noticed this loose wire. It looks like it came loose of the player up reel and someone just taped the wires together. Would it be safe to say it needs to be resoldered to the pin that has no wires on it in the pic? I'm including th front view of this reel also.

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I've been pretty productive this morning I finished up the last 2 player steppers. Getting ready to start on the scoring reels now after a quick road trip I had to take. Big thanks to Chris from St Louis ball bowlers for setting me up with some new ball return rubber and a broken rollover switch. I got some food in my belly now so it's time to quit typing and get back to work!

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Geez i'm playing babysitter here at same time i'm trying to get this thing cleaned up. You guys are ruthless slave drivers! I'm on my last stepper u it before starting on the score reels.

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Don't worry I will be posting soon over there

Anybody know if theres an LED bulb that I can use to swap out these old #55 bulbs?

So would I be able to just plug in a #44 led 6.3v bulb even though these #55's are 7v bulbs?

Sweet I have some downstairs. Thank you!

Ok so player 2 score reels were one hell of a project. Pretty much all 3 coil stops were completely mushroomed and a bitch to get out of the coils. Looks like I will be tabulating a list of replacement parts i'm gonna need. All in all it was a good day and one step closer to a fully functional ball bowler.

Yeah it's a little different with this one because I know it was playable it's not like I last Shuffle alley project that did not work at all when I picked it up and needed a ton of work to get going.

Thanks it took me almost 3 years to find one that was in my budget. They are some of the most fun machines you will play.

So I took all the score reels out took them all apart and all the little parts are in the ultrasonic cleaner. Score reels will all be done and reassembled hopefully tonight.

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Well I forgot I had a Zoom call last night with the guys over on the Pinball and Bourbon thread at 8 last night so I didn't get much done. Up and at em though this morning and getting back to it but I gotta run back out to st louis ball bowlers to grab some more parts at some point today. Will do a progress report some time later today.

Just got back home from another parts run out to st louis ball bowlers. Time to get cracking!

Let's get these parts installed.

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Scrubba dubba dubba... These reels were filthy, nothing a little Dawn dishsoap won't fix.

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Ughh... 7 more reels to go. I'm really starting to remember how much I hate score reels

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Yeah worst part about it is every single one of them has burns on them so I'm just going to have to keep my eyes open for some better ones that might pop up for sale. However in the meantime I have now completely finished the back box. I got the last score reels put together and assembled and will now be moving on to all the other components like the flash motor and score motor and the switch stacks and the bank relays that are all attached to the door.

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Lol I used a black sharpie to touch up some spots where the black had flaked.

I put my 8yr old to work filing switch contacts under the playfield. Helps them understand you rarely get to plug things in and they work fine. Gotta teach em early how much more you appreciate something after you put in a bunch of work on it.

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I couldn't find the coil for the score reels on marco or pinball life or even doing a google search. 3-26-1200 coil.

So far I only needed the one coil because when I took it apart the coil fell and basically unraveled

Man I do love how people create these custom ways of attaching the pins to the pin hangers.

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This pinhood is beyond filthy and has been lets say "Improvised" to keep working. I have taken 3 pin assemblies off now and 2 had nails through them holding the pins on. I can only imagine how the rest will look when I get to them. Good thing is they are looking real good after a nice warm bath in the ultrasonic cleaner.

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Let's just say I am more motivated on this project than most others I have laying around that are on my list to get done

There is a back story here to me obsessing over this machine. About 35 years ago when I was 10yrs old my dad would drag me to this little tavern where you could also buy beer to go. While he was waiting for his order to be ready I would get to play an old ball bowler which i'm pretty sure was a 20' machine because it seemed so far down to the pins. I always told myself one day I will get one of those and now that day has finally come and like I said I am seriously motivated. A lot of happiness for sure came from buying this machine and I am sure a lot of happiness will come from playing it with my wife and kiddos and friends. My only regret is I never got one in time to share that fun and reliv that tiny moment from so long ago with my father.

Still making progress tonight. Just got the 1st 3 pin assemblies reassembled after a nice deep cleaning of them and the deck. Moving on to the nxt 3 assemblies now and will hopefully get them done tonight.

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What goes well with cleaning a filthy pin reset motor you may ask? Why bourbon of course! As soon as I put a drop or 2 of oil on this old girl and bolt her back on the pinhood will be completely done.

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Just a little Bakers 8yr

Ok i'm going to give this a pending WooHoo! Pretty sure i'm 100% done now with the pinhood but when i reseated the armature into the motor it just didn't seem right. The metal wheel is spinning when i spin the toothed armature on top so fingers crossed i'm making something out of nothing. Hopefully Mopar will weigh in on this and let me know if I f....ed something up or not. Otherwise I will now be moving on to the components on the door.

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Got the pinhood back installed today. She's starting to look like a real ball bowler.

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Oh yeah this is way better than the shuffle alley. I was off last week so was able to really work at it but back to work this week. Will be just doing bits and pieces probably all week long.

Well I started on the flash motor tonight. Should be able to knock it out tomorrow and hopefully start on something else.

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Hmmm.. Well obviously I want this going asap but I am following @mopars advice to a T and being methodical with it. I don't think it is too far off to say I believe it will be up and running within the next 2 weeks. At this point the only things left to tackle are the components on the door and cleaning and lubricating the ball lift motor and assembly. I ordered a new set of pins for it also as the old ones were totally shot and they should be here by friday. I also ordered a new power cord and actually found a schematic for it on Marco so I grabbed that also. All in all I am very pleased where I am with it right now but of course I wish I was further along also. I am really striving for functionality first and then anything cosmetic will come 2nd. Long drawn out answer Ron but realistically I think within the 2 week window is where i'm hoping to land.

Well Ron maybe I am being overly optimistic but I truly believe that I am in the home stretch at this point. While I am tentatively banking on 2 weeks it could be more that is possible. I may come across some things that need to be readjusted which should be completely expected. However all I am doing is thoroughly cleaning a very very filthy game, rebuilding all steppers and adjusting any switches and then reassembling. You have to remember that this game was 90% functional when I got it so it was not a complete wreck like the last one I did. There have been a few people who have chimed in and offered up some advice on a few issues but as I stated I would not be anywhere near where I am with this machine had I not had all the help of @mopar. He is a wealth of knowledge and has freely shared it with me which is what has allowed me to get this game up and running so quickly and I am forever thankful for the help of his and everyone else who has been so kind with their information. Nothing will bring me more joy than to post a fully functioning video of this machine as soon as it is done so keep your eyes open for a video and you will know it's done.

Well I ended up making good progress today after I finished up the flash motor I then got the spare stepper and the game selector unit and the frame control stepper done but ran out of time to finish the extra shots step up unit. That only leads me to finish up the extra shots stepper the score motor and the two banks of switches and to finish filing and cleaning the contacts and tightening the screws on all the switches and relays. Moving right along...

Ordered bulbs for the machine this morning and it's hard to believe but there are 162 bulbs in it plus 2 long fluorescent bulbs. Couldn't believe there was that many and had to count again to double check myself.

Yeah when I folded the back glass down and saw all those bulbs I was absolutely amazed and then when I removed the lower back glass and counted 48 more I was really Blown Away! Oh well I'm going through this machine from top to bottom so whatever needs swapping out will get swapped out. I went with sunlight 2smd frosted kens bulbs from comet pinball.

Do yourself a favor and go through it and clean everything and get it all done at one time so you don't have to come back later and mess with something that you didn't clean the first time

I found someone selling the original sales flyer on ebay so I snagged it. I'm gonna frame it with some old barnwood I have laying around and hang it by the machine when it's finished.

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Yeah it happened a few more times also. Luckily Mopar had some extras that I was able to buy off of him that just showed up today.

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Been a really good day for sure. I have finished the extra shots stepper so now everything to the left of the red line EXCEPT the score motor is done. Not sure if I will do that next or save it till last.

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I'm giving it hell Ron

When I get to the ball lift motor assembly what exactly are the steps for getting it cleaned up? Are there any specific points that I should lube/grease and for the chain assembly anything special for that?

Yes it's fully functional and lifts the balls no problem and it's got some plastic tubing stuff around the forks so that part is good. I guess what I'm referring to is in the process of removing the motor and cleaning it up in general I wasn't sure if there was some specific spots to add oil or just the typical Armature parts and then as far as the chain assembly I can see it has grease on it I didn't know if there was a specific type of grease that anybody like to use for that purpose.

Some more good stuff just showed up in the mail today. New power cord and a copy of the schematic and a new to me replacement for my messed up ball. This ball has had some use for sure but at least it isn't missing a big divot like the old one.

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Old ball was missing a chunk the size of a dime

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Could of been I guess

Ok so what a tedious bunch of work but i just finished filing every switch contact in this switch bank. Then I went through with alcohol on q-tips and cleaned every single contact and then tightened every single switch screw. Woo wee that is enough for tonight.

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Thank you. No sense in half assing it I don't want to have to come back and deal with something I could have dealt with when everything was wide open.

Oh boy just finished filing and cleaning all the last switches and relays on the door. This now only leaves me the score motor and the ball lift motor to go through. I did however find some hack while cleaning the pin relay switch bank. The number 9 pin relay mechanism is broken where the spring attaches (pic 2) and some genius used some kind of cotter pin to make a tab for the spring to attach. It's a lousy fix and doesn't work effectively so i'm gonna have to reach out to someone and beg for a replacement piece. In the meantime i'm moving on to the score motor.

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Score motor switches don't stand a chance against an inquisitive 9yr old

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Well in the process of cleaning the score motor I have run into a big problem. One of the contacts from the wiper arm is gone I guess it just broke off at some point. Now what?
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Hmm

Kinda got the rug yanked out from under my feet on this one. I just knew something would come up and throw a wrench in the gears because everything was going way too smoothly.

Thought I would do as Mopar asked and share a pm message as it is very useful information that maybe someone down the road could use.

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Well I had a good couple deliveries today. 150 new LED's and a brand spanking new set of pins.

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Well I got all these old bulbs swapped out with the new 2 smd frosted sunlight bulbs from comet pinball. Gonna be doing some little odds and ends things until some more parts show up. Planning to swap out that old nasty power cord tonight also with the new one.

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Well I knocked out the power cord swap. Nothing super exciting I know but just one of the steps that's got to be taken. The old one was spliced and electrical taped in 2 places and now it"s nice and new and just waiting patiently to be plugged in.

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My wife used her Cricut machine to cut out the pattern that she recreated from the old pins and added numbers. They turned out great except for the 1 pin that arrived damaged but sender is sending out a replacement.

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Yeah it is frustrating but at least the seller is a stand up guy and is fixing the problem by sending out a new one today. 2 things i'm planning on getting to today are swapping out the ball return lane rubber and if time permits I will start on the ball lift motor assembly as well. It looks like the ball return rubber was just stapled in so i'm gonna need to stop on way home and grab a pneumatic stapler.

Making some good progress today. I tore out the 1st section of old ball return rubber and picked out all the old rusty staples which sucked. New section is back stapled in after a thorough vacuuming of the bed it sets in.

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Moving right along today and feeling pretty damn good about this machine also. These sweet ass pins that my wife did the graphics on really pop. Tim i'm super glad I ended up going with the numbers I think it was lacking without them.

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I'm not at this point yet but just figured i'd throw it out there now before I forget about it. Do you have to wax the bowling lane or just let it go since it is formica? If you do have to wax it what is the brand of choice?

Very good information as usual Tim and thanks for the insight. Note to self, Skip the wax

Well i'm glad I was sitting here double checking my work cause I just realized I totally forgot to service the Player-Up stepper. Woops! No worries it is now all serviced and checked off the list also. Always pays to double check yourself

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I'm all done with everything in the backbox except that wiper arm on the score motor. I will be attempting my own repair since Mopar went to the trouble to send me a part to attempt to repair it. I want to try this route 1st so I gain knowledge and experience in making this type of repair. However, if this doesn't work out I will be calling Chris at stl ball bowlers for a replacement arm. I am now moving on to the bowling lane section with the coin box on it as the other lane section is also done now. There have clearly been some bush "fixes" underneath this lane that I will now have to address. This 1st blatant thing is this broken cross brace that was replaced but not correctly. 2nd is this white stuff which I imagine is for sound dampening purposes. Is this stuff correct and if so does it just staple down cause they are loose and 1 piece is missing from the one end. Looks like I now need to transition from electrical to carpenter good thing I wear many hats.

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Wonderful detailed info Tim and much appreciated. If only one leg of the wiper arm is damaged do you suggest repairing all or only fix the one that needs fixing? I wasn't sure if you would change them all just to keep the contact pads all the same size for consistency purposes.

Ok good deal I will post a pic of that wiper blade when I get back in today.

Well here is the fingers off the score motor.

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Ok good deal. Will just keep on working on this lane then until that finger shows up. Thks Tim

Well i'm spending quite a bit of time on this 1st section of lane. It was really hacked together underneath and i'm tearing it all apart so I can put it back together properly. Guess I will be making a stop at home depot tomorrow for some wood.

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Well nothing too fun again to reporr today just making this old girl much more structurally sound. Gorilla wood glue and pre drilled deck screws will tighten this thing back up nicely.

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Sure is Ron. Now that part has dried for 24hrs I flipped it over and am now resetting the clamps to secure the fascia board. Making progress it's just slow progress.

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Steadily making progress here on this last section of lane. I took the lane out and vacuumed it thoroughly.
Then I ran up to Lowes and scored a section of drop ceiling tile. Cut it to fit and stapled her right on in there. Underneath is now complete and only thing left to do is replace the ball return rubber and check out the coin box area switches. There have been some hacks added to it as they added a button to bypass the coin slot.

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Alright alright alright.. Been chugging away on this thing and was gonna quit for the day but went ahead and tore out the old ball return rubber and stapled in the new.

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Yes sir for sound dampening under the lane it worked like a charm

Well I just finished lemon Pledging the lanes and the gutters and she looks good.

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Ok so Ron inspired me to clean up the metal rail on the left side as mine was really rusty. Ultimately the only way to fix it is to have it rechromed but I scrubbed the hell out of it with a non scratch brillo pad and some Brasso and it cleaned up pretty nice compared to what it was.

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Of course you do Chris

I like what you did there Chris it is Rons fault we'll blame him for this. I think I will charge him mileage for my next trip out to your place.

I mean now we have chroming services on top of it... oh my. Shoot me that price also

Was waiting for some parts to come in and they arrived today so I will jump back in tomorrow. Thanks Tim.

Ha I beat you to it

Well I had a few extra minutes last night so I ran down and swapped out those broken coil plates and also put on the new springs for them. Had a few that were "bush" fixed like this one that needed to go by by.

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Slowly coming back together.

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Okay I got her all hooked up I started a game in regulation threw one ball and this is what happened. It just kept cycling through the first ball of the first frame and it wouldn't advance to the second ball in regulation. So what needs to be adjusted?

Going to take Chris's advice and look at the score motor today. Shouldn't be anything big I wouldn't think.

Alright so i manually turned the score motor checking all switches and also went back over them with a file. I also watched the wiper blade as it turned making sure it wasn't making dual contacts and it wasn't. Here is what it is doing from the front view AFTER doing what I stated above.

What do I need to adjust when the pins come down and you get a bonk sound and a few of them retract back up into the head? I have that issue going on right now also

I just adjusted a switch on the reset wheel and it still did it once more in a game. May have to try and really fine tune those switches again.

Back digging into the score motor. Again!

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I played a quick game tonight after getting the score motor all put back together and it was just 1 game but no pin reset errors. I will play a few games tomorrow and see if the trend continues. Pretty sure a piece of gunk was sticking up the shaft in the score motor cause a small grease ball fell out when I took the cover loose. Fingers crossed that was the problem with the mechanicals and those are solved now.

Ok so problem has not been fixed. I just got done playing a couple of games in one and two player mode. I played two back-to-back games in one player mode in the first game while loading the seventh frame the pins reset. In the next game I played again in one player mode while loading the pins in the 8th and the 9th I got a reset we're a few pins came back up it still allowed me to take both my shots in every instance. I'm not sure if these white tooth Bow-Tie looking Plastics that hang the pins have anything to do with it or not but I have two of them that are missing teeth and the pin does not retract correctly. You can see in the second picture that the only pin actually needed to complete the frame is the seven and yet the 9, 10 and 6 pin are still staying down they are not retracting properly but I think that is due to those plastic pieces being messed up.

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Would those pins staying down and fighting the mechanism to retract possibly cause that pin reset?

Just emailed u

Back under my pinhood and I took it out of the machine and discovered a couple issues. First of all I have 4 bowties that were stripped out so I started replacing them today. Also the switch stack that rides the pin reset motor was broken and the switch has been bent down to accommodate it so gonna need a new one of these.

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Had some help finding it Ron. Now I just need to track down one of these switches.

Not sure what I have going on also with the 6 pin. It isn't activating no matter if I try it manually or not. Hooked up my voltmeter to it to check resistance and its reading right around 41 with machine powered off and unplugged

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A couple small cosmetic projects today heres the 1st. Swapped out the old grungy nicotine discolored plexi and new ball return decal I picked up from Chris at stl-bb.com the other day. Much better!

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