Twilight Zone
Bally, 1993You're currently viewing posts by Pinsider Chosen_S.
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Quoted from calprog:Just finishing up my TZ. Had fun restoring and modding the machine. I am adding one last item- The Slot Machine! The machine is nice and bright now like a new machine. All new rubbers, leds, color dmd, rebuilt flippers etc. A ton of new parts.
That back board decal is sexy, where did you get that?
the ball is ceramic right? what about hydrogen peroxide, or diluted muriatic acid... maybe treat it as if it is a piece of ceramic tile?
Quoted from Lermods:I inquired with a local place and for $140 I can get the legs, coin door, hinges, shooter housing, lock bar and rails done in black.
Never took off side rails, hope I don't damage them. Will use a putty knife.
Debating whether to put on new cab decals. Mine are in good shape except for some wrinkling around the legs. I just don't have a lot of hours to spend doing all the prep.
I just did a full set of decals on earth shaker, I would say about five hours of prep time , Most of it was scraping the old decals off, and then scraping the old glue off, then dry time , Plus, the playfield has to come out. And if you're going that route, you might as will touch up all of the black paint in the head, that will add even more time.
Quoted from Vin:Little awkward, but I'm new to the site, and figured I'd make my first post here since TZ is my favorite pin. I'm an arcade collector, and in the market for my first pin (which will be a TZ). Looking forward to learning all I can.
Not a bad first post! Welcome! An arcade collector here too! Don't be surprised if you end up with 3 or more pins in the next month, hehe
Quoted from alistaircg:My local plastic supplier for industrial signage, maizys plastics herein South Africa
It's technically abs , normal plastic will melt and/or crack and get brittle
Abs is used in the signage industry, it's cheap and versatile
Quoted from nosro:What thickness did you use?
It looks like Ebay has plenty of suppliers.
I second this, curious of the thickness
Quoted from merccat:I've been looking around and I can't seem to find a source for WPC onto switch receivers. I found the transmitters at Marco, but can't seem to locate the receivers anywhere. What's a good source for these?
Receiver
http://www.pinballlife.com/index.php?p=product&id=169
http://www.marcospecialties.com/pinball-parts/A-16909
http://www.marcospecialties.com/pinball-parts/A-14232
http://www.marcospecialties.com/pinball-parts/A-16909-1
Transmitter
http://www.pinballlife.com/index.php?p=product&id=168
http://www.marcospecialties.com/pinball-parts/A-14231
Everything I could find so far
Quoted from merccat:Thanks and Dang, I should have waited a week before ordering. When I went to Marco their site showed them as out of stock and I was only able to get the transmitters.
Totally get it, I hate it when that happens
It took me 3 years to find "mini post" on Marco... some of their parts are like hidden jewels
I just did decals on ES, I removed them with a heat gun and a paint scraper, then I had to spray citirus stripper on the cab to scrape off the old glue, although on the head I just sanded the glue and got it as flat as I could, and went ahead and re sprayed the blue paint areas, then sanded the sides again after the paint was dry, then laid on the new decals. It was a few days of work.
The decals all removed in 20 minutes from the heat gun and paint scraper
Quoted from Lermods:Can't remember. I've had them rolled up under my game the past three years. With that belt sander, I bet I could get the side decals off in an hour per side with 60 grit. I went back with 100, 150 and 220 grit. You really have to get all the roughness out as even small imperfections will show up. Also, never use wood putty to fill holes, especially if you do the wet method, as wood putty shrinks when water hits it and you'll get a divot. Use bondo!
Games is going to look great with the black armor.
Yes, use bondo, I found out about the wood filler the hard way with the wet method on the front of the cab,
The sides and the head got the dry method treatment.
Lermods, how did you line up the decal on the cab, the placement looks great!
Quoted from Lermods:Thx. I eyeballed and used the start button as a reference point. The start button has to be in the middle of the spiral, if it's not, it will look really bad. I spent a lot of time looking at it to make sure it was right. The front decal is very forgiving on the game with a lot of extra black around the top and sides.
Right on, it took resetting ES front decal about 10 times to get it spot on.
in order to protect your cabinet decals from the legs, you MUST use the metal leg protectors from Pinball Life...
after Decal placement, place the metal leg protector on the cab and bolt it on for placement,
score the decal around the protector,
remove the protector and remove the scored cut out decal,
replace the protector with the bolts on,
apply the screws to it that will hold it...
no more leg wrinkle.
Quoted from bigd1979:They are Screen printed cabs..... all were except mb and cc..... there were a few mb with sp tho. Screen printed cabs are much more durable and overall just better for many reasons.
My original Cv has decals, and Congo has sp
Quoted from wizard_mode:Ok I use these which serve the same purpose right? Is there something about the metal ones that is better for not wrinkling decals? Thx...
http://www.marcospecialties.com/pinball-parts/PINCAB-DB
No, unfortunately those just hide the wrinkles and possibly create more wrinkles, the metal ones sit under the legs and are completely hidden once the legs are installed... the metal ones hold the leg out 1/16" from the cab so nothing pushes against the decal to wrinkle it
I'm about to start fixing a friend TZ, it just has a few issues...
It resets a lot during game play, figured the wpc reset fix board would be good for this issue,
F112 fuse keeps blowing, I'll look for high resistance to see what the deal is
The power field doesn't work in game, the magnets work in test mode though; any help?
Quoted from Coyote:The game isn't seeing the ball enter the powerfield. Check the ''Mini Playfield Enter'' switch (#44).
Word, I'll check that, thank you
Quoted from cavalier88z24:Please let me where u found it and for how much? My game came with this ramp on it. I don't have the original and i havent seen another like it. Thank u. Also if you guys are looking for ingo clock board. Rob anthony stocks them for 150. I just purchased one with at mgc last week and he installed it.
That twist wireform is awesome! Was that a sample game piece? Anyone have info on that wireform? I'd like to have one to swap in too
Quoted from cavalier88z24:Good point. The previous owner installed more mods in this game then you shake a stick at. I'm de-moding it now
Quoted from nosro:I also want to know this. Did it slide straight in?
Quoted from merccat:Yeah, holy cow! Of all the ways I could think to haul a pinball, I don't think that way would come to mind... especially for a widebody.
Quoted from Neal_W:Welcome! How did you get that in there?
I removed the back seats, placed a few 1x4 skids in and she slid right in, room to spare! 2017 Toyota Tundra crew max, I tooled around Lubbock Tx today with ease after the pick up, then headed home, no problems... we did remove it from a basement in pieces, I still need to plug all the connectors into the boards
Quoted from No_Skill:The bed is for groceries and lumber. TZ rides up front in style.
Yup, the only thing that kept it in the back seat... the wife was in the front seat, otherwise it was going to be shotgun for TZ
Quoted from SilverballNut:I just use Goo Gone or De-Solv-It if it's being stubborn. Try to keep it off the decals as much as possible, but I haven't had issues with it. Apply to a paper towel, dab on, wait, scrub, scrape, repeat as needed. The more you can have on there without running the better.
I use a plastic razor blade along with it for scraping (or a credit card).
Thank you sir
Quoted from Rdoyle1978:Goo-gone will eventually damage the decal, so don't use a lot, and dont' let it drip, and DON'T put it on for too long. You do need to let it sit for a minute or two so it can break down the adhesive, but just gently work it with the credit card or the plastic blade, obviously don't use a metal blade
All good advice, I did all of the above, rubbed a few blisters on my fingers, but no big deal, no damage to the decals, the powder coat guy says he will blast the stuff off the rails.
I'm thinking I will do ink black and clear coat, anyone have any suggestions of flake or anything?
Quoted from Billy16:I have a GLM mini-switch kit I'm not gonna use--PM if interested.
Pm sent
Quoted from Billy16:I have a GLM mini-switch kit I'm not gonna use--PM if interested.
Guys, this is still available, I've decided to hold off on this mod for a bit... the pics look good, buy with confidence!
Quoted from AlexSMendes:I didn't quite understand your question...
The Great Lakes Modular Power Field switches 2.0 have an extra set of switches for "mods".
I'm guessing so something with lights can be connected to the switches as well, I'm curious to know what anyone has done with the ability to run a mod off them
Quoted from merccat:I might try hooking them up to some of GLM's post lights/flashers someday. First I have to get a switch set. My last email to him must have gotten lost.
I emailed them too
Quoted from lyonsden:You can take them off and install very easily without taking off the miniplay field. There is a plastic cover than screws it down at the back left of the mini playfield. Unplugging the lights is also easy without taking off the miniplay field. Now reaching the plug to plug it back in, that is a tight fit without at least loosening the mini playfield.
there's rivets to deal with still correct?
Quoted from BeaglePuss:Looks great though!
I plan on attempting to re-decal my TZ this summer, so I'm going to start picking people's brains now. What in particular sucked, and what (if anything) would you do differently the next time around? I'm dreading do it, but know that it will be so worth it once it's done.
There's nothing I'd do different... unless I learn some new stuff for next time
I remove the old decal with a scrapper and a heat gun
I used citristrip to aid in removing the old glue, as well as a scrapper and razor blades
I used bondo to fill in the gouges and nicks in the wood
Take some masking tape and tap the wood with the sticky part of the tape to remove any unwanted debris
I cut a small hole in the start button area to give me some guidance...
I used rapid tac
I used a hand held squeegee with felt on its edge to not scratch the decal
I removed 1/4 of the decals backing and sprayed it with rapidtac and applied and adjusted the decal until it was in a good place, then removed the rest of the backing to stick on the rest of the decal.
I used an exacto knife and a straight edge to trim everything.
This all took about 3, 1 hour sessions to complete
I still need to touch up some black areas on the edges with some paint and a small tipped brush
... and there is still some debris in the decal that didn't get removed, that's the frustrating part, despite all the prep, you really need a clean room to do this in. When I did my last game I pulled the game into the kitchen, it's the largest cleanest room in the house and everything went better
Quoted from merccat:It helps because it gives a consistent surface on which to apply the decal. With the decal being a single piece without the plug there it tends to want to veer off into the giant hole.
After re-decaling several arcade machines and now a few pinball machines, I have discovered that when doing the coin door area it is much much easier to apply the decal with the cabinet in its normal orientation, and the side decals are much easier when laid parallel to the floor.
Doing the coin door area in this way removes a lot of the problems of laying the decal on it with the coin door panel .
I decaled earth shaker with the coin door parallel to the floor, it took me about eight tries, even doing it wet to get it in the correct position, and I fought it wrinkling because of the coin door hole.
When I Decaled the coin door panel on TZ yesterday, it took me one try and about three minutes as opposed to the 30 minute ordeal with doing it the other way Decaled the coin door panel on TZ yesterday, it took me one try and about three minutes as opposed to the 30 minute ordeal with doing it the other way. No coin door plug needed, but others experience may differ.
I only do the wet method on small pieces, definitely dry method on big pieces
Quoted from KornFreak28:Thanks for the explanation! If it's not too much to ask, What do you use as a plug for the coin door hole?
You'd need to make a template and create a piece of wood.
If you will pull the backing of the decal and cut 1/4 of the backing off, then place it on the front exactly where you want it, then pull the rest of the backing off, use a squeegee and the rest will fall in place without the need of the plug
Quoted from KornFreak28:Got it. Thanks!
You're welcome, I apologize for not having pics of the process
Quoted from KornFreak28:Thanks for the help guys! I love this club! I was just confused about the gumball machine but now I feel great knowing how to do this properly. It's a very heavy machine so wish me luck! Only the wife is helping me on this move
You can do it dude!
Use a piece of stuff cardboard and it will help you slide it
Quoted from KornFreak28:Thank you! Using both cardboard and a moving blanket
Awesome, lol, I meant Stiff cardboard.
I've had my TZ for about 3 weeks now, I have yet to play a game on it, it's starting to get to me.
I'm waiting on powder coating and a few parts, I'm going to remove the gum ball machine and the mini pf and mod / update them.
I bought a new globe and yellow switch and the dazzler kit and chrome balls for the globe,
Has anyone done chrome balls for the globe?
I bought the glm v2 for the mini pf, but I don't know what mods to connect to the extra switches. Anyone have some ideas?
I'm also going to replace the under guard with something nice like a few guys did a few pages back.
Are there any MUST haves that I need to plan on before I finish off the cleaning/ modding??
Quoted from alistaircg:Got my ten dollar Robbie From Amazon
He looks really cool!
Make that bad boy light up!!
Quoted from arcadenerd925:had one of my pop bumper caps break. considering replacing them with LED options. Anyone with recommendations? pics?
I'd like to see this too, tired of the old one led in the pop
Quoted from AlexSMendes:Ugh... Please,
Alex, which pop lighting do you use?
I'm having a hard time, I don't like any of the options available
Quoted from AlexSMendes:I'm kinda old school when it comes to pop bumpers lighting... Just like coyote said, I think a colored 555 bulb looks very good! It's personal taste anyway, but I'm not fan of these "ufo" thing people are doing...
Yeah, not a fan either, except with a few select games
Quoted from KornFreak28:You doing a full restore on it? Restoration is part of the fun! Enjoy!
Not a full restoration, I had the armor powder coated and I cleaned and fixed a few things, still a few things to do... almost finished
Quoted from Lermods:It's powder coated except the coin door, which was sprayed.
I powder coated my coin door, I should have sprayed it... it got a little warped in the process
Quoted from Coyote:Wait.
Wasn't it *already* black?
Haha, yeah, it of course was. I wanted it to match the rest of the metal, still should have just sprayed it
Quoted from Coyote:Go back two pages. Literally. Page #88.
Ok, it's hacked... still don't understand what's wrong with it exactly
Quoted from Coyote:It's very interesting how your brain is trained. (Or at least mine?)
One of the things I wanted to do before the York show was to flip the wiring to the Spira and Gumball lamps. Since my game has the original Spiral plastic where the Gumball sign is, I figured, hey, let's reverse the lamps!
So I made a custom harness to easily flip the lights, without making any major permanent changes to my game. (I would LOVE to be able to make a custom ROM to handle this, but.. not sure I could.)
Easily done!
Start up a game - and it's just really strange - the lamp's meanings are reversed. See the gumball sign lamp on, and thing - oh, need to get the powerball out! - but no.
Evil genius!
Definitely solder the connections instead of continuing to use the connector, this will provide pure consistent connection
Is anything physically getting loose? Tighten up stuff??
Quoted from lyonsden:As seen on TV! I was cleaning some BBQ cookware with it and figured that since it works well for removing burnt on crap, it would make short work of the crud on a ceramic ball.
Is the ball still smooth as before?
Quoted from littlecammi:I'm astonished at the results.
Hehehe, I see what you did there
If any of you guys make a bracket and or plastic for the spiral, I'd like to buy both as well please
Quoted from Rdoyle1978:Has anyone played the Pinball Arcade version of the TZ ? I played it last night, and it is MUCH faster than my game. I have to assume that means my game isn't set up fast enough; but I wanted to hear what others thought about the pinball arcade version.
IMO, I think pinball arcade in general has terrible physics, I bought almost every table and eventually stopped playing it. Most of the shots feel programmed, i.e. I can hit the heartbeat ramp on bop consistently over and over in p.a.... on my real bop I can't do that perfectly.
Quoted from AlexSMendes:Last batch of "collect next spiral" signs arrived!
These will be sent to rdoyle1978 and silverballnut (2)!
Last batch!?
I guess there's an exclusive "collect next spiral" plastic club , hehe
Quoted from AlexSMendes:hehe, sorry... what I tried to mean is: this is the batch that just arrived.. hopefully there'll be a lot more to come... the next batch that may be ready in a couple of weeks will serve the orders I received from dluth and cavalier88z24.
I see now ... "Latest batch"
Well, I guess I'll join the club too if you're willing .
Let me know! Thanks man
Quoted from Rdoyle1978:The powder coat was somewhere in the middle as far as cost - maybe $600 all said and done. I bought all new hardware and had it sent directly. If you buy raw (unfinished) pieces they are cheaper so that saved me some money. I could have saved about $200 had I just send the original hardware but I didn't have time to remove it all. and I had a really crappy coin door sitting around that needed a lot of help.
$400 for powder coating??
I got the legs, lockdown bar, rails, coin door, shooter housing done for $175 local, they look great and they're clear coated, maybe you could find someone local, sure seems high
Quoted from DeafnDumb:I know this is kind of a long shot, but does anyone have a clean shooter rod cover that they would be willing to sell? Or if you know anyone that is parting out a TZ?
shooter housing?? I had mine powder coated, looks like a million bux
maybe you could do the same, or are you missing it entirely?
Quoted from Wharhed:Finally joined the club too! My buddy picked it up last week from a lady who had it sitting unused for the past 15 years. The playfield is a little dirty, but everything except the clock works. Still had the goodies bag stapled in the bottom!
I feel your pain on cleaning those subways, my CV’s were that black when I got it, almost couldn’t see through them. Fun times!
I put chrome balls the size of marbles in my gum ball machine, they look cool reflecting all of the lighting
Quoted from Cheeks:I did this as well, but snuck in a white one on each side so it looks like the gumball machine on the backglass.
Good idea, I thought about doing that, but I didn’t want to take away from the effect of the Powerball
Quoted from jawjaw:I have lithium batteries in a remote battery holder. Battery holder was like $20 and no modifications necessary. Battery holder sits where the coin box sits so easy access and far from boards. I don't really care about cost of batteries. Any battery should last a long while so it's not like you change them out often. Better to just get what works best. Nvram would be ideal but I do like the clock feature showing the correct time.
$20 for a battery holder!? I buy them 5 for $10 usually.
I like the clock feature too.
Quoted from Coyote:Keeping it short, since this is kinda off-topic, but found an error in my logic on the Ticket side, which *may* explain why, after connecting it up, I couldn't get the game to activate any outputs. With a jumper that I'll solder into place tonight, we'll see if that helps. Still can't test the serial part until i get my 8251A UART. So that will be a little ways off still.
You sir; win the mad scientist award
Quoted from Blitzburgh99:I keep getting balls jammed up in the gumball machine. Is there something missing in it that prevents them from jamming up, and where can I get it?
Sweet freaking camera!
Quoted from Rdoyle1978:Slowly starting a shop out ... while inspecting under the playfield i saw this... GULP!
Should I be concerned?!?!
[quoted image][quoted image]
I thought of Loyd Christmas immediately when I saw that sticker... as long as birds heads are not falling off and sampsonite brief cases still exist, I think you’re good
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Canfield, OH