Torrance, CA
I used MinWax stain to match some of my playfield. Used a combination of Clear and Ipswich Pine in several light coats.
(Topic ID: 33446)
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Quoted from vid1900:sand the unpainted area to bare wood
Curious your thoughts on the best way to sand around a masked area like that? Regular sanding block starting at 120 grit or so? Those tight corners kind of scare me.
Sana'a
Quoted from radial_head:Curious your thoughts on the best way to sand around a masked area like that? Regular sanding block starting at 120 grit or so? Those tight corners kind of scare me.
I use a straight edge, clamped to the playfield, to keep the Detail Sander from hitting the artwork.
The curved arch you can trace with paper, then cut a quick shield from 1/4" plywood or whatever scrap you have around the shop
63113_W3 (resized).jpgQuoted from Piso:pinballinreno, maybe a silly question. Would have filling the cracks and the insert gap with clear wood grain filler helped with dieback before clear coat?
At 10 weeks if the die back is severe, just dropper the low areas, respray, then sand and polish out.
Its a pinball machine, not a museum collectible.
Fix it, play the crap out of it, then fix it again.
Limassol
Quoted from Silverstreak02:I plan to start this Around the World playfield. Normally I leave the unpainted wood alone. This time I would like to hide the ugly ball track. The wear isn’t deep, just nasty looking. What can I do to make this look better?[quoted image][quoted image]
I had a similar problem and used shellac in alcohol. The nice thing about using shellac is that you can build the right shade gradually.
Hi all, I was wondering if anyone had any experience using 1shot paints or is Createx the gold standard?
Quoted from phototamer:I had a similar problem and used shellac in alcohol. The nice thing about using shellac is that you can build the right shade gradually.
How did you apply the shellac? Brush? Spray? I'm debating the best way to apply once I've gotten up the courage to sand out the ball trails..
Quoted from omnibuscortex:Hi all, I was wondering if anyone had any experience using 1shot paints or is Createx the gold standard?
All the 1shot that I have is solvent based, so make sure it plays nice with whatever clearcoat you are shooting.
Createx is ammonia based and works with everything I've ever covered it with.
Thanks Vid, Their website does does say you can topcoat with urethane clears as long as you make your first few coats light and dry....normal coats after. Did you notice if there is much color shift (not sure if that's the right term) when wet, dry or cleared?
Quoted from omnibuscortex:Did you notice if there is much color shift (not sure if that's the right term) when wet, dry or cleared?
I've only used it for lettering on glass.
Never thought to try it on a playfield; I'm probably spoiled by the "ready to spray" consistency of Createx
Quoted from vid1900:I use a straight edge, clamped to the playfield, to keep the Detail Sander from hitting the artwork.
The curved arch you can trace with paper, then cut a quick shield from 1/4" plywood or whatever scrap you have around the shop[quoted image]
Vid thanks for the detailed help. I like the idea of using wood shields to protect the existing artwork when sanding. I plan to buy a similar sander and make the shields. Welcome back.
Quoted from Silverstreak02:. What can I do to make this look better?
I scrape the old varnish off. With a scrapper. Its precise enought you dont need masking.
And the scraping leaves a superb patina on the venner.
Then i use amber shellac on the bare wood. Gives it a beautiful golden aged color.
Series of pics below show before and after on two different playfield. One of the playfields (Bally #See Saw) had a pretty ugly arc. Had to work it a bit with the scrapper. Took a few coats of clearing and sanding to make it flat again but worth the extra work.
The second one (Williams #Grand Prix)was better but still had an arc on it.
Here is a link to using a scrapper:
And here is a link to the shellac:
IMG_20150912_103429 (resized).jpgIMG_20151004_192332 (resized).jpgIMG_20151004_192352 (resized).jpgIMG_20160221_233906~2 (resized).jpgIMG_20180215_212619 (resized).jpgIMG_20180215_221629 (resized).jpgIMG_20180513_220141 (resized).jpg
Good morning, I am new the the pinball world of repair and restore. I recently picked up a world champ (it is in bad shape) and was told to use Millwax to clean up the playfield. I was thinking on clear coating the play field to help with the paint flaking. Now Finding this guide I feel like I have went in the wrong direction. The Millwax has filled in the cracks and has turned white. Now will I be able to clear the field after using Millwax?
wcpf1 (resized).jpgwcpf2 (resized).jpgQuoted from vid1900:I've only used it for lettering on glass.
Never thought to try it on a playfield; I'm probably spoiled by the "ready to spray" consistency of Createx
I know of several folks who use 1shot on playfields as it holds up well and is a top quality paint with very good pigment loads. You can use a lacquer clear on top, not sure about auto clears though. Always check on scrap prior to executing your plan on your particular table.
Quoted from Wyomingballer:Good morning, I am new the the pinball world of repair and restore. I recently picked up a world champ (it is in bad shape) and was told to use Millwax to clean up the playfield. I was thinking on clear coating the play field to help with the paint flaking. Now Finding this guide I feel like I have went in the wrong direction. The Millwax has filled in the cracks and has turned white. Now will I be able to clear the field after using Millwax?
[quoted image][quoted image]
I would use naphtha on a clean rug to clean the whole playfield along with a careful use of soft toothbrush to try and remove as much mill wax from the cracks.
Naphtha is safe to use and will probably remove most of the mill wax from the playfield.
thanks, I will probably finish getting this 100% working and play it for a bit. Then when I get some time get a clear coat on it.
Quoted from Dono:I know of several folks who use 1shot on playfields as it holds up well and is a top quality paint with very good pigment loads. You can use a lacquer clear on top, not sure about auto clears though. Always check on scrap prior to executing your plan on your particular table.
Thanks for the insight! I would definitely try it on a bit of scrap before committing it to a PF. After a bit more research I found that people have had trouble clearing 1shot if you lay your fist coats on heavy, allowing the solvents from the reducer more time to interact with the paint underneath. Also found that House of Kolor produces a similar paint intended as a base coat that can be cleared with normal auto clears, although they are quite a bit more expensive.
Quoted from omnibuscortex:Thanks for the insight! I would definitely try it on a bit of scrap before committing it to a PF. After a bit more research I found that people have had trouble clearing 1shot if you lay your fist coats on heavy, allowing the solvents from the reducer more time to interact with the paint underneath. Also found that House of Kolor produces a similar paint intended as a base coat that can be cleared with normal auto clears, although they are quite a bit more expensive.
No paint is applied with heavy initial coats, none.
So, if you do this expect terrible results.
Light misty initial coats to give the paint something to adhere to.
Quoted from vid1900:It's a lot more work, and probably a ton more fisheyes, but all is not lost.
Lots of work ahead! Thanks
Hey all - just FYI, I am documenting my Warlok restoration over here:
https://pinside.com/pinball/forum/topic/warlok-nos-playfield-full-game-restoration-
Slow going; most of the work is finished, I'm just waiting on a few last parts, and will try to write some new installments daily. It takes a fair amount of time for me because I tend to get into the weeds and am verbose on a good day. But I hope it's of interest...
Undertaking my first playfield swap on a friend's Diner. The original playfield is an absolute mess, the game was in a gentlemen's club for all it's life. It was never cared for and covered in nicotine. The picture below is the playfield I'm moving everything over to. It does have some wear at the top. After reading this guide, I'm going to try and repair this to make it look better. I have a couple of questions:
1) To get rid of the ball trail and the wear from the kickouts, would bondo filler be the best bet to get back to flat? After that do I prime the bondo or do I just paint over it with the fluorescent orange?
2) This leads to my next question, so far the closest match I have seen for that orange is from acrylic paints from the craft store. Is this OK to use with an airbrush?
I have not done either of these things before (airbrush or repair a gouge in a PF). I'm going to practice on the old, beat-up playfield first before making the final repair on the good playfield.
Thanks in advance
Alberto
_03_zoom (resized).jpgQuoted from Peruman:Undertaking my first playfield swap on a friend's Diner.
2) This leads to my next question, so far the closest match I have seen for that orange is from acrylic paints from the craft store. Is this OK to use with an airbrush?[quoted image]
When I did my diner restore, this orange worked matched well right out of the bottle, no adjustments needed
16107493039947112422675631909337 (resized).jpgQuoted from Peruman:1) To get rid of the ball trail and the wear from the kickouts, would bondo filler be the best bet to get back to flat? After that do I prime the bondo or do I just paint over it with the fluorescent orange?
If it's just paint wear trails, I usually just drip 2pac into it while I'm filling the cupped inserts, sand flush, paint
Deep wood damage that needs to be reshaped requires Fiberglass Resin (or Bondo for shallow repairs)
That "wood epoxy" that comes in a log you kneed into a single color is pretty handy for deeper damage - sands easier than Resin, but not as likely to chip as Bondo.
Here is a scanner I found but haven’t tried. It’s a see thru photo/document scanner that can scan 4”x6” images and includes an auto-stitch feature for bigger scans.
Vid, I wanted to thank you for all the tips and info here. I clear coated the Volley about a year ago with 2pac and it is still looking perfect.
Quoted from Murphdom:Here is a scanner I found
Last I knew these were discontinued and sold out everywhere. I had one in my shopping cart one night, went to complete the purchase the next day and they were all gone.. everywhere. Would be nice if they are available again, especially for anyone running an operating system newer than windows 95 or a Mac.
Quoted from BeachPickle:especially for anyone running an operating system newer than windows 95 or a Mac.
According to their website it still exists but who knows
Ottawa, ON
Quoted from Murphdom:According to their website it still exists but who knows
Says it is discontinued. I have one, super convenient since it runs on batteries. I grab it instead of the HP 4670 for small jobs. I have Windows 10 and the 4670 works fine for me with the 64-bit Vista drivers.
I have my cabinet finished and am testing it.
The playfield isnt in yet, Im testing only the cabinet. I test everything as I go.
Everything works and all switches test out and all votages are perfect. Chris hibler rebuilt all of the boards and they look like brand new.
Al loose or marginal IDC connectors have been replaced with trifucon.
Every wire is ohmed out from pin to end connector, all connections are positive.
There doesnt seem to be a test or fuse for the upper left flipper switch? The schematic shows both flippers in parallel?
Also the start button lamp doesnt flash yet, but the new switch tests out perfectly. But I only have the 2 cabinet harnesses plugged into the backbox boards.
Should the start button flash at this point? I see a diode in the circuit on the door interconnect board. I could jumper it....??
Is the start button lamp tied to J135 (not connected yet)? Mine is a later version Funhouse with Williams siderails and a 2 wire connector for the start button lamp at J136.
As always, any input helps a lot!
Thanks
Quoted from pinballinreno:I have my cabinet finished and am testing it.
The playfield isnt in yet, Im testing only the cabinet. I test everything as I go.
Everything works and all switches test out and all votages are perfect. Chris hibler rebuilt all of the boards and they look like brand new.
Al loose or marginal IDC connectors have been replaced with trifucon.
Every wire is ohmed out from pin to end connector, all connections are positive.
There doesnt seem to be a test or fuse for the upper left flipper switch? The schematic shows both flippers in parallel?
Also the start button lamp doesnt flash yet, but the new switch tests out perfectly. But I only have the 2 cabinet harnesses plugged into the backbox boards.
Should the start button flash at this point? I see a diode in the circuit on the door interconnect board. I could jumper it....??
Is the start button lamp tied to J135 (not connected yet)? Mine is a later version Funhouse with Williams siderails and a 2 wire connector for the start button lamp at J136.
As always, any input helps a lot!
Thanks
You may have a LOT more luck staritng a new thread with this, since this thread is about playfield restoration, and not overall debugging of machines. 
Quoted from Coyote:You may have a LOT more luck staritng a new thread with this, since this thread is about playfield restoration, and not overall debugging of machines.
Yep, wrong thread lol!
Question?
If I wanted to save the mylar covering a playfield, is there a way to deal with the air bubbles that have formed between the mylar and the playfield? I am not sure if this was addressed earlier. I really cannot risk removing the mylar on this game, so I need to deal with the air bubbles. Any way to flatten them?
Mike
Quoted from packie1:Question?
If I wanted to save the mylar covering a playfield, is there a way to deal with the air bubbles that have formed between the mylar and the playfield? I am not sure if this was addressed earlier. I really cannot risk removing the mylar on this game, so I need to deal with the air bubbles. Any way to flatten them?
Mike
Not really.
Quoted from packie1:Question?
If I wanted to save the mylar covering a playfield, is there a way to deal with the air bubbles that have formed between the mylar and the playfield? I am not sure if this was addressed earlier. I really cannot risk removing the mylar on this game, so I need to deal with the air bubbles. Any way to flatten them?
Mike
If the bubbles are more than a year old, you probably won't be able to get them to stick back down.
If they just happened (like you had a pin in a freezing garage for a few weeks), you can try a household iron with a 100% cotton pillowcase to protect mylar
Quoted from vid1900:If the bubbles are more than a year old, you probably won't be able to get them to stick back down.
If they just happened (like you had a pin in a freezing garage for a few weeks), you can try a household iron with a 100% cotton pillowcase to protect mylar
It's "Transporter - the rescue", So the bubbles are old, it was stored in not the best conditions but the playfield is damn near perfect. Looks like a good cleaning, waxing and call it a Rescue! (couldn't resist that!)
Thanks
Mike
Quoted from dr_nybble:Suggestions on addressing minor wear? There’s not much surface to adhere to. It would be painted and cleared after.
[quoted image]
That is so minor, I would touch it up with a paint pen and mylar over it.
Quoted from dr_nybble:Suggestions on addressing minor wear? There’s not much surface to adhere to. It would be painted and cleared after.
[quoted image]
I would mask the surrounding good painted area with the black lines as my boundaries. roughen up the are to be prepared ( maybe drill small holes with a Dremel) . Use 2 part filler holding a straight edge on the inside of the hole. Smooth the filler before it gets super hard , paint to match , clear.
I was removing the mylar from an Indians Jones playfield, and the clear over this insert came up.
Bummer.FA7D12F1-7669-43E9-8C55-8AAFAE00AC89 (resized).jpeg
I found the font and downloaded it.
Next, I scanned the arrow so that I could get the spacing right. I scraped off all the clear on the arrow, opened Adobe Illustrator, and traced the shaped and spelled out the text. I increased the stroke size and until I had letter outlines larger than the black text, cut that as a stencil on the Silhouette, and sprayed the white paint background.
A0CC449D-601B-41CB-B3CD-CDDAA2360ACB (resized).jpeg
Then I made a second stencil with the arrow key line and the black lettering. One could instead clear and then apply a decal, but I wanted to see if so could get this all done in one layer. It worked out well!
419DA913-A081-4287-90BB-D603EA053039 (resized).jpeg
Here’s some Warlok Porn:
C93683C6-5C12-4E7B-B0CF-61BEAE321119 (resized).jpeg159CB98A-27DF-472C-8BC8-1760321453B7 (resized).jpeg8F454538-B7A4-410E-99BB-6E5B34448EBF (resized).jpeg63FC9AB6-5C2A-4558-B364-91C64EC5A780 (resized).jpegED7D9DA4-DE03-4F20-8E5F-B82ADE386F99 (resized).jpeg26EEF1FE-38BD-41B3-AFB7-51653207A673 (resized).jpeg
F3FCABAB-0E22-48A1-BACB-2512575011A3 (resized).jpegQuoted from sethbenjamin:I scraped off all the clear on the arrow, opened Adobe Illustrator
How did you go about clearing the repair? Did you mask just the area you has scraped off and drop clear or did you sand the clear around and drop (or spray?!?) on the scrapped insert plus overlap on the existing sanded clear?
And after that, guess you had to sand down flat and repolish?
Quoted from Fred736:How did you go about clearing the repair? Did you mask just the area you has scraped off and drop clear or did you sand the clear around and drop (or spray?!?) on the scrapped insert plus overlap on the existing sanded clear?
And after that, guess you had to sand down flat and repolish?
The whole playfield is getting cleared twice. I don’t know that trying to “spot clear” would work very well; this will get sprayed and eye-droppered if necessary, then sanded, then cleared again. Might do a third coat, but only if it seems warranted.
1 week later
I’m about to replace all the inserts for my Around the World playfield. The smaller ones are very tight in the hole. They go in about 2/3 of the way by wiggling and then stop. Should I enlarge the hole or just force it down with a clamp after I epoxy the hole?
79AF2B43-86A0-4D4F-A252-33DFC7E231C8 (resized).jpegQuoted from Silverstreak02:I’m about to replace all the inserts for my Around the World playfield. The smaller ones are very tight in the hole. They go in about 2/3 of the way by wiggling and then stop. Should I enlarge the hole or just force it down with a clamp after I epoxy the hole?
[quoted image]
You have to sand the sides of the insert or the epoxy won't have any tooth to grab, so sand with 120grt and then see how tight.
If it's still tight at 2/3 down, I'd take a bit more material off the insert sides.
(remember to sand off those mold letters on the faces of the insert before you glue)
Quoted from vid1900:You have to sand the sides of the insert or the epoxy won't have any tooth to grab, so sand with 120grt and then see how tight.
If it's still tight at 2/3 down, I'd take a bit more material off the insert sides.
(remember to sand off those mold letters on the faces of the insert before you glue)
Ya, what he said. Don't be like me. It's not worth the stress.
Quoted from vid1900:You have to sand the sides of the insert or the epoxy won't have any tooth to grab, so sand with 120grt and then see how tight.
If it's still tight at 2/3 down, I'd take a bit more material off the insert sides.
(remember to sand off those mold letters on the faces of the insert before you glue)
Thanks Vid. I used new inserts for the picture, but have others that are prepped like you stated. Thanks to your earlier advice. This thread is my bible. They fit just like the picture shows. Instead of sanding the hole I’ll sand the sides of the insert more. Thanks for the help.
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